Developer Dambuster Studios and publisher Deep Silver have announced that Dead Island 2’s release date has been moved up by one week, from April 28 to April 21.
“You asked for it, you got it. Dead Island 2 went gold and it’s coming out a week early. See you in HELL-A on April 21, 2023,” revealed the Dead Island official Twitter account.
Dead Island 2 was originally scheduled to be released on February 3, but was later delayed to April 28. Now, players will get their hands on the game a little earlier than expected.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor was also recently announced to be delayed to April 28 from its original March 17 release date. With Dead Island 2 moving up a week, the two games won’t launch on the same day anymore.
Dead Island 2’s development cycle has been turbulent. The game was originally revealed all the way back at E3 2014, with previous developer Yager at the helm. The game’s development later shifted to Sumo Digital, before shifting again to Dambuster in 2019. Its current form was finally shown after years of waiting at Gamescom 2022, where it was re-revealed along with its original February 2023 release date.
In IGN’s Dead Island 2 hands-on preview, we said “Dead Island 2 appears to share a huge amount of common ground with not just the original Dead Island, but also its step-sibling, Dying Light.”
George Yang is a freelance writer for IGN. He’s been writing about the industry since 2019 and has worked with other publications such as Insider, Kotaku, NPR, and Variety.
When not writing about video games, George is playing video games. What a surprise! You can follow him on Twitter @Yinyangfooey
The latest figures from The NPD Group reveal that Dead Space is the best-selling new video game in the U.S. in January. The well-received remake of the 2008 survival horror was kept away from the top spot by Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, which enjoys its fourth consecutive month as the best-selling game in the U.S.
Dead Space was joined in the top 20 best-sellers by three other new games: Fire Emblem Engage (No.5), Forspoken (No.7), and One Piece Odyssey (No.9).
While there were four new releases among the top 10, U.S. consumer spending on video game software, hardware, and accessories dropped year-on-year by 5%, according to NPD’s Mat Piscatella. “Video game hardware spending was flat, while content (-5%) and accessories (-14%) spending fell,” he revealed on Twitter. This means sales are down year-on-year for the first time since last September.
January 2022 US NPD THREAD – U.S. consumer spending on video game content, hardware and accessories totaled $4.3 billion, a decline of 5% when compared to a year ago. Video game hardware spending was flat, while content (-5%) and accessories (-14%) spending fell. pic.twitter.com/TvmxTayZr6
Not everything was down, however. The Last of Us: Part 1, the PS5 remake of Naughty Dog’s celebrated survival horror, saw a leap in chart position. Fuelled in part by the popularity of the new HBO show, it rose from No.36 to No.11 in the sales chart.
As for Dead Space, a debut at No.2 means that it has had a much better start in life than last year’s The Callisto Protocol. Widely considered a spiritual successor to Dead Space thanks to being helmed by the original game’s co-creator Glenn Schofield, some may have expected The Callisto Protocol to have made something of a splash. But despite that pedigree, it debuted at an underwhelming No.17 in the NPD sales charts for December 2022.
Just one month on, The Callisto Protocol has completely disappeared from the top 20 sales chart. Time will tell if Dead Space has the sticking power to hang on into next month’s charts, but with a significantly better critical response and little AAA competition in February, it has more favorable odds.
The full rankings for January 2023’s top 20 best-selling premium games in the U.S. are:
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Dead Space (2023)
Madden NFL 23
FIFA 23
Fire Emblem Engage
Elden Ring
Forspoken
God of War: Ragnarok
One Piece Odyssey
Pokemon: Scarlet/Violet
The Last of Us: Part 1
Sonic Frontiers
Monster Hunter: Rise
Mario Kart 8
Minecraft
Need for Speed: Unbound
Just Dance 2023 Edition
NBA 2K23
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
NHL 23
Matt Purslow is IGN’s UK News and Features Editor.
RPS’ Magic Week – our two-week endeavour to spotlight magical indies – you might enjoy the Trans Witches Are Witches bundle, which is unrelated to Magic Week, but has the same spirit. The bundle is a collection of 69 games, music, zines, and other creative oddities of the magical variety. Everything has been made by LGBTQ+ creators and all the proceeds will be split between the featured teams. So far, the bundle has passed a whopping $90,000 (or £74,000) in sales, with over a week left to go.
We are sure that many of you lovely lot have spent the weekend Morph Ballin’ and we can’t say that we blame you! After last week’s Nintendo Direct finally brought us news of Metroid Prime Remastered we couldn’t believe our luck; but when it dropped on the very same day we had to check if we were dreaming!
Even more so was this the case when we instantly started playing it only to discover that it was good — really good. You might have caught our review of the game by now for which we awarded it a perfect 10/10 rating and stated that “a masterpiece has been made evenbetter“. You can catch up on our thoughts in full below.
While new monster-slaying RPG adventure Wild Hearts gives you an extensive arsenal of weaponry to play with, its most unique system is based around Karakuri, a collectable resource that allows you to craft tools and structures to deploy both in battle and around the world. Here, we’ll dive into how to get started with Karakuri, what it can do, and how you can use the skills to take down monsters in creative ways.
Karakuri is an ancient technology coursing through the land of Azuma, and you have the power to harness it. Karakuri can be used to build structures, coordinate attacks on vicious prey, and unlock more skills and tools that will help you take down the mightiest beasts. It will appear frequently along your journey as a glowing green substance detected with your Hunter’s Vision. You’ll need to stop and collect the resources in order to keep crafting objects that will help you take down the Kemono, the monsters overrunning the land. That ancient power also runs through your AI companion, which can aid you in battle and collect threads of Karakuri from your surroundings.
You’ll not be able to take on the treacherous battles ahead without grasping the fundamentals, so we’ve compiled a guide that will help you get started on the hunt.
Traversing The Wilds with Karakuri
Azuma is a vast, intimidating landscape, and the Kemono lurking within it move great distances. To make your hunts easier, Basic Karakuri can be used to craft items to get around, such as crates that can be used to climb to higher points, and springs that allow you to leap across broken bridges and cavernous chasms.
As you progress, Karakuri will unlock different ways to navigate and explore the world. Karakuri abilities give you the ability to craft Hunting Towers, which reveal Kemono hiding in the immediate area. The Flying Vine is a contraption that creates a zipline, allowing you to soar across great distances on a zipwire, perfect for scaling a cliffside or crossing a river.
Later on, use the Karakuri skill tree to harness even more useful upgrades, like the Wind Vortex to glide high into the sky, the Glider which can be used to gain vantage over an area, or the Launcher, which can fire smaller Karakuri objects (our yourself) into the distance.
Powering Up Your Camp
Karakuri can be used out in the wildness of Azuma to craft camps. When you discover a Dragon Pit, you can awaken it and turn the surrounding area into a camp. These spots serve as permanent resting points in the open world to gear up for a nearby battle, and a handy quick travel point in case you need to return some other time.
Here, Karakuri can used to whip up a few useful resources. A Hunter’s Tent lets you get some much needed rest before or after a figh while a Campfire helps you to plan your next hunt, and wait for fellow adventurers to join you if needed.
If you’re in need of a brand-new weapon or an armor upgrade, you can build the Field Forge, and immediately craft whatever you need for the fight ahead if you have the right materials, whether it’s poison-resistant gauntlets or a giant hammer. The Drying Rack can be used for food, and the Ingredients Chest will allow you to store resources gathered along the way.
Taking Karakuri into Battle
Your Karakuri powers can also be wielded to gain advantage over Azuma’s colossal Kemono. Swiftly place six crates together to form a Bulwark, which can serve as a wall between you and your foe or stun a charging Kemono out of their attack, leaving them open to be damaged.
Use Fusion Karakuri to awaken the Pounder, a powerful hammerhead that can unleash a punishing blow on any Kemono, and destroy any offensive objects it may spawn during an attack. Fusion Karakuri can also unlock the Elemental Lantern, a device that can protect you from the effects of any deadly elemental hits that your foe may strike with.
Your Flying Vine can also be used offensively with the Impaler upgrade; instead of zipping to solid ground, fire the contraption straight into a Kemono to injure them as you move in. All of your basic Karakuri can be crafted in battle too, so be sure to make the most of the mysterious technology in every scenario. Over time, all of your Karakuri resources can be powered up in order to take on bigger, stronger and more rewarding Kemono located all over Azuma.
With that, you should be prepared to embark on your own epic hunts and get to know your prey when Wild Hearts is released for Xbox Series X|S on February 17.
WILD HEARTS™ is a unique twist on the hunting genre where technology gives you a fighting chance against fearsome beasts infused with the ferocious power of nature itself. Take on these creatures alone or hunt with friends in seamless co-op.
No one remembers why the Kemono began their rampage through a once prosperous Azuma. Fueled by desperation, they wield the power of primal nature at its most destructive. For a while, it seemed that none could stand against their overwhelming might. But hope arrives in the form of a formidable hunter, armed with deadly weapons and ancient technology called Karakuri that could turn the tide of battle.
HUNT GIANT NATURE-INFUSED BEASTS
Survive their attacks, learn from their behaviors, and use your Karakuri and your weapons in combination to cut these creatures down to size.
CRAFT YOUR HUNTING GROUNDS
You are the only one in Azuma able to wield the Karakuri technology. This ancient tech enables you to adapt your environment into creative hunting grounds ideal for taking down the giant Kemono.
HUNT IN A PACK, OR BE A LONE WOLF
In WILD HEARTS™ you can face the Kemono alone or unite with up to two friends (or fellow players) to stalk and hunt your prey.
GEAR UP TO HUNT, HUNT TO GEAR UP
The more you hunt, the more you progress. Create your character, then gather materials from each hunt and build an array of armor and weapons to bring down even bigger beasts.
EXPLORE A FANTASY FEUDAL JAPAN
Experience four season-based hunting grounds – each region with its own beautiful landscapes and dangers.
Developed by Omega Force, the Japanese studio behind the DYNASTY WARRIORS franchise, WILD HEARTS™ takes you on an epic adventure set in a fantasy world inspired by feudal Japan.
Blood Bowl used to be a dead game, Cyanide’s Gautier Brésard is quick to correct me: “I would say that it was a community-managed game.” In fact, for the two decades that the tabletop Warhammer bloodsport was out of print, fans worked diligently to ensure it wasn’t out of mind – creating a ‘living rulebook’ that ran to six iterations.
“Here is what may be the final edition of Blood Bowl,” read the opening page of that community manual. “This is the rulebook designed to send Blood Bowl into a perpetual format. The Games Workshop is no longer interested in providing true support for this game.”
Two developers who worked on the original Metroid Prime have criticised the newly released remaster for not fully crediting the original creative team.
Zoid Kirsch, who formerly worked for Retro Studios as Senior Gameplay Engineer on the original Metroid Prime, posted a screenshot from the remaster’s credits to Twitter.
While many studios did amazing work on the remaster, I’m let down Metroid Prime’s Remaster does not include the full original game credits. I worked with so many amazing people on the game and everyone’s name should be included in the remaster, not just a single card like this. pic.twitter.com/Yvojf9f9Mq
The message, which appears right at the very end of Metroid Prime Remaster’s credits roll, reads: “Based on the work of Metroid Prime (original Nintendo Gamecube and Wii versions) development staff”. No full credits for the original development team are included; only those who took part in the creation of the remaster are credited in full.
“While many studios did amazing work on the remaster, I’m let down Metroid Prime’s Remaster does not include the full original game credits,” said Kirsch. “I worked with so many amazing people on the game and everyone’s name should be included in the remaster, not just a single card like this.”
Kirsh’s comment was followed up by Jack Mathews, former tech lead on the Metroid Prime series at Retro Studios. “This is a travesty,” he said. “Not just for my credit (even though most of my code was probably replaced), but for people whose code and work are largely unchanged, like Mark HH, Steve McCrea, all of the uprezzed art and concepts, the game design. Shameful.”
This is a travesty. Not just for my credit (even though most of my code was probably replaced), but for people whose code and work are largely unchanged, like Mark HH, Steve McCrea, all of the uprezzed art and concepts, the game design. Shameful. https://t.co/y6tXyCG3N1
The issue of remakes and remasters not crediting the original developers is not a new one. Shadow of the Colossus and the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Triology remakes are just two examples of games that have not provided full credit to the original teams.
But did you know that there were some facts from the Nintendo Direct that weren’t explictely stated? For example, did you know that the release date for the physical edition of Metroid Prime Remastered is actually different depending on your region (spoilers: it’s February 22nd in North America and March 3rd in Europe)?
Hogwarts Legacy is already taking the world by storm, and you may be wondering how you could possibly get in on the action. Well, have no fear, we’ve got some excellent deals for you that will open up the Wizarding World to you right now. Our headline deal today is the PS5 with Hogwarts Legacy Bundle for just £516.98 at Argos. Overall that works out at £479.99 for the PS5, and just £36.99 for Hogwarts Legacy, about £23 off the new game already.
This is perfect for anyone who doesn’t have a new-gen console but still wants to play the game right now! If you’re more interested in Xbox, don’t worry, I’ve got deals there as well, as you can pick up an Xbox Series X console and Hogwarts for just £479.99 from Smyths at the moment, or an Xbox Series S bundle for just £279.99 from GAME. For even more gaming deals, check out all the links just below, or follow @IGNUKDeals on Twitter for more instant updates.
TL;DR – Best UK Deals Right Now
Amazon Hogwarts Legacy Console Bundle Deals
If you are buying the Argos bundle, make sure to just click the ‘Money Off Bundles’ section which will take you to all the current bundle offers Argos has got, including the new Hogwarts Legacy deal. See our full 9/10 review for the game here.
These are the best deals that I want to highlight, but can’t necessarily fit anywhere else.
Amazing Discounts on Anker Tech Right Now
There’s some great deals on Anker headphones, USB cables and more at Amazon right now. My favourite is definitely on the Soundcore Q45 Adaptive Noise Cancelling Headphones, dropping down to just £97.99. This is a great option for an affordable but amazing set of headphones (instead of dropping £300 on a Bose or Sony set).
With Keeper, you can store all of your passwords, credit card info, and other sensitive data in one secure, encrypted digital vault. Plus, they use top-notch encryption technology to keep your stuff safe and have added bonus features like password generation, password sharing, and two-factor authentication.
Where to Preorder The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom in the UK
The best Tears of the Kingdom (or Breath of the Wild 2 as many of us called it for years) preorder deal in the UK is still at Hit for £49.85, or ShopTo for the same price. In case you’re wondering, both ShopTo and Hit are 100% legit UK retailers. We’ve linked out to both of them before, and have had no complaints! I’ll leave all the relevant links down below for Tears of the Kingdom preorders.
Where to Preorder Tears of the Kingdom Collector’s Edition and Amiibo
Preorders for the Collector’s Edition are currently sold out everywhere, including Smyths, GAME, and ShopTo. Amazon currently has a listing up, but has not gone live with it yet.
You can also register your interest in the Collector’s Edition, or the Link – Tears of the Kingdom amiibo (£12.99) from Nintendo right now in the UK. Otherwise, follow and set notifications on for @IGNUKDeals on Twitter as we’ll tweet when more preorders go live.
Pick up the perfect PS5 1TB SSD for just £85.51 right now, or upgrade even further and drop £185 on a 2TB SSD instead (that works out at £92.50 per TB).
Metroid Prime Remastered Is Now on Nintendo Switch
After years of rumors, Metroid Prime Remastered is real. If that wasn’t exciting enough, Nintendo has already released the game digitally. But, if you’d prefer to wait for a physical copy, it’s out on March 3, 2023, and can be preorder right now from the links below.
RPS’ Magic Week – our two-week endeavour to spotlight magical indies – you might enjoy the Trans Witches Are Witches bundle, which is unrelated to Magic Week, but has the same spirit. The bundle is a collection of 69 games, music, zines, and other creative oddities of the magical variety. Everything has been made by LGBTQ+ creators and all the proceeds will be split between the featured teams. So far, the bundle has passed a whopping $90,000 (or £74,000) in sales, with over a week left to go.
Blood Bowl used to be a dead game, Cyanide’s Gautier Brésard is quick to correct me: “I would say that it was a community-managed game.” In fact, for the two decades that the tabletop Warhammer bloodsport was out of print, fans worked diligently to ensure it wasn’t out of mind – creating a ‘living rulebook’ that ran to six iterations.
#screenshotsaturday tag. And every Monday, I bring you a selection of these snaps and clips.