Cyberpunk 2077 never received a New Game Plus mode like CD Projekt’s predecessor The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt because it would “break the way the game is constructed.”

Speaking to DualShockers, Cyberpunk 2077 quest director and its sequel’s associate game director Paweł Sasko gave a somewhat vague explanation for why the now beloved role-playing game didn’t receive New Game Plus in its more than three years of updates.

“For us, it’s really important that when you have components in a game, they all work together and they all work well and they all make sense,” Sasko said. “The thing is, Cyberpunk is very specific when it comes to its construction.

“It’s incredibly difficult to figure out a way where New Game Plus could be done in a way that doesn’t completely break the way the game is constructed.”

Sasko referenced Bethesda’s latest RPG Starfield and its New Game Plus system, which actually ties into the overall story and has a logical explanation for how and why the entire world is resetting, and seemed to suggest this was the only option for incorporating the New Game Plus mechanic.

He didn’t address why Cyberpunk 2077 couldn’t have a more traditional means of New Game Plus, however, that simply sees the player restart the story while keeping abilities or experience. This is how The Witcher 3’s version of the system worked, as it had no story connection or explanation for the reset whatsoever and just allowed players to experience the game again with a few extras.

Sasko even admitted Cyberpunk 2077 was designed to be replayed, which would suggest this style of New Game Plus would work well.

“It’s to be replayed. It’s to try different life paths, try different romances, try different builds,” he said. “There’s so many things that you can at least, twice or three times, have a very varied experience in 2077. So this is another answer, the game was built to be replayed that way.”

Fans still holding out hope for a New Game Plus mode shouldn’t hold their breath, as CD Projekt announced there is no longer a dedicated Cyberpunk 2077 team working at the studio as employees instead turned their attention to its sequel and, predominantly, the next Witcher game.

That’s not to say it won’t receive any support in the future, however, as CD Projekt confirmed to IGN that Cyberpunk 2077 will still get the long promised FidelityFX Super Resolution 3 (FSR3) support at some point.

Development was wound down after the release of its first and only expansion, Phantom Liberty, in September 2023. It came after the game-changing Update 2.0, which completely revamped Cyberpunk 2077 with features such as a new perk system and improved AI, and was followed by another big update in 2.1 but only minor changes afterwards.

In our 9/10 review, IGN said: “Cyberpunk 2077 throws you into a beautiful, dense cityscape and offers a staggering amount of flexibility in how you choose to take it from there.”

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

The next Dragon Age is set to get its first big gameplay reveal on June 11, and when it does, it will be with a new name. IGN can exclusively reveal that the latest entry in the Dragon Age franchise, previously known as Dragon Age Dreadwolf, is being renamed Dragon Age: The Veilguard.

The news comes with a host of details that shed new light on BioWare’s anticipated RPG, which up until this point has been kept heavily under wraps. Among other things, BioWare confirmed that The Veilguard will feature seven playable party members, and that it will feature “fun and fluid, moment-to-moment combat” while continuing to center strategy via the unique powers of each companion.

But it’s the name change that will do the most to raise eyebrows among the fandom. Ever since the conclusion of Dragon Age: Inquisition’s Trespasser DLC, fans have expected a story focused on Solas, the former companion who was revealed to be the Elven god Fen’Harel, also known as the Dread Wolf. BioWare general manager Gary McKay explains that while Solas is “still very much a part of the story of Dragon Age: The Veilguard,” the team wanted a title that reflected a “really deep and compelling group of companions.”

Concord’s $39.99 price point “provides the full experience,” Sony has said.

Following Concord’s divisive reveal during Sony’s State of Play showcase in May, some had wondered whether the live service hero shooter would release in free-to-play form.

Confirming Concord launches in both physical and digital standard editions for $39.99 / £34.99 / €39.99, Pam Piscitello, director of marketing and operations at developer Firewalk, said in a post on the PlayStation Blog that this full experience includes all 16 playable characters (called Freegunners in-game), 12 maps set on various worlds, and six team-based modes.

This will expand shortly after launch with regular, post-launch updates for all players at no additional cost, Piscitello added.

“From the very beginning, we wanted Concord to be a complete multiplayer-focused experience that combines engaging gameplay, rewarding progression, and a robust roster of characters, maps, and game modes right out of the gate, while also creating a platform for us to evolve and expand the game and universe over time,” Piscitello commented.

As is the modern video game way, the more expensive Digital Deluxe Edition ($59.99 / £49.99 / €59.99) gives early access to Concord when it launches this August. That amounts to up to 72 hours of early access before the global launch on August 23.

As already announced, a pre-launch beta is set for PlayStation 5 and PC with cross-play support. Those who pre-order get early access to this. Pre-ordering any edition of Concord grants you five codes for the beta early access weekend in July.

By launching Concord on PS5 and PC simultaneously priced $39.99, Sony is replicating the release strategy employed for Arrowhead’s co-op shooter Helldivers 2, which went on to become the fastest-selling PlayStation game of all time with an incredible 12 million copies sold in just 12 weeks.

Cheaper price points and simultaneous releases on PS5 and PC may be the way forward for Sony’s live service games, if Helldivers 2 and now Concord are evidence of an overall strategy. Sony has insisted it will continue to release its big ticket single-player games on console first before coming to PC later.

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.

A Counter-Strike 2 weapon skin, meaning a variant color and pattern for an in-game gun, has sold for more than $1 million of real world money.

CS:GO, now Counter-Strike 2, lets players earn Weapon Cases (loot boxes) through gameplay or by purchasing them in the store, but each also requires a corresponding key to open it. These can, again, be earned through gameplay or purchased in the store.

The competitive first-person shooter is free to play but has an extensive economy surrounding the contents of these loot boxes: weapon skins. Players can buy, trade, and sell them to each other, and the rarer pieces have sold in the past for hundreds, thousands, and even hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The most expensive skin in Counterstrike history was publicly sold this morning, a StatTrak Factory New AK-47 Blue Gem pattern 661

For over $1 million pic.twitter.com/1FdxoNM2ov

— Jake Lucky (@JakeSucky) June 5, 2024

As reported by Kotaku, the StatTrak Factory New AK-47 Blue Gem pattern 661 has blown away all previous records, however, after it was sold by X/Twitter user @roflm0nster for more than $1 million. A look at the gun can be seen in the post above.

The exact amount it sold for is unknown, as the seller is “not at liberty to disclose the buyer or exact amount”, according to a post on the platform. But @roflm0nster confirmed to IGN it was a seven-figure number. “What I can say is that $1 million offers were rejected multiple times,” they said. “Make your own conclusions.”

Such high offers came in as a result of the skin being truly unique, meaning only one exists within Counter-Strike. Its existence was discovered earlier in 2024, when fans marveled at its Blue Gem coloring, which adds a metallic blue look to the gun.

It’s also of Factory New condition, which is the rarest form of such a skin. A near identical version of this gun, just with the lesser Minimal Wear condition, sold for $400,000 in 2022, as reported by PC Gamer. Experts therefore valued the Factory New version to sell for up to $1 million, but it’s now gone above even that.

CS:GO is a PC classic which remains as popular as ever despite the forced transition to Counter-Strike 2 in September 2023, more than two decades after the original first released.

Image Credit: Jake Lucky on X/Twitter

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

Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead has revealed the game’s next Premium Warbond, dubbed Viper Commandos and due out June 13.

In a post on the PlayStation Blog, Katherine Baskin, social media and community manager at Arrowhead, said the studio had responded to feedback on Helldivers 2’s Warbonds and had changed its approach as a result. For a start, Arrowhead has slowed down the pace at which it releases Warbonds “to give us a little bit more time to polish these designs before they’re released.” Baskin continued: “We don’t want to rush anything out of the oven before it’s fully baked.”

Arrowhead has also changed the arrangement of items in each Warbond to make room for new item types as well as higher quality armor and weapons. “This will prevent us from simply adding more of everything, which can lead to weapons that feel redundant and uninteresting armor,” Baskin explained. “It’s time to focus on quality over quantity.”

“When we started researching items for Viper Commandos, we wanted to be sure we answered our player calls for stronger theming that coordinates across all the items, more emotes, unique armor passives, and more thoughtful designs rather than simply giving more of the same.”

The game’s community had called on the developer to slow down when it came to significant balance changes as well as Warbond releases, feeling Arrowhead had sometimes gone too far with nerfs and failed to include meta-affecting weapons and gear in the Warbonds.

To that end, Viper Commandos revolves around an up close and personal playstyle, which for any existing Helldivers 2 player may sound a little frightening. The new primary is a new version of the Liberator called the AR-23A Liberator Carbine. It has a modified, shortened form-factor that handles differently from the original, with a bit higher recoil, but faster handling designed for spraying and praying up close.

There’s also the new SG-22 Bushwhacker triple-barrel, sawed-off shotgun with two different firing modes, including one that fires all three barrels at once. This shotgun is the first in Helldivers 2 to be classed as a secondary weapon, which should open up the loadout meta a bit.

There are two new armor items, both of which feature the Peak Physique passive, which improves melee damage and weapon handling. They both also feature bare arms, so you can really show off your guns.

Another first for the game is new skins for your hellpods, Exosuits, and Pelican-1, “inspired by the classic woodland and tiger stripe camouflage patterns.”

The new utility item is the throwing knife. “Imagine mowing down a crowd of Terminids and running out of ammo with only one bug remaining, no time to reload, so you dive backward and throw a hunting knife into its carapace right before it descends on you,” Baskin said, hyping it up.

There’s also a new booster called Experimental Infusion, which gives your stims the added bonus of boosting your movement speed and reducing the damage you take for a short time. And, as you’d expect, there are new capes, player cards, and emotes.