Toward the end of the call, Zelnick was asked whether he was concerned specifically about potential console price increases and their impact on the overall gaming ecosystem. This was referring to the recent price bump on Xbox Series consoles, and the expected PlayStation 5 increase that may follow.
Zelnick believes that confusing as the tariff back-and-forth is, Take-Two’s fiscal guidance is fairly set in stone, at least for the coming year:
“Our guide is for the next ten months, essentially, that’s the part of the fiscal year that hasn’t elapsed yet, and it’s very difficult to predict where tariffs will land, given how things have bumped around so far. We feel reasonably confident that our guide wouldn’t be meaningfully affected, unless tariffs ran off in a very different direction than we currently expect. In any case, there’s already a very substantial install base for all of our target platforms except Nintendo Switch 2, which is pre-launch. So we have, I think, enough insight that we wouldn’t be affected by any changes.”
Zelnick has reason to be confident. As he points out, most of the games Take-Two will release in the coming fiscal year are coming to platforms people largely already own. A few people buying or not buying an Xbox Series or a PS5 or even a Nintendo Switch 2 isn’t going to make a massive difference. What’s more, much of Take-Two’s revenue comes from digital purchases in ongoing games like GTA V, Red Dead Redemption 2, and its mobile business, which aren’t subject to tariffs at all.
Still, as Zelnick notes, everything is still up in the air. We’ve spoken to analysts numerous times over the last few months on the subject of tariffs, and all of them have reiterated that the situation is ever-changing and unpredictable, which even the CEO of Take-Two is leaving room for.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
As an ancient gamer (now 32), I’ve had plenty of experience playing Pac-Man. During my pre-teen years, many of my summer days were spent losing quarters to my local arcade, attempting to reach the mythical “split-screen level.” As a devoted fan of the franchise, I admittedly had reservations going into my PAX East preview of Bandai Namco’s new, unconventional take on the series, Shadow Labyrinth.
On paper, Shadow Labyrinth should not work. Pac-Man as a dark sci-fi metroidvania where he turns into a giant mech and shoots lasers out of his mouth sounds like bad gaming Wattpad fiction. Yet, that is exactly what it is…and Puck, Man, it was glorious.
The story takes place shortly after the events of the Prime Video animated short, Secret Wars, as the protagonist, the dark and brooding Swordsman No. 8, wakes up surrounded by monsters and aliens. He soon meets a mysterious figure known as Puck, a yellow circular creature who looks like he enjoys eating pellets, fruit, and blue ghosts. After a brief introduction, the duo vows to work together by combining their unique abilities of strength and mobility in the hopes that they can navigate the treacherous world and survive the darkness that awaits.
That darkness comes in many shapes and sizes, as the setting features a handful of different biomes, each with distinct personalities, backdrops, and characteristics. No two mazes in this 2D adventure will have the same layout, and enemy designs and types will change depending on the region that is being explored.
My preview started by placing me in an underground tech biome filled with various melee, flying, and ranged enemy types that could only exist underground, like bat-creatures and angry hedgehogs. Gameplay was straightforward and intuitive enough initially. Combat and dodging reminded me a lot of the original Castlevania titles, and its platforming elements are akin to a love child of Ori and the Blind Forest and Celeste, thanks to Puck’s ability to grapple onto spots, adding extra layers of maneuverability.
The story takes place shortly after the events of the Prime Video animated short, Secret Wars.
Combining the grapple with aerial attacks makes for interesting gameplay against enemies, especially when challenge rooms come into play. Like many other Metroidvanias, Shadow Labyrinth has rooms that will seal off once entered, requiring the Swordsman to defeat each combatant inside to unlock the room.
Enemies spawn in from all over the room, attempting to overwhelm with quantity and variety, making for a bullet-sponge-like environment. I frantically grappled to avoid ground foe charges while dodging flying enemies simultaneously, failing to do so multiple times, and needing to respawn.
After getting the hang of their patterns and placements, I grappled up and used melee attacks to chain movements in the air, then slammed my sword down from above on the enemies below, making for an immensely satisfying victory. While I only experienced two challenge rooms in this particular build, I was impressed with how difficult but rewarding each room was. But despite how much I enjoyed this, the true beauty of Shadow Labyrinth’s platforming and combat comes to light when Puck becomes the controllable character.
The platforming element of controlling Puck is both clever and nostalgic, as the Swordsman will morph into him and ride waves of electricity to help them move around areas otherwise blocked by environmental hazards or inaccessible heights. While riding the wave, you’ll move identically to the old Pac-Man games, but with an added twist.
Puck is still limited to moving left, right, up, or down on the violet electricity line, but he is no longer limited to a lined grid and can also stop, aim, and jump. While this might sound simple, it adds a new layer to movement and combat. Some challenge rooms even feature these lines, which can be used to execute sword attacks, creating an entirely new approach to beating each room’s combat puzzle.
My favorite instance of this occurred halfway through the preview during the Kaiju boss battle (yes, you read that right). The fight is similar to a challenge room in the sense that it blocks off any retreat, but this time it is a one-on-one fight, as the boss is much bigger than Swordsman No. 8. To combat the size difference, Swordsman No. 8 can use Puck’s ability to ride up the wall to not only get a height advantage and deal extra damage to the enemy’s horn weak spot, but also avoid massive laser attacks that would otherwise kill them both.
As it turns out, the boss isn’t the only one wielding a laser, which leads to my other favorite, absurd moment in this preview: Puck can turn into a giant mecha named Gaia. Yes, this is a Metroidvania Pac-Man game where you can control a Gundam and fight Kaiju. Again, this should not work, but it does so marvelously, resulting in an epic crescendo to a fever dream of a boss battle and transformation.
Even after the boss battle ended, there was still plenty to explore in Shadow Labyrinth. The first thing I unlocked afterward was a pared-down version of Gaia’s laser ability, which the Swordsman can use by holding down the charge button. Not only is this move great for dispelling large groups of foes blocking an area, but it can also be thrown into attacks in locations like the challenge rooms to make for some delightful combo kills.
Alongside the new power move, I also unlocked a new location featuring another strangely familiar-looking set of enemies that would begin to float through the level toward me until they touched the ground. At first, I was confused about how to beat them, as hitting them with a sword wasn’t working.
It wasn’t until I started listening to the music and sound effects and remembering why the enemies’ movements looked so familiar that a lightbulb went off: these are the Pooka from Dig Dug. Just like the 1982 classic arcade title, the only way to destroy Pooka is to stun and inflate it when they are materialized. After experimenting, it turns out that using Puck’s grapple ability on them to knock them out and then using it again to inflate them is the only way to kill them.
This is just one of the many references to Bandai Namco’s library of beloved arcade games, as the story and setting of Shadow Labyrinth are set to include plenty of references and modernized takes on a handful of other iconic games. While there was no hint or mention of which one it would be, the developers teased that the war-torn world of Shadow Labyrinth itself will be a major reveal as the narrative progresses.
The story and setting of Shadow Labyrinth are set to include plenty of references and modernized takes on a handful of other iconic games.
If you had told me back then that one day someone would make a Metroidvania version of everyone’s favorite Puck Man, I’d probably think you’re insane. After playing Shadow Labyrinth at PAX East 2025, that statement is probably still true, but I’m right there beside you, enjoying the insanity.
Whether it is the fluidity of Puck’s grappling hook and wall traversal combined with Swordsman No. 8’s raw power and durability, or the fact that Pac-Man can turn into a mech that shoots lasers out of its mouth, everything about this Metroidvania is absurdly fun. The game features something for everyone here, as the platforming, combat, and puzzles each stand out on their own as enjoyable experiences.
I implore you to suspend your disbelief about how this bizarre concept can even work, and at least give Shadow Labyrinth a try when it is released, as this insane creative bet by Bandai looks like it might actually pay off.
What changed in those few months? That’s what I asked Zelnick in a new interview to coincide with Take-Two’s just-published financial results. He said that as GTA 6 got closer to launch, the need for more polish “became clear.”
“As we get closer to completion of a title that’s seeking perfection, the needs or lack thereof, for continued polish become clear,” Zelnick said. “In this case there was an opportunity with a small amount of incremental time, we thought, to make sure Rockstar Games achieves its creative vision with no limitations. And I supported of course that approach.”
GTA 6’s delay outside Take-Two’s current financial year into the next is a blow for the company’s numbers in the short term, but Zelnick told me he still feels really good about what he has coming up, including Gearbox’s Borderlands 4, Hangar 13’s Mafia: The Old Country, and of course new games in its NBA 2K and WWE 2K franchises.
“I feel really good about how Fiscal 26 looks sitting here today,” he said. “And while of course, delays pain me — how could they not? — the most important thing to do is to support your teams in their search for perfection.”
Now, the obvious next question is a repeat of what I asked Zelnick back in February: how confident are you that Rockstar will hit May 26, 2026? This time around, Zelnick sounded even more certain:
“I think historically when we set a specific date, generally speaking, we’ve been very good about reaching it.”
That, to me, is saying GTA 6 won’t be delayed without actually saying it. Never say never, of course, but now GTA 6 has an actual release date, it would be a pretty big shock if it slipped again.
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.
Dungeons & Dragons is an iconic brand, a brand to contend with, a brand that’s launched a million fantasy campaigns across a million unique worlds of their player’s devising. Yet for all its popularity and success there are times when every player and dungeon master has thought: isn’t it all a bit too much work? Wouldn’t it be nice if we could have all the fun exploration, and exciting combat, and satisfying looting and levelling up without having to put in quite so much effort into world-building and rules overhead?
Well the answer is yes: play a board game instead. There are dozens and dozens of board games that riff on the basic premise of the fantasy quest, but a large number of them are either too abstract to truly scratch that itch, or so complex that they’re essentially a lifestyle commitment in their own right. Here is a selection of titles between those two extremes that fit the bill perfectly, from licensed spin-offs to stone classics, for those nights when you want the fantasy, but you don’t want playing to be a heroic quest in its own right.
Featured in this article
Want a clean list without the blurbs? The horizontally scrolling catalog above has you covered. But if you want some info about each of the games, read on.
D&D Waterdeep: Dungeon of The Mad Mage Adventure System
If you really want a board game that re-creates the Dungeons & Dragons experience, there’s no better place to start than the Adventure System games, which are literally a slimmed down version of the 4th edition rules in a box, with a board. There’s no DM to run the game: you pull tiles at random as you explore the dungeon and monsters behave according to simple, yet varied, AI routines printed on their cards. But there’s still a narrative campaign, divided into individual scenarios, with secrets to uncover, monsters to kill, and treasures to loot. Dungeons of the Mad Mage is the most recent set, but there’s a range of these and they’re all a blast to play.
HeroQuest Game System
Although one of the fun things about D&D board games is often the fact that you don’t need someone to take the DM’s role, having someone to narrate the experience and control the bad guys can make the experience richer for all involved. And if you do want to retain that role, this modern reprint of 1989 classic HeroQuest has you covered. Mechanically it’s almost exactly the same, with one player controlling the evil wizard and his minions, while the others are heroes, exploring a series of dungeons on their quest to gain experience and treasure and end the evil once and for all. As a bonus it’s also pretty simple, making a great choice for a parent to play with their kids (also see our picks for more family board games).
Clank! Legacy: Acquisitions Incorporated
Both our previous picks are pretty old-school games. If you want something more modern, consider this version of the fantastic deckbuilding game Clank! It has both the branding of the hugely popular Dungeons & Dragons podcast Acquisitions Incorporated and the legacy structure meaning the game is a campaign that changes the components physically as you progress, ensuring your copy, and your adventures with it, are wholly unique. The game itself marries the exciting, chaotic deck construction and adventure of the original with a more considered, characterful narrative framework, full of surprises and humor. For more, see our Clank! buying guide.
Dungeons & Dragons Onslaught
While the Adventure System games above tried to slim down 4th edition D&D in a traditional adventure game format, Onslaught ports the 5th edition rules into a skirmish board game where two adventuring parties fight for dominance in a dungeon room. While this isn’t exactly how the role-playing game tends to run, every player has had a full-on party-on-party clash at least once in their gaming career, and the game thoughtfully includes treasure chests to loot and characters to level to make it feel more authentic. Plus, the tabletop translation of the well-loved 5th edition rules is really engaging and tactically challenging.
Descent: Legends of the Dark
There are an increasing number of modern adventure titles that farm the task of running the game out to an app, leaving players free to enjoy the mysteries and advance their characters through the campaign. Descent: Legends of the Dark is perhaps the most advanced in every respect. The app is very comprehensive, revealing dungeons, controlling monsters, narrating downtime and even tracking your resources to feed into an item construction feature. The physical components meanwhile, are outstanding, with a fully 3D cardboard dungeon and superbly detailed miniatures bringing the adventure to life on your tabletop.
The Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-Earth
Dungeons & Dragons is well known to have counted Tolkien’s epic novel amongst its inspirations. So a board game that includes both overland and dungeon adventures alongside combat and character advancement certainly counts as a parallel. Fortunately there’s a lot more to enjoy under the hood: this is another app-driven affair, letting the players focus on the fun, while also taking the time to challenge the group with puzzles and riddles that simply wouldn’t be possible in purely physical production. Set in the time between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings books, it allows players to create a little slice of Middle-earth that is all their own.
Tiny Epic Dungeons
One thing that unites all the picks so far – aside from their similarity to D&D – is an eye-watering price-point. If you want a dungeon crawl on the cheap, look no further than this cute entry in the popular Tiny Epic series, which consistently succeeds in shrinking big themes down into small boxes. A band of heroes ventures into a unique dungeon in an attempt to level up enough to challenge the boss, but they’re up against a tough timer as their torch burns down. With a snappy playtime and a novel combat system that gives you the chance to mitigate bad results, it really feels like a huge dungeon unfolds from this very modest box.
Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion
You might have heard of Gloomhaven and Frosthaven, two of the – literally – biggest and most acclaimed board games around. What powers their popularity is the beguiling mix of adventure narrative, challenging tactics and novel mechanics, with each class given a unique deck of cards from which you have to mix and match two of your actions each turn. They’re both RPG-length campaigns in their own right but they have a little sibling, Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion, which gives you all that mechanical goodness at a fraction of the cost and with a much more manageable campaign. Plus it’s a prequel, so if it gives you a taste for the longer fare you can jump right in and continue the story.
Legacy of Dragonholt
You’re likely familiar with the concept of choose-your-own-adventure books, where you read a paragraph of text and make choices at the end about which numbered paragraph to flip to next, thereby telling your own version of the story. Legacy of Dragonholt expands that concept multifold and makes it multiplayer, creating a hugely detailed campaign with a dizzying number of options and branch points. Add in an activation token system that lets everyone have their place in decision making as well as some strategic nuance over what skills and abilities to deploy and you’ve got the ultimate text adventure to enjoy with friends, although it also works as a good solo board game for that classic old-school feel.
Betrayal at Baldur’s Gate
This one’s a little different from the fantasy quest fare that dominates the rest of the list, but it still evokes the feeling of a certain kind of D&D session and it has the Forgotten Realms branding, so it’s a close fit. Your team of heroes starts out working together to explore the cursed city of Baldur’s Gate by flipping tiles and looting items but, at some point, a haunt will begin. This is revealed from a narrative book which will give you the win conditions for your game and often pits one player as a traitor, working against the others. It’s an exciting setup with tons of variety that often boils down to a thrilling conclusion of heroism trying to win out against the encroaching darkness.
Dungeons & Dragons: Bedlam in Neverwinter
Another off-the-wall pick that focuses on the puzzle aspects of dungeoneering over the adventure, this is an escape-room style board game which sees you having to figure out a variety of traps, tricks and riddles as you investigate a mystery in the iconic Icewind Dale setting. It’s aimed at all ages, and is only playable once, after which you can trade or sell it, but it’s got a unique spin on the genre which mixes in some simplistic exploration, role-playing opportunities and combat mechanics for that real tabletop RPG flavor, and the unfolding narrative builds toward an epic conclusion.
Matt Thrower is a contributing freelance writer for IGN, specializing in tabletop games. You can reach him on BlueSky at @mattthr.bsky.social.
Nintendo opens its San Francisco store today, May 15, in Union Square at 331 Powell Street. Nintendo San Francisco is the second official Nintendo store in the United States, and follows the hugely popular New York location, which was formerly known as the Nintendo World Store, but closed down for renovations and rebranding as Nintendo NY before reopening in 2016.
IGN went along to the San Francisco store to check out what Nintendo has… in-store. And we also sat down with Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser to talk about why the company has opened its first store on the West Coast now.
Of course, we had to ask about all things Nintendo Switch 2, which launches on June 5. So we quizzed Bowser on the Switch 2’s availability in the U.S. at launch and beyond, those controversial Game-Key Cards, and plenty more.
Doug Bowser: So were you just downstairs [at the store]?
IGN: Yes, I was.
Bowser: What are your thoughts?
IGN: I think it’s great. It reminds me so much of the [Nintendo stores] in Japan. I really like the vibe of it and the large statues, and you can buy the miniature versions, I think that’s really nice.
Bowser: You picked up on that.
IGN: Yes, absolutely.
Bowser: That’s great.
IGN: So, to get started, congrats on opening Nintendo San Francisco.
Bowser: Thank you.
IGN: It’s exciting to see all that stuff that Nintendo fans have just longingly looked at from Japan finally come overseas to the States. So walk me through it – how did this all come together? Why now, and why was San Francisco the pick for the first public store on the West Coast?
Bowser: Well, you hit on one important point. We were looking for an opportunity to open a store on the West Coast, and as we looked at possible cities for us, San Francisco just kept coming to the top of the list for a couple of reasons. First of all, it’s a vibrant city, it’s got a very, very high level of traffic. And it also draws from around the Bay Area, a lot of consumers, into the core of the city. And then Union Square itself is, of course, the center of the shopping district within San Francisco, a pretty iconic location being within the same building as the Westin St. Francis Hotel, which is obviously very iconic. And so for us, it just felt like a perfect location to open a store on the West Coast.
IGN: Do you see Nintendo San Francisco becoming kind of a hub for Nintendo fandom? Much like how Nintendo New York hosts the Nintendo Direct watch parties. What can fans expect from this location?
Bowser: Well, as we look at Nintendo San Francisco, similar to the other stores, we view them as an opportunity, really, to immerse our fans in the world of Nintendo, our characters, our worlds, our products. But we also look at these stores as a gathering place, where people can come together, discover, if you will, new items, discover new games as they’re released. And yes, from time to time, when either we have Directs, or we have releases, use the store for an event space, if you will, for people to gather and celebrate whatever that event might be.
IGN: Any plans for Nintendo Switch 2 launch day?
Bowser: We will be selling Switch 2 at the Nintendo San Francisco Store. No plans yet to announce as to the release. However, I would encourage anybody to look either at our social media sites, which is @NintendoStoreUS, or you can look at Nintendo.com for more information.
IGN: It’s obviously just setting up to be a huge year for your company. This week it’s a store, next week you’re opening a theme park, and then two weeks after that is a new console. I imagine you’re all just really tired all the time. But there’s more than that, too. You have a movie coming next year, you have live events like Nintendo Live, where you and I first spoke. Nintendo’s always been an entertainment company, but with all this expansion, how has the way you view Nintendo internally and define your company’s mission changed over the last several years?
Bowser: I don’t think the mission has actually changed. Our mission is very simple, to create smiles. If you think about our strategy and how do we support that mission, it’s about incrementing the number of touch points that consumers can have with our IP, whether it’s our characters, our world, through a variety of experiences. And I think you hit on it as an entertainment company, while the core of our business model, if you will, is video games, we also look at opportunities like movies, theme parks, or even stores like Nintendo San Francisco as a place for people to have that immersion and those experiences with our IP overall. So to your point, we’ve got a series of events that are coming up this year. But it’s really just a wonderful opportunity for us to engage with consumers in a host of different ways and, frankly, to build on their affinity and their love and their passion for our characters.
IGN: And I think part of building on that passion and how you’ve done that the last several years has led to what’s been arguably Nintendo’s most successful console generation ever. And as it’s been very successful for Nintendo, we’ve seen many struggles across the rest of the industry. A lot of other video game companies are facing layoffs or budget cuts and things of that nature. So as you turn your attention towards transitioning your audience to Nintendo Switch 2, what is Nintendo’s strategy to protect itself from the hardships that so many other video game companies are facing? And how does expanding awareness of your IP and diversifying your business – through things like the store or the theme parks – kind of all play into that strategy?
Bowser: A few thoughts on that topic. First of all, I’d go back to what we just discussed around just being an entertainment company and increasing the number of touch points we have as consumers. Just there with that strategy, we’re able to build that affinity that we just talked about. And hopefully, as people engage in our content, whether it’s inside the video game space or outside the video game space, there’s a desire to continue that relationship and that engagement. As we look at Nintendo Switch 2, we believe by having a next generation platform with very, very strong gameplay capabilities, social capabilities with GameChat, and with strong content like Mario Kart World or Donkey Kong Bananza – which we talked about during our Direct last month – we have this ability to bring consumers in and really build a longer term relationship with them through their gameplay experiences and through their other experiences.
IGN: I do have a few more questions about the store, but while we’re here, I’d like to dig a little bit more into Nintendo Switch 2. Nintendo’s latest financial report forecasts 15 million units shipped in its first fiscal year. Will Nintendo be able to meet demand in the U.S. at launch?
Bowser: [Nintendo President] Mr. [Shuntaro] Furukawa last week announced that we’ll have 15 million units in our forecast for Nintendo Switch 2 and 4.5 million units for Nintendo Switch during the fiscal year. That forecast was really driven by wanting to match, if you will, what we accomplished with Nintendo Switch in the first 10 months of its release. As we look at our plans here in the U.S., we do believe we’ll have production and supply that will allow us to meet consumer demand. We know there’s been strong positive reaction to Nintendo Switch 2 early on and we’ve seen that through our preorders, but we do have a plan to have a continuous flow of product that’ll be available through the holidays.
IGN: So that’s availability, which is one huge factor, and obviously the other big factor is price. And Mr. Furukawa has raised concerns about possible impacts of tariffs on Nintendo Switch 2 and the American people’s spending power, while also noting that the forecast was not affected by tariffs or production limitations. The tariff situation is constantly changing in the United States, and with all this uncertainty, I think that some consumers are worried that if they can’t find one at launch, the price will have gone up in six months or a year when they do find one. So I’m wondering, to what extent can you commit to Switch 2’s $450 price tag for both launch and beyond?
Bowser: Well, we made a commitment by announcing the pricing of both the single SKU at $449 and then the bundled SKU with Mario Kart World at $499. And we really thought it was important that we established that price point, even after further tariffs were announced, to give consumers that comfort that they would be able to purchase at that price point. Obviously, it’s still a very fluid situation and it’s difficult to determine what may be happening in the upcoming months or weeks. But our commitment is to find ways within existing market conditions or changing market conditions to make our products, including Nintendo Switch 2 hardware, as obtainable as we possibly can.
IGN: Was that part of the strategy, when you had the preorder delay, and you kind of went back to the drawing board and talked about prices for all these things, you come back, the console stays the same, accessories go up a little bit, and the more niche hardcore things like amiibo go up a lot. Did that kind of play into that? You want to leave the ground floor as accessible as you possibly can for people and kind of charge up elsewhere?
Bowser: It was part of many considerations. First of all, and Mr. Furukawa talked about this during his earnings announcement, our production for U.S. supply is in Vietnam, so much less impacted by tariffs as, say, China. However, some of our accessories are produced in China. And as a result, there was a need to take some pricing on those accessories as we looked towards launch and beyond. But that is a bit of the strategy is to really understand one: market conditions, two: origin of production, as we make those pricing decisions.
IGN: And you’re right, you mentioned earlier that the preorders showed how high demand is for Switch 2, and that’s been a very positive story for you guys over the last couple of weeks. But prior to that, about a month ago, I think undoubtedly one of the biggest talking points following the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct was some backlash over the software pricing, specifically Mario Kart World costing $79.99, a price that did not change coming back after the preorder delay. Internally, were you all expecting that level of backlash over the price, what were those conversations like?
Bowser: Really, the conversation centered around, “What is the right price to charge for a software experience?” We look at things such as the content, we look at the extended amount of play that would be provided through the gameplay experiences, we look at a number of different factors as we consider what the pricing may be. And so we felt that the price that we charge for Mario Kart World really does equal the value of the gameplay experience. But as you also saw, that was one price point. For Donkey Kong Bananza, our price point was set at $69.99.
IGN: So back to the original question, were you expecting that level of backlash over the Mario Kart World pricing announcement?
Bowser: I think any time you take price, make pricing decisions, there’s a level of backlash. But I’d love to focus now on the store.
IGN: Okay, yes, understood. Well then I will ask, I noticed on the top floor of the store, you can customize your Nintendo Switch as you can, I believe, at a Japan store as well.
Bowser: That’s correct, yes.
IGN: Can fans expect similar customization options at the Nintendo San Francisco store for Switch 2 in any capacity?
Bowser: Yeah, well today obviously we’re offering fans the ability to customize an OLED model, whether it’s through the docking station, through the Joy-Con selection, and even through the strap selection. As we look forward, right now with Nintendo Switch 2, there’s only two SKUs that are being offered right now, and one color of Joy-Con being offered right now. So the customization abilities would be somewhat limited, but that’s something we’ve looked for in the future.
IGN: Okay. And then in this decade, as we’ve talked about, you’ve expanded into movies, theme parks, more dedicated retail like Nintendo San Francisco, and beyond. So what’s next? More retail locations like Nintendo San Francisco? Are there other avenues Nintendo is exploring to continue to expand its reach as an entertainment business?
Bowser: So I think you touched again on a couple of important points. One, as we look to expand into other forms of entertainment, whether it’s movies, theme parks, or stores, for us what’s important is that we offer unique experiences. So even if you look at Nintendo San Francisco, while you mentioned there’s some similarities to the Nintendo stores in Japan, there are also some differences. And we look at each location to be able to offer different experiences in the store, also different merchandise within the store, such as some of the exclusive merchandise that you can find here, that you wouldn’t be able to find in other stores. And so we’re always looking to make sure that each one of those experiences is somewhat unique in nature. And I can’t speak to what future projects may be, I would just say stay tuned. But obviously there’s a host of opportunities that we have available across all those various forms of entertainment I mentioned.
IGN: I noticed in the store there are a lot of physical games for sale for Nintendo Switch. And I look at your business reports every quarter, and I see that physical is still roughly half, sometimes more, sometimes a little bit less, of your software sales business. And there’s been big changes to physical and digital game management recently, with Virtual Game Cards, and Game-Key Cards as we see upcoming on Nintendo Switch 2. Moving forward, is physical still going to be a big part of your business, or do you see the Game-Key Cards – where the actual game itself isn’t on the cartridge – as kind of the future?
Bowser: In the immediate future, physical games are still a key part of our business. And we value our relationships in particular with our retailers, and want to make sure we have products available for them to sell to their consumers. When you look at Game-Key Cards, for us, our goal with Nintendo Switch 2 – similar to what we were able to accomplish on Nintendo Switch – is to have the broadest and deepest library of content we possibly can. And that includes our publishing partners. And Game-Key Cards are a way that our publishing partners are able to bring more content onto the platform, deeper and larger, more immersive content on the platform.
IGN: Another thing I noticed in the store is right now, it is very Nintendo Switch focused. I think the only mention of Switch 2 that I saw was on a TV screen, there was a commercial for it playing, and that makes sense, it’s not out yet. But you mentioned that you’re forecasting still to sell roughly 4.5 million Nintendo Switch consoles in the next fiscal year. As we move forward, you also have a couple of Switch games announced for this year, and a couple scheduled for next year with Rhythm Heaven Groove and Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream. For those who aren’t ready to adopt Nintendo Switch 2 yet, will 2026 mark the end of Nintendo Switch as a big focus of the business, or will these two pillars – Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 – continue to coexist alongside each other into 2027 and potentially further than that?
Bowser: I resist putting time parameters around it. I think what Mr. Furukawa talked about last week was, we will continue to support Nintendo Switch including – as you mentioned – bringing new games onto the platform. The other thing I would mention is, as you look at Nintendo Switch 2, one of the benefits of Nintendo Switch 2 is that ability not only to play the new content that we’ll bring into the platform, like Mario Kart World or Donkey Kong Bananza or the host of publishing partner titles that we’ve already announced, but you’ll also be able to play content from Nintendo Switch on the platform. So we’re really looking for an opportunity for consumers to engage with us in a variety of different ways and a variety of different platforms.
IGN: Here’s a fun one to end on, what’s your favorite thing for sale in the entire Nintendo store?
Bowser: [Laughs] I’m wearing it. It’s the reversible The Legend of Zelda bomber jacket, it is absolutely one of my favorite items.
IGN: Nice.
Bowser: But there are a host of other items. I’m gonna have to restrain myself a bit as I walk through the store and shop.
IGN: Yeah, I know that some of my coworkers walked out after buying bags and bags full of stuff.
Bowser: There’s a couple of things as we think about the shopping experience. I mean, first of all, there is some of the exclusive merch. You noted the smaller figurines that match the statues that we have throughout the store. There’s also obviously very exclusive Nintendo San Francisco merchandise, whether it’s T-shirts, hoodies or caps. But the other product lines that I really enjoy are kind of the unique takes on some of your favorite IP. Whether that’s some of the Super Mario kitchen wear or the one that I really enjoy is the backpack for Splatoon that looks like an ink tank. So there’s a lot of very unique variations of products based on gameplay experiences.
IGN: Yeah, that actually leads to another question here. I was at the Nintendo New York store a couple of weeks ago. I noticed most of what’s in Nintendo New York is also available online on the My Nintendo store. Much of what’s available at Nintendo San Francisco is not currently available online. This inventory here of things that were previously exclusive to Japan that have now come over to the States, are there plans to list those products online on the My Nintendo store?
Bowser: We plan to use all of our retail locations, whether it’s Nintendo San Francisco, Nintendo New York, or the My Nintendo store, to help us share a lot of variety of merchandise with our consumers. But we may not share all of the same variety of merchandise. So for instance, for Nintendo San Francisco, there will be unique merchandise that you can only purchase here. The same would apply to Nintendo New York, and it may also apply to the My Nintendo store. So it really provides consumers this opportunity, if you will, to treasure hunt at the various locations to find those products that they’re really excited about.
IGN: There are a lot of amiibo at the Nintendo San Francisco store as well, in some cases, ones that have not been in print for many years.
Bowser: Many years, yes.
IGN: Are there plans to put those out into wider retail, at other retail partners, or is it the idea that you come to the Nintendo store to find these now, kind of rare, Nintendo products?
Bowser: We wanted to provide an experience for consumers here at Nintendo San Francisco that would be unique, and allow them to engage in our content, and particularly find those amiibo, maybe that they haven’t been able to round out their collection with. But nothing to share regarding any plans with retailers at this time.
IGN: Last question, it’s not about the store, but I hope you’ll humor me, because we’ve bonded over this. The partnership with the Seattle Mariners, you’re the first jersey patch for the Seattle Mariners, and this partnership between Nintendo and the Mariners dates back to the 1990s.
Bowser: Yes it does.
IGN: I would just love some insight into how that came together, who approached who, and how did this partnership reach the next level with this collaboration?
Bowser: Well, as you noted, our relationship with the Mariners goes all the way back into the 1990s, and we’re quite proud of that relationship. And we were approached by the Mariners with this opportunity, and as we both sat down and started to talk about it and the possibilities, it just seemed like a natural fit, a perfect fit for us. So we’re really excited to be associated with the team, and we think it’s a wonderful opportunity to share our passion for the city, and at the same time, really help fans learn more about Nintendo and Nintendo Switch 2.
IGN: Any plans for more collaborations beyond the jersey patch, maybe something at the ballpark?
Bowser: Nothing that we’re gonna talk about today.
IGN: Thanks so much, Doug. I appreciate the time.
Bowser: Thanks, Logan, I appreciate it very much.
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images.
Parts of this interview were edited for clarity.
Logan Plant is the host of Nintendo Voice Chat and IGN’s Database Manager & Playlist Editor. The Legend of Zelda is his favorite video game franchise of all time, and he is patiently awaiting the day Nintendo announces a brand new F-Zero. You can find him online @LoganJPlant.
Blue Protocol may have been shut down last year, but it lives on in a new form now with Blue Protocol: Star Resonance. Publisher A Plus unveiled the new MMORPG today, and it’s set for launch sometime in 2025.
Blue Protocol: Star Resonance is an anime-inspired MMORPG, with action combat and an open world to explore, targeting PC on both Steam and the Epic Games Store, as well as iOS and Android. Currently, the game is set to launch in Europe, North America, and Latin America sometime in 2025.
Per Gematsu, Blue Protocol: Star Resonance was previously only announced for China. It was licensed to Bokura, the developer, after the closure of Blue Protocol and picked up some members of the original team in the process. Now, Star Resonance looks to be heading to new territories.
You’d be forgiven for thinking Blue Protcol: Star Resonance is the original Blue Protocol, as the gameplay and world look very similar. The original Blue Protocol was a collaboration between Amazon Games and Bandai Namco. The MMORPG went live in Japan and was planned for a worldwide release. IGN even previewed it in 2023, calling it “gorgeous” and “cool.”
“We have enjoyed a strong relationship with Amazon Games throughout the development of Blue Protocol, and both of our teams are disappointed that we will not be able to deliver the game to players around the world,” Bandai Namco said in a statement at the time. “We have worked hard to prepare for the release; however, we have come to the conclusion that it will not be possible to provide a service that satisfies all of you.”
Cut to now, and Blue Protocol: Star Resonance bears all the hallmarks of Blue Protocol. There’s the anime-inspired aesthetic, action combat, character customization, and community events. This, in essence, may just be the return of Blue Protocol for those who were interested in seeing it arrive in the west.
While this news might feel like seeing the ghost of old games past, it might be some good news for anyone who didn’t get the chance to try Blue Protocol before its closure. Maybe the second time’s the charm? We’ll know for sure when Blue Protocol: Star Resonance arrives sometime this year.
Atlus has revealed its free-to-play spinoff, Persona5: The Phantom X, is coming to PC and mobile devices June 26, 2025.
The Persona series developer announced a release date for its latest Persona 5 spinoff with an hour-long breakdown video today. It’s being developed as part of a collaboration between Atlus, Sega, and Perfect World and reintroduces players to the Phantom Thieves along with new faces, too.
Japanese and English versions of Persona5: The Phantom X will launch simultaneously next month, but this scaled-down story from the Persona 5 universe isn’t completely new. It was announced in 2023 and originally launched in China in 2024. The live-service title’s developers have continued to iron out the kinks since then, and now, it’s finally ready to reach new audiences.
“Encompassed in the unique turn-based RPG gameplay and setting of Persona 5, players will lead a double life as a student and a Phantom Thief with a brand-new protagonist and band of Phantom Thieves,” an official description from Atlus says. “During the day, players will build up life experience as a student and engage in various activities such as hanging out with your friends and part time jobs, while at night, they will sneak into the cognitive dungeons to steal Treasures and change the twisted desires of corrupt adults!”
If you’re a Persona 5 fan, you’ll be happy to know The Phantom X still features that game’s stylish turn-based gameplay. Players can also look forward to exploring jobs and extracurricular activities while enjoying new mini-games unique to this specific entry. Atlus wants you to know this is a tried-and-true Persona experience, as it confirms its involvement in writing and supervising some of the original side stories the game offers.
Persona5: The Phantom X will be viewed through the eyes of an entirely new protagonist as well as a new collection of Phantom Thieves, but Joker and other original Phantom Thieves members will show up via special contracts, too. Players will also be free to take advantage of new modes, including a PvE mode called The Velvet Trials as well as new Mementos and a new Guild feature.
“However, one regret we have is that we had to take this long to be able to announce a Western release,” Sega’s Jun Matsunaga said during the video presentation, “and we’re very sorry to our Western fans for keeping them in the dark for so long. As we know, this game was originally developed by Perfect World in China. When we first started to plan for a global release, for a series like Persona that is very popular in the West, we wanted to make sure that for a Western release, everything in the game from the setting to the tone of story matched the standard Western fans had for a Persona game.”
Persona 5 launched all the way back in 2016 and has received a plethora of spinoffs since. These include crossovers with other titles such as Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, as well as standalone experiences, such as Persona 5 Strikers, Persona 5 Tactica, and Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight. We’ve heard little about what a potential Persona 6 might entail, but you can still read up on everything we know about it here.
Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
The wait is over, as Doom: The Dark Ages is now available to play. If you haven’t picked up the game yet, we’ve got even better news: It’s already on sale for Xbox and PC so you can save some cash before jumping in. Fanatical and GMG are offering a nice little discount on it right now for PC players (17% off down to $58.09) while Newegg is offering an Xbox digital code for $10 off with promo code EPESA522 (dropping it to $59.99).
No better time than now to pick up the shield and start bashing your way through the armies of Hell. Head to the links below to take advantage of these deals while they’re still available.
Doom: The Dark Ages PC Deal
PC gamers can save 17% on a Steam code by picking the new Doom game up at Fanatical or Green Man Gaming.
Doom: The Dark Ages Xbox Deal (Digital)
Xbox owners can get a copy on sale for $59.99 at Newegg when they enter promo code EPESA522 at checkout. The code also unlocks access on Windows.
IGN’s Mitchell Saltzman spoke very highly of Doom: The Dark Ages in our 9/10 review. In it he said, “Far from just being “More Doom,” Doom: The Dark Ages is a new flavor of the legendary shooter series that’s heavier and more grounded, but no less energetic and exhilarating. The new shield is an outstanding addition that adds a ton of both offensive and defensive options, and when combined with the extensive arsenal of traditional Doom guns, provides a ton of fun and exciting ways to dispatch the hundreds upon thousands of demons that stand in your way.”
If you’re itching to pick up more discounted PC games for your Steam library, there are plenty more deals to check out right now, including on some newer releases. You can see some of our top discounts at the moment in our overall roundup of the best video game deals, which includes a deal on The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered for PC. Even Elden Ring Nightreign is discounted right now for PC, if you want to save on your preorder of FromSoft’s latest.
Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.
Extraction shooters are, at this point, a dime a dozen. And for my money, you’ve got to really do something different to stand out in that increasingly crowded genre. That’s why I was eager to meet up with a couple of developers from the team at Good Fun Corporation so they could show me Hunger, their upcoming zombie-tastic Unreal Engine 5-powered first-person action-RPG that utilizes an extraction loop.
Yes, the developers specifically phrased it that way, as they seemingly aren’t looking to be thought of as just another extraction shooter. And in fairness to them, based on what I saw of an impressive early build (the team’s Early Access launch is still far enough away that they weren’t comfortable giving me an on-the-record release window quite yet), Hunger is going to be anything but another generic extraction shooter in the Steam pile.
Two things about Hunger piqued my interest immediately: its visual aesthetic and its actual visuals. Starting with the former, game director Maximilian Rea described Hunger’s look as “Renaissance gothic,” which seems like a fair way to sum it up. As you can see in the videos and screenshots in this article, Hunger mixes first-gen firearms with brutal melee weapons inside of filthy lived-in towns and glorious castles. And then, in terms of raw graphics, the foliage, lighting, and texture detail are all absolutely stunning. This is easily one of the best uses of Unreal Engine 5 I’ve seen so far.
This is easily one of the best uses of Unreal Engine 5 I’ve seen so far.
But, you might ask, how does it actually play? Sadly I can’t answer that quite yet, as my demo was just a hands-off first look, but it does seem built to last. In short, the team tells me, they’re aiming for the simplicity of ARC Raiders with the complexity of Escape From Tarkov. You begin in the Outer Ramparts, a social, violence-free hub within the Chateau where other players and NPCs alike roam. Like Destiny, you can switch to third-person perspective here if you like (though in proper combat, you’ll always be in first-person). Here you can shop with Piro, a quirky shopkeeper who wears a weird metal mask and offers items up for sale on a tray that’s worn around his neck as if he’s some cigarette girl from the 1920’s. Or you can add or remove items from your stash by checking in with Louis, the Stashmaster who also doles out the occasional quest. Reynauld, meanwhile, is the Expedition Master. He’s missing parts of a couple fingers, indicating that he’s tussled with the zombies at least once, and talking to him queues you into an expedition (i.e. a raid).
The initial Early Access release will have three maps: Jacques Bridge, Sombre Forest, and Sarlat Farm. Each is one square kilometer, and each one has a big dungeon beneath it as well. Expect six weather varieties per map, including noon (clear), noon (fog), sunset, and sunrise. More dynamic stuff will be added post-release. Rea explained that they’re aiming for 50-60 hours of content here, and then you unlock the Cauldron, a new area of the Chateau. You will learn your profession there. There are six professions: three gathering (like Scavenging, which means you’re a purveyor of metals and materials; a Conservator who finds mechanisms and trinkets to make tools or guns; and the Naturalist, who gathers herbs and spices to make food, drinks, and medicine) and three crafting (examples here include Metallurgy, Gunsmithing, and Cooking). You can have two professions at a time.
The story of this map is that there was civil conflict when The End – the bacteria that led to the Hunger – began. As you play, there’s lore to find and extract with. Missives and Maps, as examples of this, are Common, Rare, or Legendary. And if you extract with a Missive you can read it back in the Chateau and get a quest’s worth of XP, and once you’ve found everything you can read the whole story of the game. The developers also plan to tell the story through NPC dialogue. “We try to infuse every aspect of the game with story,” Rea told me.
The Hunger all have different qualities and aspects, which means that going melee-only has the advantage of letting you be silent. Shooting, on the other hand, makes noise and invites more Hunger. The Bloater, as an example of one such Hunger, is a blob-like thing that explodes into a cloud of poisonous gas. Shambler hits, meanwhile, cause bleed damage.
Going melee-only has the advantage of letting you be silent. Shooting, on the other hand, makes noise and invites more Hunger.
There are a whopping 33 weapons between melee and ranged, from daggers, pistols, and rifles to maces and primitive machine guns. You can find exotic ammo for the guns that add additional damage effects to the bullets. And yes, there will be dedicated PvP experiences if you need to scratch that itch. Furthermore, there’s a Mastery Tree, and as you level up from 10-100 you get a mastery point. This includes four trees: Physiology, Survival, Martial, and Cunning, and the developers hope this ensures there are multiple ways to progress through the game besides PvP.
In fact, you can play solo or in duos if you want as well. “Being a solo or duo player isn’t a death sentence,” Rea said. “In fact it’s one of the quickest ways to progress in the game.” You’ll also unlock progression cosmetics as well when you level up, kill bosses, etc. And yes, there are cosmetics for every weapon and bag.
Hunger won’t be free-to-play, which hopefully helps ensure its design principles won’t be compromised by pay-to-win nonsense, and there definitely won’t be any battle passes. They did mention a “Support the Developers” edition that would include extra cosmetics for whatever it ends up priced at above the $30 the team is aiming for on the standard edition.
As to how long a session might last, Rea suggested that the low end of an expedition might be 30-35 minutes, hopefully ensuring that Hunger is an easy game to jump in for a little while with at night with friends, and then go to bed feeling accomplished and not feeling guilty for having hopped off of some live-service hamster wheel. If and when you die, everything you do contributes to XP gains, so the goal is for you to never have a pointless session. “If they’ve played for an hour, we want them to feel like they’ve meaningfully moved the ball forward for their character,” Rea said.
Hunger might still be a ways away, but from what I’ve already seen, it looks like the team – who also made Hell Let Loose – is cooking up something unique and worth keeping an eye on. We’ll have more on Hunger on IGN as development progresses.
Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s executive editor of previews and host of both IGN’s weekly Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, as well as our monthly(-ish) interview show, IGN Unfiltered. He’s a North Jersey guy, so it’s “Taylor ham,” not “pork roll.” Debate it with him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan.
The Pokémon Company has confirmed the Pokémon Fossil Museum is coming to North America in May 2026.
If you’re wondering what on earth the Pokémon Fossil Museum is, it’s… well, it’s exactly what it says on the tin. After its debut in Japan, this special exhibition, which compares fabricated Pokémon “fossils” with “ancient lifeforms found in real-world fossils,” is coming to Chicago’s Field Museum on May 22, 2026. It’ll be the first time the exhibition travels beyond Japan.
“During your visit, you’ll see vibrant Pokémon models side by side with extinct lifeforms from the Field Museum’s collection — including scientific casts of Field Museum dinosaurs like SUE the T. rex and the Chicago Archaeopteryx next to Fossil Pokémon like Tyrantrum and Archeops,” explained the museum. “How many differences (and similarities) will you spot, Trainers?”
Vikki Blake is a reporter, critic, columnist, and consultant. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.
