Saber Interactive are making a new action-RPG set in the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender

Avatar: The Last Airbender hasn’t had much luck when it comes to adaptations, whether to film or to video games. Now Paramount Game Studios and Saber Interactive are going to take a new swing at it. The pair have announced an action RPG set in the “Avatar Legends universe”, the broader world and timeline that The Last Airbender and Legend Of Korra take place within.

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Ubisoft’s Disastrous 2024 May Lead To The Company Going Private

It lost half of its market value this year alone.

Tencent and the Guillemot family are reportedly considering taking Ubisoft private as part of efforts to stabilise the company amid a tumultuous 2024.

Acording to Bloomberg, both parties have reportedly been speaking with advisors on how best to bolster Ubisoft’s value after multiple gaffs over the last 12 months lead to a tumbling share price. Ubisoft has lost half of its market value this year, but news of this potential buyout has resulted in a sharp increase of around 33%.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com

Share of the Week: Astro Bot Levels

Last week, we asked you to showcase the best Astro Bot levels using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights:

NightmarexDoll shares a spooky level with a mansion and a smiling moon in the background. 

pavesoint shares a level in the clouds featuring a mechanical sun.

SoundwaveXP shares a level featuring a Japanese-style bathhouse and mountains. 

kanon06 shares a level in space with a giant meteor and space debris. 

Jeff_Bytes shares an aquatic level featuring a row of birds sitting on a wire. 

Boargs shares a snow theme level with a snow slide and frosty vistas. 

Search #PSshare #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week?

THEME: Spooky Settings 

SUBMIT BY: 11:59 PM PT on October 9, 2024

Next week, showcase where things go bump in the night with Spooky Settings. Highlight spooky settings for Share of the Week using #PSshare #PSBlog for a chance to be featured.

Starship Troopers VR Dev Suffers Layoffs Amid ‘Challenging VR Gaming Market’

The developer of a number of upcoming virtual reality titles including Sony’s Starship Troopers VR game has suffered a significant round of layoffs amid what it called a “challenging VR gaming market.”

XR Games, developer of the poorly received Hitman 3: VR Reloaded as well as the upcoming Zombie Army VR for Rebellion and Starship Troopers: Continuum for Sony, suffered layoffs one former member of staff described as “beyond restructuring.”

72 staff were reportedly let go, retaining only 12 out of around 84. The downsizing cast doubt on the launch and support of both Zombie Army VR and Starship Troopers: Continuum, but in a statement issued to IGN, XR Games insisted both would still release later in 2024.

Here’s the statement, from Bobby Thandi, Founder and CEO of XR Games:

“I’m heartbroken that we’re going to be losing some of our incredibly dedicated, talented and valued colleagues. We’ve spent many months carefully exploring alternative solutions in the face of a challenging VR gaming market and a tough broader gaming landscape, and this is one of the hardest business decisions we’ve faced.

“Our priority during and after this consultation process is to treat all team members with the utmost respect and care. We are committed to helping those affected by this through outplacement support, such as CV clinics, portfolio advice, interview preparation and practice, and signposting available jobs in the industry. We also have mental health support available for our staff.

“I’m so very proud of our teams for their hard work on Hitman 3: VR Reloaded, which will continue to receive patch support, as well as Zombie Army VR and Starship Troopers: Continuum, both of which are due for launch this year. We want to be able to develop innovative titles for many years to come, and we’ll work to navigate this transition and shape the future of XR Games.”

Hitman 3: VR Reloaded, developed by XR Games in partnership with Hitman owner IO Interactive, is a standalone port of Hitman VR for the Meta Quest 3 that was supposed to address some of the biggest criticisms of the PC game, like the lack of dual wielding. But it launched to negative reviews from players as well as press, with Eurogamer calling it “about as grim as VR games can get.”

The VR market has struggled. The PSVR2, for example, lost momentum soon after launch despite its technical prowess, though Sony hasn’t shared figures since revealing it sold 600,000 within six weeks of its February 2023 launch.

Sony Interactive Entertainment’s head of global business Eric Lempel told the Financial Times in December 2023 that VR was “a bit of a challenging category right now.” In March, Bloomberg reported that Sony had allegedly paused the production of the PSVR2 to clear the backlog of unsold units it had.

Starship Troopers: Continuum, meanwhile, is due out on Meta Quest 2 and 3 on October 17, 2024, and PSVR2 on October 31, 2024. Zombie Army VR is set for launch on PSVR2, Meta Quest 2, 3, and Pro, Oculus Rift, and PC headsets via Steam later in 2024.

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.

Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom Speedrunner Finds a Way to Play as Link, But a Link% Run Remains Elusive

This story contains minor spoilers for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom.

After almost 40 years, Zelda finally has her own mainline The Legend of Zelda game in Echoes of Wisdom. So, naturally, someone has already figured out how to show her the door and play the game as Link instead.

Okay, jokes aside, the glitch itself is pretty cool. First found by Japanese speedrunner Ikaboze, it makes use of a combination of speedrunning glitches and the fact that you play as Link in the game’s prologue to make Link available in the rest of the game. Ikaboze’s original video is here, but for English speakers, a few other Zelda fanatics have put together instructions. Here’s an explanation in video form from ZeldaMaster that we’ve summarized below:

  1. First, start a brand new game. In Suthorn Ruins once you gain control of Link, make a manual save of the game. From here, do not make any more manual saves. Autosaves are fine.
  2. Beat the entire prologue sequence without manually saving the game. Escape Hyrule Castle as Zelda, do the first dungeon, and get to the point of the game where you are free to explore all of Hyrule (when you acquire the “Searching for Everyone” quest).
  3. Collect the Sign echo from Suthorn Village or another location.
  4. Go north of Hyrule Field to the Eternal Forest and start getting a feel for how far you can enter the forest before it warps you back outside. As you move, try dropping Sign echoes and try to get the signs as close to the edge of where you get warped out as possible. Your goal is to be able to examine/read a sign right at the point where the forest warps you out, so when you close the dialogue box you warp out immediately.
  5. Once you’ve gotten used to the timing here, make sure your pause screen is set to the Load/Save screen so that opens immediately when you pause. Then, do the sequence with the sign reading/warping again. This time, try and hit the pause button on the exact moment you exit out of the dialogue box and are being eaten by fog.
  6. If you’ve done it right, you should be in the pause menu, but still have control of Zelda underneath the menu. The map buttons should be overlaid on top of the pause screen.
  7. From here, keep the pause screen open, and move Zelda around until you find an enemy; there should be a few nearby. Let her get hit until she dies. The second you see her die, hit the “Load” button and be on the file selection screen at the same time that the Game Over screen pops up over the top of your pause menu.
  8. Your arrow buttons should impact both menus at the same time, so carefully navigate the menu so that you have “Retry” selected at the same time on the Game Over screen as you hover over the original, manual save file where you were Link in the Suthorn Ruins. Take a deep breath, and press A!
  9. When the screen goes black, press Up, and when you hear the sound effect indicating you’ve moved on a menu, immediately press A again. If it works, you should hear the “load file” jingle play. If you messed up, you’ll be back as Zelda near the Eternal Forest, but the whole world will be blacked out. If this happens, don’t worry, just load your most recent autosave and try again.
  10. But if you’re successful, you’ll be in the same spot by Eternal Forest, but playing as Link!

The glitch is tricky, so we recommend watching a video or two before attempting and practicing to get the timings right, but it does seem to consistently work on the current version of the game at the time of this piece: 1.0.1.

There are some limitations to be aware of. Though you’ll be on the overworld and able to explore, your game state will revert to what it was at the very beginning as Link, so you won’t have the map or most of your menu options unlocked. However, Link will come with two full lines of heart containers, bombs, arrows, his sword, and the bigger jump. You can unlock warp points and the map, and if you manually save the game at this point, you can reload it and still be running around as Link.

Critically, though, you won’t be able to use Echoes at all, which is currently where notions of beating the entire game as Link fall apart. When the glitch was discovered, the Echoes of Wisdom speedrunning Discord members began floating the idea of a “Link%” run, but lacking Echoes, they can’t meaningfully progress the game to a finished point…yet. Several intrepid individuals are goofing around with Link, trying to find ways to either get the Tri Rod or otherwise bypass points where Echoes are needed so that a Link% can be achievable. It’s possible that it won’t be long before beating the game as Link is discovered…though it’s also just as possible that Nintendo patches the game to get rid of the glitch before people figure it out.

We gave Echoes of Wisdom a 9/10 in our review, calling it “far more than some second-tier spinoff, combining the expertly crafted dungeons and item progression you’d expect from a 2D Zelda with the wild creativity provided by Tears of the Kingdom.” And for everyone still just trying to beat the game as Zelda, check out our wiki guides and our interactive map for help finding everything from heart pieces to every Echo in the game.

Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

Not normal at all, don’t let it lie to you gardening game Grunn is out now

I’m usually a little suspicious of anything that winkingly describes itself as “very normal”. It’s got Mental Baz energy to me. You’ve met mental Baz, right? He’s mental, he is! Has half a lemonade shandy with lunch sometimes, and wears one of those t-shirts that look like a tuxedo. Absolute mentalist! Anyway, after reviewing Grunn last week it’s thankfully far more interesting and creative than poor old Baz, who’s honestly just a bit shy and actually really nice when you get past the facade. Grunn just released today, and my high level tempter is that it’s a little bit like Outer Wilds, just with all the touching wonder replaced by spooky whimsy. Here’s a trailer:

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The Limited Edition Fortnite DualSense Controller Is Up for Preorder

Revealed during September’s State of Play, the Limited Edition Fortnite DualSense Controller is officially available to preorder (see it here at Walmart). This colorful controller will set you back $85 and is set to release in a little over a month on November 7.

If you’ve had your eye on it since it was announced, it’s best to jump on preorders now as it’s already sold out once and is still sold out at Amazon. Considering preorders only went live yesterday, that’s a lot of demand for the controller, so better to be quick about putting a preorder in before it’s gone again!

Preorder the Limited Edition Fortnite DualSense Controller

This wasn’t the only new DualSense announced during September’s State of Play, either. The fancy new Chroma Edition controllers are now available to preorder as well, sporting some very shiny colors in Pearl, Indigo, and Teal. If you’ve been looking to give your PS5 a bit of an upgrade with a sleek splash of color, now’s an excellent time to do so with these controllers.

And if buying new PS5 hardware isn’t something you’re interested in right now, there’s always our roundup of the best PlayStation deals to check out. There, you can find discounts on everything from headsets to storage to a wide variety of PS5 games. We also have roundups for the best Xbox deals and the best Nintendo Switch deals, if you want to see what’s happening on other platforms. Or, if you’d rather see the highlights from each of these gaming deal roundups, have a look at our collection of the best video game deals or our Daily Deals write-up to see the best discounts that have caught our eye.

Hannah Hoolihan is a freelance writer who works with the Guides and Commerce teams here at IGN.

Random: Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom Glitch Lets You Play As Link For Even Longer

Homecoming hero.

While we have been having a wonderful time with The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom over the past week, there’s no denying there are certain parts which are a little broken. Speedrunners have already uncovered a way to polish off the latest adventure in under an hour, and now, a new glitch has been found which lets you explore Hyrule as Link.

As demonstrated in the above video from YouTube account alyo, the glitch utilises a similar Sign Echo loophole that has the speedrunning community all excited. By creating a save file in the opening section of the game (where you play as Link as standard), and then beating the first dungeon, a well-placed Sign will cause all sorts of havoc, including, it seems, sending the titular princess to the subbench.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com

Next Week on Xbox – New Games for October 7 to 11

Next Week on Xbox Hero Image

Next Week on Xbox – New Games for October 7 to 11

Welcome to Next Week on Xbox! In this weekly feature we cover all the games coming soon to Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows, and Game Pass! Get more details on these upcoming games below and click their profiles for further info (release dates subject to change). Let’s jump in!


Necro Story

Rablo Games

$14.99

Necro Story – October 7
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S

A light-hearted creature collection RPG where you play as a powerful and (kind of) evil Necromancer. Helped by the ghost of a playful white mage, you must sneak into the Underworld to save humanity.


Diablo® IV: Vessel of Hatred™ – Ultimate Edition

Blizzard Entertainment


94


$89.99

$80.99

Diablo IV – Vessel of Hatred – October 8

Uncover the next chapter of Diablo IV in Vessel of Hatred and continue your fight to thwart the diabolical plot of the Prime Evil, Mephisto. Battle as the all-new Spiritborn class and call upon mystical Spirits to empower your battle. Expand your map to the new region of Nahantu and traverse through its lush jungles. Take on new enemies, dungeons, and PvE co-op challenges, recruit new Mercenaries, and more. Plus, explore a plethora of base game updates that will introduce new power and continue to enhance the world of Diablo IV.


Xbox Play Anywhere

Mark of the Deep

Mad Mimic

Mark of the Deep – October 8
Xbox Play Anywhere

An epic pirate adventure with a strong narrative and a thrilling mix of elements from acclaimed Metroidvania and Souls-Like games. Embark on this journey as the pirate Rookie, explore the mysteries of a cursed island and find your missing pirate crew!


To the Moon

Serenity Forge

To the Moon – October 8
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

Dr. Rosalene and Dr. Watts have peculiar jobs: They give people another chance to live, all the way from the very beginning… but only in their patients’ heads. This story follows their attempt to fulfill the dream of an elderly man, Johnny. With each step back in time, a new fragment of Johnny’s past is revealed — and his last wish is to go to the Moon.


Camp Sunshine

Hound Picked Games

$7.99

Camp Sunshine – October 9
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

A 16-bit, blood-soaked horror RPG that pits you as Jez, who is dropped off at Summer Camp. He awakes in the middle of the night to discover blood everywhere, a rampaging killer on the loose dressed in a mascot costume and himself involved in a deadly game of cat and mouse!


Cats and Seek : Osaka

Silesia Games Sp. z o.o.

Cats and Seek: Osaka – October 9

A hidden object game with plenty of meowing loaves of joy to discover! Look around – up, down, left, right… Because you’ll never know where you might find a friendly cat face.


Heavy Cargo – The Truck Simulator

Aerosoft GmbH

Heavy Cargo – The Truck Simulator – October 9
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S

In Heavy Cargo – The Truck Simulator, you transport oversized cargo through an extensive, freely accessible and lively game world, including dynamic weather and day-night cycle. Before you start your journey with your truck and its various trailers and cargo, you often must explore the route with the spotting vehicle first that you control yourself.


Mr. T-Shirt

Old School Vibes

Mr. T-Shirt – October 9

Help Mr. T-Shirt in this adventure through a unique world of paper and doodles. Slide through black-and-white scenes, collecting the key to advance to the next level. Explore hand-drawn environments and face unique challenges in every stage.


Mimi the Cat: New Friends

Afil Games

Mimi the Cat: New Friends – October 9
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

Embark on a charming journey with Mimi, a delightful cat who loves puzzles and making new friends. Your mission is to help Mimi navigate through a variety of fun and challenging levels, moving, climbing, and stacking boxes to find her way to new friends and cozy spots.


Rogue Sentry

Eastasiasoft Limited

Rogue Sentry – October 9
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

Rogue Sentry is a hardcore twin-stick adventure shoot’em up where you’ll navigate the complex inner workings of a gigantic prison fortress, face gun and laser wielding machines, pick up human survivors along the way and attempt to escape to safety before it’s too late!


Xbox Play Anywhere

Tents & Trees

Frozax Games

$9.99
Free Trial

Tents & Trees – October 9
Xbox Play Anywhere

Your mission is simple: place tents next to trees in a nature-filled grid. The numbers around the grid tell you how many tents must be placed in each row and column but be careful: tents can’t touch each other. Each level has only one unique solution, so take your time and carefully plan your every move.


Amanda the Adventurer

DreadXP

Amanda The Adventurer – October 10

Join Amanda and her pal Wooly on a series of adventures as they explore and learn about our wonderful world! With several NEW play-along, laugh-along, learn-along episodes there’s always fun to be had! Just make sure to do everything Amanda says or she might get angry.


Dagon: Complete Edition

Feardemic

Dagon: Complete Edition – October 10
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

Explore the unique works of H. P. Lovecraft via the interactive stories of Dagon: Complete Edition – an extraordinary collection depicting the horrors creeping beneath the waves, festering within delirious minds, and more.


Sky Oceans: Wings For Hire

PQube Limited

Sky Oceans: Wings For Hire – October 10
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S

Relive the charm of classic RPGs with a touching story about the search for purpose. Take the role of Glenn Windwalker as you assemble your team of pirates and fight against the Alliance. Fight adversaries within the open blue skies in strategic turn-based dog fights. Tactically plan attacks and adapt your strategy to the ever-changing scenarios!


The Sekimeiya: Spun Glass

Viridian Software

The Sekimeiya: Spun Glass – October 10
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

In the rural town of Yushibana, the Ashiya family holds much of the wealth. After they discover a rare gemstone, a showing is scheduled in Ashiya Tower, drawing the attention of many of the townspeople. However, during the exhibit, the tower is flooded with smoke, activating emergency shutters that trap eight people inside. With twelve hours until their release, they must grapple with an increasingly complex series of unnatural events.


Casual Sport Series: Hockey

Revulo Games

Casual Sport Series: Hockey – October 11

Grab your controller, hit the ice, and prove you’ve got what it takes to score big! Step onto the ice and experience hockey like never before in Casual Sport Series: Hockey! Whether you’re a seasoned player or new to the rink, this vibrant, action-packed game delivers fast, easy-to-pick-up fun that anyone can enjoy. Perfect for solo play or intense local multiplayer showdowns with friends, it’s the ultimate casual sports experience!


DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO Pre-Order

Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc.

$69.99

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero – October 11
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero takes the legendary gameplay of the Budokai Tenkaichi series and raises it to whole new levels. Become a super warrior and experience the earth-shaking, limit-breaking power of Dragon Ball battles! Unleash the strength of over 180 fighters, each with their own signature abilities, transformations, and techniques.


Knight And Mourning

Micah Edwards

Knight And Mourning – October 11

Do you like 2D platformers? Are you constantly complaining about how bad you are at them? Well, continue to complain! Even if you think you are good at Knight And Mourning, you aren’t.


Xbox Play Anywhere

Metaphor: ReFantazio

SEGA

$69.99

Metaphor: ReFantazio – October 11
Xbox Play Anywhere

From the creative minds behind Persona 3, 4, and 5 comes Metaphor: ReFantazio, a unique fantasy world, where your protagonist will journey alongside his fairy companion, Gallica, to lift the curse from the kingdom’s lost prince. Control your destiny, face your fears and awaken magical Archetype powers that lie dormant in your heart.


My Big Sister: Remastered

Ratalaika Games S.L.

My Big Sister: Remastered – October 11

Meet Luzia, a sarcastic twelve-year-old with a playful sense of humor. If you believe what she says, My Big Sister is a top-down adventure game about two sisters trying to break a curse imposed upon Sombria. “My Big Sister” is a continuation of “Ashina: The Red Witch” which will showcase a lot of references between the two games.


Paper Plane Arena – A Medieval Fantasy

EpiXR Games

$9.99
Xbox One X Enhanced

Paper Plane Arena – A Medieval Fantasy – October 11
Xbox One X Enhanced

An experience that’s designed to ease your mind and have fun popping innocent balloons. Jump into the role of a little paper plane destined to rescue the world from evil balloon demons by dashing through them. You’re free to enjoy the game any way you see fit as the only enemies of the game are these balloons which generally are not well known for being too dangerous.


Spiral

Folklore Games

Spiral – October 11

Spiral is a third-person narratively driven exploration game sharing a poetic vision of cognitive degeneration seen from the inside. It tells the story of Bernard, a man who wishes goodbye one last time to the memories that built him from his early childhood to who he is today. You accompany him on this journey, bearing witness to his life and remembering him as his mind slowly unravels into the void.


Starship Troopers: Extermination – Pre-Order Bundle

MY.GAMES B.V.

$49.99

Starship Troopers: Exterminations – October 11

A fully licensed,16-player co-op FPS that puts you on the galactic frontlines of the acclaimed sci-fi series! Squad up, grab your rifle, and do your part as an elite Deep Space Vanguard Trooper to take back the galaxy from the Bug threat!


Torii Guardian

Flying Islands Team

Torii Guardian – October 11

Torii Guardian is a top-down tower defense action game where you need to defend the Torii gate to another world from hordes of evil spirits. Strategically build towers and summon ancient spirits to protect your base and destroy enemies using a variety of different weapons and tools.


TRANSFORMERS: Galactic Trials

Outright Games Ltd.

$39.99

Transformers: Galactic Trials – October 11
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

Roll out for an intense fusion of arcade racing and combat in the Transformers Galactic Trials! Evil Nemesis Prime has stolen the Prime Relics, which bestow incredible powers on whoever possesses them. Now the Autobots and Decepticons are in an explosive race to recover the relics – the future of Cybertron is in your hands!


Undisputed

Deep Silver

$59.99

Undisputed – October 11

An authentic boxing game developed with care by dedicated fight fans, alongside the professional boxing community. Play through the epic journey from amateur boxing tournaments, all the way to becoming Undisputed Champion, in the true-to-life Career Mode.


The post Next Week on Xbox – New Games for October 7 to 11 appeared first on Xbox Wire.

IGN UK Podcast 768: Pure Misery, Both Good and Bad

Cardy, Matt, and Jesse are here to deliver a week full of misery. That isn’t always a bad thing, though. Case in point: Silent Hill 2, a fantastic remake of a horror classic. It can, however, definitely be a bad thing. Just like the incredibly boring Joker: Folie à Deux. We have reviews of both this week, as well as thoughts of Hell Is Us, the Until Dawn remaster (remake?), and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.

Remember to send us your thoughts about all the new games, TV shows, and films you’re enjoying or looking forward to: ign_ukfeedback@ign.com.

IGN UK Podcast 768: Pure Misery, Both Good and Bad