Category: Video Games

The Pokémon world can feel a bit idyllic at times to imagine, especially when you think of the free universal healthcare via magic healing machines provided to all Pokémon at any Pokémon Center. Since the very first games, these Pokémon Centers have been staffed by a roster of completely identical women (skin, hair, eyes, expression, everything!), all known in the anime as Nurse Joy.

But in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, for the first time, working Nurse Joys can be a little different.

Pokémon Legends: Z-A introduces unique Nurse Joys at every Pokémon Center for the first time in a Pokémon game. While the first one you’re likely to encounter looks like a fairly standard Joy, every woman staffing a Center has slightly different features: different skin tones, different eyes, different mouths, and different eyebrows. They’re all still in the same uniform and still sporting the same red loopy pigtails, but they now are giving a lot less pre-1980s Rockette.

This is in keeping with one of the features I’ve really enjoyed about Z-A so far: its character diversity. In past Pokemon games, towns could start to look a little samey, as every character of a single trainer class would have the exact same features copy-pasted. That has started to change in more recent games, but Scarlet and Violet took a bit of a step backward by dressing most of its cast in samey uniforms, again creating the illusion that every character looked the same.

In Z-A, though, not only do NPCs all have different facial features, their outfits can change things up a bit too. You still might see a couple of matching characters here or there, but I’ve spotted athletes sprinting through town in different colored workout gear, and artists with different colored aprons. It’s a small touch, but it adds a lot to the feeling that Lumiose City is actually populated by real people and not a lot of weird clones.

So congrats to every woman who didn’t look exactly like the original Nurse Joy in Pokémon Red and Blue (read: every woman), the job is now open to you, if you want it! Sorry to the gents though, as I still haven’t seen any men in the profession. Hopefully next game we can move into the 21st century on that front.

My review-in-progress of Pokémon Legends: Z-A is now live, if you want to check out my impressions of the first 24 hours, with a full review coming next week.

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.

Nintendo has responded to reports that its servers were recently breached by hacking group Crimson Collective, and has claimed that no development or business information was taken.

In a statement to Japanese newspaper The Sankei Shimbun, Nintendo suggested that any breach had been minimal, and limited to servers simply hosting its websites.

The short statement, below, notably makes no mention of this week’s other major hacking story that has dominated gaming headlines: the continued spread of development details relating to the Pokémon franchise, originating from a confirmed breach of developer Game Freak’s servers last year.

Nintendo had attempted to pursue those responsible for last year’s so-called Teraleak of Pokémon details — which until this week appeared to be confined to information on past projects. But Nintendo does not appear to have had much success in locating the culprit, and this week a further cache of development details that seemingly chart The Pokémon Company’s roadmap of game releases until at least 2030 have hit the internet, timed to hit alongside the launch of Pokémon Legends: Z-A.

Last week, Crimson Collective claimed it had breached Nintendo’s servers, and an image purporting to show a long list of Nintendo development files was widely shared on social media. “We have not confirmed any leak of personal information, and there has been no leak of development or business information,” Nintendo’s statement today reads.

IGN has contacted Nintendo and The Pokémon Company for comment on this week’s further spread of information derived from the Teraleak, but has not heard back.

Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social

Disney Lorcana’s latest expansion, Whispers in The Well, has been revealed by Ravensburger and is now available to preorder. Amazon has preorders up at the moment for a booster box, the Illumineer’s Trove box, a single booster pack, and two single-player decks: Amber & Emerald and Sapphire & Steel.

All of these are set to be released on November 14 this year as well, so thankfully, you only have about a month to wait before you can get your hands on them. Get your preorders in at the links below before they sell out.

Disney Lorcana Whispers in The Well Expansion Revealed

On top of the expansion, two new Disney Lorcana playmats are releasing on the same day.

One of these is a delightful playmat featuring a design of Mickey Mouse, while the other features Jasmine from Aladdin. At the moment, they are both available to preorder for $19.99 a piece.

If the big booster box has caught your eye, it comes with 24 booster packs that each contain 12 randomized cards. Illumineer’s Trove, on the other hand, comes with 8 booster packs alongside six damage-counter dice, six card dividers, one lore counter, and a card storage box.

If you’re not looking to splash out on these big sets, though, the single booster pack will just set you up with 12 cards. As for the single-player decks, these come with 60 cards (including two foil cards of the characters featured on the front of the package), 11 damage tokens, a bonus booster pack, and a rulebook.

If you’re looking for even more card deals and preorders to drop some cash on, check out our breakdown of the best deals of the day. Yesterday’s write-up featured some great Pokémon TCG discounts and information on where you can preorder the new Magic: The Gathering’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles set.

Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.

2K has reaffirmed its support for 3rd-person action roguelike shooter Project Ethos, and has appointed the former executive producer for Apex Legends as the new studio head of developer 31st Union.

This news was shared with employees today in a town hall followed by an internal memo, the latter of which was shared with IGN by 2K. The memo, written by 2K president David Ismailer, states that Ben Brinkman will take over as studio head of 31st Union beginning Monday, October 20. Brinkman will oversee Project Ethos development as the game is “reimagined” “with a renewed vision” after the game’s 2024 playtests revealed a need for “a more distinct identity.”

Here’s an excerpt from the memo:

The community feedback from last fall’s Project ETHOS playtest was enlightening. It affirmed the promise of a roguelike shooter but told us we still had work to do. It uncovered the need for a more distinct identity.

It’s been inspiring to see how far you’ve come. You took the feedback to heart and reimagined Project ETHOS with a renewed vision – one that’s poised to deliver on its promise to our players

Our confidence in Project ETHOS grows every day. To further the incredible progress you’ve made, I’m excited to welcome Ben Brinkman as the new Studio Head of 31st Union. After several months of conversations, Ben officially joins us on Monday, October 20.

Brinkman joins 31st Union directly from EA, where he had previously been working as executive producer on Apex Legends since 2020, following six years at Treyarch on Call of Duty. IGN has reached out to EA for comment on what this means for Apex Legends, and who will be taking over Brinkman’s former role.

Project Ethos was first announced in October of last year as a free-to-play, third-person, hero extraction shooter with some roguelike elements. It’s being developed by 31st Union, a studio founded in 2019 by ex-Sledgehammer Games co-founder Michael Condrey and originally referred to as 2K Silicon Valley. We previewed Project Ethos at the time, and liked it fine, but said it “fails at being a new experience that players will crave over and over again.” Other outlets shared similar feedback, that the game was fun enough but didn’t do anything significant to stand out in a crowded genre.

31st Union has been quiet on the Project Ethos front since then, but in February this year, Kotaku reported that Condrey was fired by 2K Games due to the lukewarm reception of the game. At the time, 2K reassured employees it would continue to support the project.

This news indicates that 2K is indeed making good on its promise to continue to support Project Ethos, even amidst ongoing concerns that the audience for online, multiplayer shooters – especially extraction shooters – is worn out. But it may be a while before we get another update given the wording of the email.

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.