The PS5 Game Deals I’m Hoping to See on Black Friday

Black Friday is undoubtedly the best time of year for picking up everything gaming-related. From standout releases of the past decade to recent Game of the Year contenders, almost nothing is off the table during this sales season. With November now underway, we’re on the cusp of seeing some major deals on the best PS5 games.

Here’s the scoop: Most major offers typically appear in the final two weeks of November, with the biggest deals concentrated around Black Friday week, from November 23 to Cyber Monday on December 2 this year. Given the lackluster sale events in 2024 so far, Black Friday feels primed to deliver in a big way for gamers. So, what PS5 game deals should we expect this Black Friday? Here’s what I’m hoping to see.

Sonic X Shadow Generations

It’s only been a short time since release, but hear me out. Sega has a history of offering early discounts on its games, even if they’re performing well. Just look at Sonic Frontiers, which saw a solid Black Friday discount the same year it launched.

So it wouldn’t be too surprising if Sonic X Shadow Generations gets similar treatment. It’s currently down to $39.99 at Woot, but we may see another reduction in the coming weeks. Notable leaker billbil_kun has even suggested the game could go for around €26.99 in Europe, hinting at a potentially hefty discount when Black Friday rolls around.

On a personal note, Shadow Generations is everything I hoped it would be. Sonic fans are in for a treat, and for everyone else, this is a perfect entry point into one of the best Sonic games to date. Plus, with Sonic 3 releasing in cinemas this Christmas, it’s a great time to dive into the Sonic universe – and I couldn’t be more thrilled.

Elden Ring

Consistently topping our best PlayStation games list, Elden Ring is a must-play on any console – and a game that has already earned its place among the greatest of all time. This year, it gained even more depth with Shadow of the Erdtree, a new expansion set to challenge even the most seasoned Souls veterans.

Though Elden Ring has been out for a while, a truly epic deal has been elusive, often selling out fast when it does appear. This Black Friday, here’s hoping retailers bring Elden Ring (and ideally, the Shadow of the Erdtree Edition) to the table with a deal worth the wait.

Alan Wake 2

More people need to play Alan Wake 2. It was my personal Game of the Year for 2023 and one of the best horror games I’ve experienced in ages. It delivers a thrilling, terrifying ride with that signature Remedy charm woven throughout. Now available physically via the Deluxe Edition – which includes the Lake House and Night Springs DLCs – Black Friday would be a perfect time to offer a discount and get this gem into more players’ hands. Since it’s still a hefty price of $79.99 right now, let’s hope it’s on sale soon.

Astro Bot

It’s one of the biggest surprises of the year: Astro Bot is amazing. If you haven’t played it yet, please change that ASAP. Hopefully Black Friday can help assist in that matter and you can experience the sheer platforming brilliance that Asobi Team put together. It’s not been long since release, so I wouldn’t expect any massive discounts, but even just $10 off the game would be great going into the holidays.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2

Since its release last year, Spider-Man 2 has seen mixed reactions, despite being one of my favorite games of 2023 and even a serious Game of the Year contender. Unfortunately, enthusiasm for the game has waned, especially with Insomniac’s recent announcement that it’s moving on to its next project (likely Wolverine) without releasing any DLC for Spider-Man 2.

For me, though, it’s still a fantastic game, faults and all. Black Friday could be the perfect opportunity for more players to experience the special everyday moments that make the game memorable – like sitting by the lake with someone’s grandfather as he reminisces or helping Harold’s pigeons find a new home. These “friendly neighborhood” moments, along with the incredible swinging and smooth dynamic combat, make it an experience worth trying. If it goes on sale, I highly recommend picking it up. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is full of heart, and if you haven’t yet, it’s a ride you don’t want to miss.

Stellar Blade

Now, let’s shift to something a little more recent: Stellar Blade. This action-packed game, released earlier this year, hasn’t seen any significant discounts since launch. There was one brief deal a few weeks back, but it sold out fast, leaving many players waiting for a second chance to pick it up at a reasonable price. Black Friday could be the perfect opportunity for retailers to bring back a solid deal and let more people (and their Nan!) experience this fantastic game.

Resident Evil 4

One of last year’s standout games, the Resident Evil 4 remake, recently saw a fantastic price drop to just $19.99 – an incredible value for a game often considered one of the best of all time. Although that deal is still available, I’m especially hoping it continues (or maybe even gets cheaper?) for Black Friday. For now at $20, this game is a must-have, and it’s a deal that more people should jump on if it sticks around through Black Friday.

Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty

Yes, Alan Wake 2 was my Game of the Year last year, but Phantom Liberty is right up there as well. Though technically an expansion, Phantom Liberty feels like a complete game in itself, and it marks an impressive comeback for Cyberpunk 2077. CD Projekt RED has truly redeemed themselves, and Phantom Liberty is the icing on the cake. If this expansion drops in price for Black Friday, it’s a fantastic opportunity to experience one of the finest RPG additions in recent memory.

The Last of Us Part 1 and 2

Naughty Dog sure loves to re-release its games, and while I get it, here’s hoping for a serious price drop this Black Friday. Both Part 1 and Part 2 are incredible games, but a more accessible price could bring in new players, especially with HBO’s The Last of Us Season 2 set to break our hearts all over again next year. A Black Friday discount would be the perfect way to gear up for the show’s return.

Star Wars Outlaws

If there’s a deal during Black Friday, it could be a good time to jump on Star Wars Outlaws, especially since Massive Entertainment have recently deployed update 1.2. It brought about a host of performance and gameplay enhancements on console and PC.

The publisher laid out everything new in title update 2 on its website, which introduced a bunch of visual improvements and bug fixes to Ubisoft’s open-world sci-fi game. Ubisoft emphasized that these updates were shaped by player feedback, reaffirming its commitment to closely listening as post-launch support for Star Wars Outlaws continues. While we’re at it, how about Star Wars: Jedi Survivor gets a Black Friday discount as well? Let’s wait and see.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2

Fellow deals expert Chris Reed was all in on Space Marine 2, saying in his review, “Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 may not break the third-person shooter mold, but it looks amazing, makes good use of its Warhammer lore, and has brutal combat that just feels great.”

Now that the dust has settled, Black Friday could be an ideal time to put this thrilling third-person shooter into even more hands for the holiday season. Got a Warhammer fan in your life who hasn’t played it yet? If this goes on sale, you’re looking at a perfect gift idea. Fingers crossed – Space Marine 2 would make an incredible find under the tree this year.

That’s all she wrote! Notice any big games that I’ve missed off the list? Let us know below in the comments what you’d like to see on sale over Black Friday this year.

Looking for deals right now? Have a look at our roundup of the best PlayStation deals to see the biggest discounts available today. Or, if you’d like to see what’s caught our eye on other platforms, have a look at our individual roundups of the best Nintendo Switch deals and the best Xbox deals or our overall look at the best video game deals.

When Is Black Friday 2024?

The actual date of Black Friday in 2024 falls on November 29 this year, but the deals season will begin a lot sooner than that. Leading up to the big event, retailers will begin to open deals online. This usually starts in the last week of October, just before Halloween. Each week leading up to the event will slowly roll out more deals, which ultimately leads to Black Friday. Retailers will not reveal their biggest Black Friday deals until the big day, but most general deals will be available well in advance. Walmart, for example, has announced its official sale for November 11 this year.

Robert Anderson is a deals expert and Commerce Editor for IGN. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter.

The Monster Hunter Wilds beta is live with an early glimpse of the new camping, wound and weather systems

Stroll on down to Uncle Capcom’s garage, girls and boys, because it’s time to meddle with a cat’s voicebox, ride a combat peacock and meticulously injure a vast, blubbery teddybear. By which I mean, the Monster Hunter Wilds beta is now live on Steam through to 4th November at 2.59am GMT. That’s 2.59am sharp. If you’re hurrying along at 3am on Monday absolutely desperate to polish the aesthetics of a small enslaved catperson, you can sod off and play Dragon Age: The Veilguard instead.

Pokemon TCG Pocket Players Love Farfetch’d, and They’re Absolutely Right

Pokemon TCG Pocket launched earlier this week, and players are already falling in love with a certain Pokemon. He’s cute, he’s mighty, and he has great deck utility (and great duck utility)…it’s Farfetch’d!

For those who aren’t playing Pocket, it’s essentially a card collecting/pack opening sim with the ability to play a truncated version of the Pokemon TCG. The rules are simpler, the battles are shorter, and it’s a lot easier to build an interesting competitive deck due to the game being free-to-play and the availability of booster packs for players who don’t spend any money.

Right now in Pocket, there’s only one “set” of cards available to collect, called Apex Evolution. It’s a great idea to start everyone off with just one set, from scratch, so there’s a fairly even playing field at launch and the meta is still shaking out. But as spotted by ComicBook, Farfetch’d specifically has been rising above the rest as a component of just about any viable deck you want to make due to its unique combination of advantages.

For one, it’s a Basic Pokemon, so you can play it right from the start of the game without having to evolve it. Second, like most other Basic Pokemon, it has an attack that only costs one Energy, so it can attack pretty much immediately without any build-up. But more importantly, that attack (Leek Slap) does a whopping 40 damage, which is an enormous amount for a one energy cost, Basic Pokemon move. As a common card, Farfetch’d is easy for anyone to obtain, so there’s no major expense or long effort to getting one or two in your deck. And finally, because Farfetch’d is a “colorless” card, it can be included in any deck and can use any type of energy, so it’s very versatile.

Of course, Farfetch’d ultimately isn’t a long game winner. It’s great if you want to play aggressively, as you can get it out on the board quickly, do a lot of damage, and then retreat for the cost of just the single energy it already had on it before its 60 HP gets too low. But in the Pokemon TCG, that’s usually enough. Farfetch’d can keep your opponent busy while you build up your bigger monsters on your bench, and can help stall your opponent from making similar big moves as fast as you can. Truly a mighty bird, and fans are praising it accordingly.

We did a preview of Pokemon TCG Pocket back in September. As our previewer wrote, it’s “mainly a card-collecting destination, and maybe that’s all it needs to be.” But with Farfetch’d on the team, maybe dipping into the battles is worth it after all. Now when are we getting a full art of this guy, or an EX version?

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.

Get an Exclusive Look Inside The Art of Dragon Age: The Veilguard

Dragon Age: The Veilguard is undoubtedly one of the biggest new releases of 2024. Hot on the heels of the game itself is Dark Horse’s latest video game-themed artbook, The Art of Dragon Age: The Veilguard. And with that book hitting stores in a matter of days, IGN can exclusively reveal a new preview.

Check out the slideshow gallery below to see several interior pages from The Art of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, showcasing some of the wealth of concept art and behind-the-scenes material in this massive hardcover:

Here’s Dark Horse’s official description for the book:

Explore the world of BioWare’s latest immersive fantasy RPG, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, with this incredible, oversized art book! Uncover the secrets of Thedas and experience the world through new eyes with stunning concept art.

Throughout this book, readers will see characters as you’ve never seen them before, from concept to final design. Fans can explore the world and varied cultures of Thedas with splash art designs and props from the beautiful locales in the game, and inspect the armory, examining in detail hundreds of weapons and armor pieces.

Created in collaboration with the developers at BioWare, this art book showcases the painstaking detail with which Thedas has been lovingly crafted.

The Art of Dragon Age: The Veilguard is priced at $49.99 for the standard hardcover and $99.99 for the deluxe edition (which includes bonus goodies like a foil-stamped cover and slipcase and two lithograph art prints). It’ll be released on November 5 in bookstores and November 6 in comic shops. You can preorder both versions below:

In IGN’s Dragon Age: The Veilguard review, writer Leana Hafer scored the game a 9 out of 10, saying “Dragon Age: The Veilguard refreshes and reinvigorates a storied series that stumbled through its middle years, and leaves no doubt that it deserves its place in the RPG pantheon. The next Mass Effect is going to have a very tough act to follow, which is not something I ever imagined I’d be saying before I got swept away on this adventure. Enjoyable action combat, a fantastic cast of allies with sweeping story arcs all their own, top-notch cinematics, and moving, nuanced character writing are the wings on which this triumphant dragon soars, pulling out all the stops in a whirlwind tour of Northern Thedas and capping it with a terrific finale that’s built on memorably tough choices and consequences. If we never get another Dragon Age, at least it got to go out on a high note.”

Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

Review: Slay The Princess – The Pristine Cut (Switch) – A Brilliant Horror Narrative Hampered By Technical Issues

Slay, bestie!

Saving a princess has to be the most overused trope in the fantasy playbook. If pixelated plumbers and heroes clad in green tunics have taught us anything, it’s that princesses need rescuing – right? Not if Slay the Princess has anything to say about it. In this psychological horror visual novel, you’re tasked with killing a princess to save the world – or so you’re told.

It starts with a straightforward premise: an unseen narrator calls on you to carry out a grisly murder for the greater good. But as you question the motives behind this task and mull whether to slay or spare the eponymous princess, the game reveals a surprisingly dense philosophical narrative that probes questions of perspective, autonomy, and existence.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com