Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they’ve been chewing over. Today, how Tim learned to love the lottery…
When I first played Xenoblade Chronicles 2 upon its launch, I was ecstatic to once again bond with memorable characters and explore open expanses teeming with powerful beasts. Then I was faced with a foe more repugnant to me than any other encountered on my Alrestian journey: Core Crystals.
Now through until December 4 Xbox Insiders can join a limited-time Console Playtest .
Build your first mech in three modes, battle on the worlds of the Wild Ten, and unlock a free Daybreak Sparrow Sticker for participating.
New worlds are calling! War Robots: Frontiers, a new entry in the smash-hit War Robots series, is coming to Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One in 2025. To celebrate and welcome new Pilots on Xbox, a limited-time Console Playtest is available to Xbox Insiders from November 20 until December 4.
Get ready to build your very own mech fleet, squad up with friends, and take the fight to the Wild Ten in this online mech shooter. If you’re new to the War Robots universe, let’s brush up before you jump in the cockpit.
Battles Rage on New Worlds
Human advancement sees this future-set War Robots game rocket across the stars. The new setting known as the Wild Ten is a collective of planets that Dominions – mega corporations from Earth – are vying for control over, employing mercenary Pilots and their mechanical War Robots as enforcers.
From your base of operations on Tortuga, you can accept jobs from Dominions, then go out and battle across these new worlds. Storm the fiery refineries of Catalyst, plunge into the towering industry of Fissure, and traverse the city-spanning Spectrum in six-versus-six online battles. You’ll be beset by dynamic weather as well as enemy teams, so be sure to keep that metal in good shape.
Battles can be waged in three modes. Capture points for your team in Warp Rush, go all-out on destruction in Team Deathmatch, and make quick work of the enemy team in Last Robot Standing.
You Are the Pilot and the Engineer
Build a battle-ready War Robot, finetuned with a massive selection of Pilots, weapons, parts, and abilities. New unlockables can be found in a variety of ways to help you stay on top of new strategies and counters. Different War Robots and combinations can be used to experiment with different combat roles, and play to the strengths of your own personal playstyle.
When you’re in the midst of battle, you’ll have to manage the War Robots at your disposal. These mechs don’t come cheap, so respawns are limited. Optimize your fleet and coordinate with friends to give yourself a fighting chance, and adapt to the task at hand and the state of play.
Titanic Power
Pilots of the Wild Ten have made a new discovery: the Titan, a hulking power-up build with maximum damage in mind. These Robots are much larger and more formidable than their more standard counterparts. They’re powerful, but they also make for a large target. If you can build up enough power to unleash it, you might just turn the tide of battle… or go down in flames. Worth a try either way!
Titans come with their own quirks and abilities but have limited use per battle. Deploy wisely, and if you see the enemy team call their own Titan in, take it out with extreme prejudice.
Ready to construct your first mech? War Robots: Frontiersis now available to play on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One for Xbox Insiders, with the full game set to launch in 2025.
How to Participate:
Sign in on your Xbox Series X|S or Xbox One console and launch the Xbox Insider Hub app.
Navigate to Previews > War Robots: Frontiers – Beta.
Select Join.
Wait for the registration to complete, and you should be directed to the Store page to install it.
Battle in the Wild Ten star system in War Robots: Frontiers! Build and customize your mechs, squad up, and unleash the destructive power of your machines in this online multiplayer mech shooter.
MASSIVE MECHA MAYHEM
Shoot and smash your way to victory in 6v6 online battles. Whether you’re an attacker, tank, support, or speed-loving gearhead, there’s a playstyle for you.
GALACTIC BATTLEFIELDS
Storm the worlds of the Wild Ten in battles that rage across a vast, tactically rich map roster. Immerse yourself in this brave new galactic frontier with dynamic weather systems and satisfyingly stompable terrain.
ENGINEERED VICTORY
Construct the perfect mech and customize it with the huge selection of Pilots, weapons, parts, and abilities at your disposal. Switch up your builds with new unlocks to keep up with the competition!
TITANIC DESTRUCTION
Build up enough power to unleash your ultimate secret weapon: the Titan. This hulking power-up is built with maximum damage in mind, and armed with unique specializations and abilities.
I’ve been looking forward to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 since it was announced, but I might wait a while longer before trying to play it. It launched yesterday and currently sits at “overwhelmingly negative” Steam reviews due to long loading times caused by server issues.
Epic Games is making some changes to its Fortnite Battle Pass model that will see its standard pass getting a price increase in just a few weeks.
The gaming mega company talked players through its plans in a post on its website today. While the update details various adjustments, such as new inclusions for Fortnite Crew subscribers, the thing that’s likely to affect most battle royale fans is the slight increase in cost for the Battle Pass. Fortnite has long offered its standard pass for 950 V-Bucks, but starting December 1, the price will increase by 50, bringing the total asking number to 1,000 V-Bucks.
IGN has reached out to Epic Games for comment.
It’s a small increase in price but still undeniably notable considering Epic hasn’t altered the cost of the Fortnite Battle Pass in the past. The studio does clarify that the real-world cost of its popular digital currency will remain unchanged (you can pick up 1,000 V-Bucks on the Epic Games Store for $8.99 right now), and you’ll still be able to earn chunks of V-Bucks by reaching certain Battle Pass levels, too. While any increase in price may be worrying for fans, Epic adds that the price of its 25 Battle Pass Reward Bundle is going down from 1,850 to 1,800. IGN has reached out to Epic for comment.
These tiny but fundamental changes arrive ahead of the highly anticipated launch of Fortnite OG: Chapter 1 – Season 1 on December 6. Part of the shift to allow players to enjoy the classic battle royale experience will see the $12.99 Fortnite Crew deal sweetened to include even more goodies. The bundle currently grants subscribers the standard Fortnite Battle Pass, 1,000 V-Bucks, monthly Crew Pack outfits, Crew Pack outfit styles, and Rocket League’s Premium Rocket Pass. Starting December 1, it will be expanded to include the Music Pass and LEGO Pass without asking subscribers for a penny more.
It’s an enticing offer that will no doubt keep players investing their time in Epic’s gaming ecosystem, especially considering that earning XP in any one of the related games will progress all of their battle passes simultaneously. A Crew subscription will also grant access to any additional passes that arrive in the future, including the new, yet-to-be-detailed Fortnite OG Pass.
The catch with the Fortnite Crew upgrade is that new subscribers who sign up after December 1 will no longer be able to unlock premium rewards from the passes after their subscription is no longer active. It means that if you sign up for Crew and then cancel shortly after, you’ll only be able to claim rewards for the remainder of your billing period. Players are currently able to cancel Crew and still reap the benefits of the remaining Battle Pass as long as it’s live, and this won’t be changing for those who are currently subscribed and remain subscribed after the changes take effect.
Epic is making major changes as it looks to the future with the permanent nostalgia-fueled Fortnite OG mode. The company is currently in the midst of Chapter 5: Season 5, which will conclude when Chapter 6: Season 1 kicks off next month. Details on its theme and exact contents remain under wraps, so while we wait for more information, be sure to check out the Fortnite-themed PlayStation 5 DualSense controller that released earlier this month.
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.
Gang Beasts is one of the games I think of when I recall the golden days of video game expos, before Covid rolled up and nuked the business model. It casts you as one of several jellybaby pugilists, fighting for dominance over such locations as Ferris wheels and the tops of speeding vans. All of the characters are 1) seemingly drunk, and 2) subject to real-time physics. Your abilities consist of 1) punching, headbutting or kicking people, perhaps knocking them out for a few seconds, and 2) grabbing people and things and either hoisting them skyward like a wrestler, or hoisting yourself skyward like a toddler climbing onto Mummy’s head. The only way of defeating people is to hurl them off-map.
The creature-catching RPG Cassette Beasts has landed a bumper pack of bonus content today, publisher Raw Fury and developer Bytten Studio announced, thanks to the arrival of the ‘Gauntlet Update’ and ‘Fashion Pack’ DLC.
We’ll start with the free stuff. The Gauntlet Update brings the game up to ver 1.7, and the biggest addition, unsurprisingly, is a new gauntlet-style game mode. Hopping aboard one of Mer-line’s interdimensional trains after you’ve completed the main story will give you the chance to partake in ‘Magikrab’s Gauntlet’ — an endless series of carriage-based combat encounters where you can rack up some tasty rewards.
Watching A Lot of Football This Month? Keep the Game Going With EA Play
Charlie Fortescue, Director, Global Corporate Communications, EA
Gamers, treat yourself this month to some incredible gaming experiences with your EA Play* membership!
When you’re done watching your favorite football team defeat their rivals on TV, you can keep the heart-pumping moments by booting up your console to launch a perfect bomb downfield for a game-changing touchdown in EA Sports College Football 25 and Madden NFL 25. With EA Play game trials, you can keep the game going and dominate the gridiron for up to 10 hours. Love the game? Save 10% on a full game download with your progress carried over, and add to your lineup with monthly Ultimate Team Packs.
In addition to these titles, EA Play offers trials of up to 10 hours for many other favorite games, including EA Sports NHL 25, EA SportsFC 25, EA Sports UFC 5and EA Sports F1 24. And there’s even more gaming to experience when you’re done with trials! EA Play members can jump into an unrivaled collection of EA’s best-loved series and top titles, including Madden NFL 24,EA SportsFC 24 and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.
EA Play members can also score monthly rewards on select titles, including 10% off purchases of Electronic Arts digital content including game downloads, Season Passes, Madden Points and more. This month’s member benefits include:
Apex Legends Golden Demon Weapon Charm – Now to December 2
Battlefield 2042 Sanguine Impact – Now to November 26
EA Sports F1 245000 XP Boost – Now to November 30
EA Sports College Football 25 Loyalist Ultimate Team Pack – Now to November 30
Madden NFL 25 MUT Pack – Now to November 30
EA Sports FC 25 Powered Right Leg Tattoo & Clubs Coins – Now to November 28
EA Sports FC 25 Football Ultimate Team Draft Token– Now to December 14
EA Sports NHL 25 3000 CHEL Coins – Now to December 5
EA Sports NHL 25 WOC Battle Pass XP Modifier Tokens – Now to December 5
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and Xbox Game Pass PC members receive EA Play with their Game Pass subscription. Members can experience the world of EA with unlimited access to a collection of top titles, trials of select new games, in-game member rewards and more.
Visit the EA Play page for more details, and to stay up to date on the latest from EA Play, follow EA Play on, Instagram, or X. Please see EA.com/EA-Play/Terms for terms and conditions.
Hasbro has announced that, following the success of Baldur’s Gate 3, yet another Dungeons & Dragons game is in production.
CEO Chris Cocks told Bloomberg that a fifth D&D game is in development but didn’t share what it’s about, its genre, or the studio making it. It does appear to be in active production, however, as Cocks noted in the same interview that its G.I. Joe game is currently in pre-production.
While D&D has long spawned video game adaptations, the mainstream success captured by Larian Studios’ Baldur’s Gate 3 has seemingly set Hasbro and direct owner Wizards of the Coast into overdrive.
Virtual reality fans can also look forward to a D&D game too, as Resolution Games, the developer behind tabletop RPG simulator Demeo, is working on a game set in Faerûn too. This isn’t confirmed to be a recreation of the core D&D experience in a virtual setting but almost certainly is. And there’s a co-op D&D game codenamed Project Baxter in the works at Payday developer Starbreeze.
In our 10/10 review, IGN said: “With crunchy, tactical RPG combat, a memorable story with complex characters, highly polished cinematic presentation, and a world that always rewards exploration and creativity, Baldur’s Gate 3 is the new high-water mark for CRPGs.”
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
One of my proudest pictures of a 2018 trip to Croatia wasn’t of me and my pal. No, it wasn’t of the beautiful scenery or the glistening sea either. It was of many cats lying in the sun together outside a little church. I hadn’t seen that volume of cats in my life, nor that volume together in one spot, all hanging out. Now, you too can live this magic: there’s a demo of this upcoming sidescroller called Neko Odyssey on Steam, and it consists of you taking photos of cats for internet clout. It’s nice!
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Shadow Of Chornobyl is out today. As you may have read, it’s on the buggy side. Buggier than a bucketful of locusts. Buggier than Kafka’s Metamorphosis. In our S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Shadow Of Chornobyl review, wasteland wanderer James called it “easily the most borked FPS I’ve played in years”, detailing such issues as HUD elements disappearing, stuttery performance, flashing textures and character mouths not working properly.
