Category: IGN

Path of Exile 2 developer Grinding Gear Games has fully detailed the first major content update since the action RPG’s early access launch last year.

Dawn of the Hunt goes live at 9pm CET on April 4, and adds the new Huntress class. The Huntress is a Spear and Buckler user specialising in hybrid melee and ranged combat. Elsewhere, there are five new ascension classes: the Ritualist, Amazon, Smith of Kitava, Tactician, and Lich.

Players can also expect dozens of new encounters in the endgame, significant mechanical overhauls, over one hundred new unique items as well as significantly expanded crafting options.

The long wait for the Path of Exile 2 early access launch finally came to an end when it released on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S on December 6, 2024. It saw massive success, securing its place as the 15th most-played game Steam game ever.

But the game ran into issues, both technical and in design. GGG has worked to update the game in the months since, culminating in next month’s Dawn of the Hunt release.

At the same time, GGG continues to operate the first Path of Exile game, which still enjoys a healthy playerbase on Steam, as a live service. But this has proved challenging. In January, GGG was forced to apologize to fans of the first game after putting a new update on hold until a crucial update for Path of Exile 2 was released.

Meanwhile, Path of Exile 2 has found itself embroiled in an online dispute that revolves around X / Twitter owner Elon Musk’s admission that he paid someone to boost his account. When contacted by IGN, Grinding Gear Games declined to comment.

Here’s everything you need to know on Path of Exile 2 Dawn of the Hunt:

Obliterate your enemies with the hybrid ranged and melee Huntress

Step into the bloodstained boots of the Huntress, a dexterous and ferocious spear-wielding warrior. Banished from her homeland, she now stalks her prey using both ranged spear throws and close combat attacks. Her brutal arsenal is designed to make combat feel like a relentless pursuit, always in motion, moving into and out of melee range at a moments notice.

The Huntress can also Parry incoming attacks from monsters, stunning them before following up with one of several counterattacks. For example, use Disengage after a Parry to quickly jump back, gaining a Frenzy charge, then follow up with an empowered spear throw.

Stalk your prey with an array of elemental spear attacks that empower the Huntress to use some of the longest combo chains we have created on any class.

Create mayhem with five new ascendancy classes
With five new Ascendancy Classes, Dawn of the Hunt introduces fresh new ways to expand your build options.

• Ritualist (Huntress) – The Ritualist sacrifices flesh and blood, unleashing corrupted lifeforce upon their foes. She delved into the forbidden depths of Azmeri traditions, wielding blood sacrifice and plague as weapons
• Amazon (Huntress) – A peerless hunter who thrives on precision and elemental fury. The Amazon Ascension forges warriors into elite hunters, sworn to protect Azmeri Elders with lethal precision.
• Lich (Witch) – The Lich tears their own soul apart, becoming a master of undeath and chaos. The Lich is a master of Chaos and Curses who can use her own life to enhance her Energy.
• Smith of Kitava (Warrior) – The Smith of Kitava forges weapons of destruction in fire and suffering. Embrace sheer power and take Smithing skills to greater heights by resonating with the insatiable one – Kitava.
• Tactician (Mercenary) – the Mercenary Tactician brings military-grade brutality to the battlefield. As a former trained Blackguard Elite, the Tactician is able to decimate the monsters of Wraeclast while earning a healthy income at the same time.

Sharpen your arsenal with new skill and support gems
As well as 20 New Spear Skills designed for the huntress, we have two other much anticipated abilities.

• Raise Spectre – This skill lets you trap and summon the souls of almost any monster in the game. With hundreds of monster variants in Path of Exile 2, expect endless experimentation to find the perfect undead army.
• Summon Rhoa Mount – Call forth a Rhoa to fight by your side or mount it to move at full speed while attacking. But beware, taking too much damage can knock you off, leaving you vulnerable to a brutal fate.

This expansion also brings a massive overhaul to character development by adding over 100 new Support Gems to enhance build diversity. Support gems add a variety of interesting effects to your existing skills, modifying them in game changing ways.

For example, Haemocrystals turn bleed effects into explosive Vaal crystals, and Caltrops allow your existing skills to litter the battlefield with slowing hazards.

Unlock greater potential with Over 100 new Unique Items
Dawn of the Hunt brings a stronger focus on Mid and Endgame Unique items, ensuring high-level characters have more thrilling bounty to chase.

Unbridled power awaits with new crafting tools
New crafting tools have been introduced as rewards across many areas of the game:

• Over 20 new runes have been added allowing you to craft new mods onto your gear
• Runes now scale with multiple tiers, allowing for stronger mods that remain viable in the endgame.
• We’re expanding crafting options further by introducing more specialized socketable mods, with the first wave arriving in the upcoming content update.

Darkness lurks ahead
The Azmeri Spirit has made itself present in Wraeclast. When approached, these wisps will flee, and monsters it comes into contact with will be infused by it, making them more powerful. Wisps will also find and possess Rare or Unique monsters, granting them powerful new abilities, and powerful new rewards. There are twelve distinct types of wisp, each with their own mechanics and rewards.

New Maps
Dawn of the Hunt adds eight new Maps offering fresh challenges and rewards. Each of them come with interesting new encounters.

Be forced to fight mirrored Rare monsters in a shifting, warped reality in The Fractured Lake, or be thrust into the wild Ezomyte Forests of The Phaaryl Megaliths where rune-carved stones surge with energy. Survive the storm-fueled gauntlet of deadly boss waves, and you’ll earn full boss rewards and exclusive Runes

Unique Strongboxes

Find four new Unique Strongboxes, each with deadly mechanics and valuable rewards.

• Ogham’s Legacy features a rune-carved stone and a slain creature that, when activated, revives as a powerful Rare. Each defeat triggers another resurrection with added modifiers making the fight progressively more difficult, but also more rewarding.
• Ixchel’s Torment harnesses ancient Vaal thaumaturgy, unleashing Chaos-empowered guardians to protect a powerful artifact. Victors will be rewarded with a unique item featuring a specific Corrupted outcome.

Corrupted Essences

Essences receive major upgrades, with four new Corrupted Essences – Hysteria, Delirium, Horror, and Insanity – offering new combat mechanics and powerful new crafting outcomes, such as guaranteed double Enchantments when using a Vaal Orb on belts.

Cleanse the Corruption
Corruption has continued to spread throughout Wraeclast and has formed into larger and larger zones. In the centre of each one lies a Corrupted Nexus, the home of three new terrifying bosses, amalgamations of Corruption itself.

Upon defeating these bosses, any remaining areas within the zone of Corruption will become cleansed. Cleansed Maps have additional new monsters, a new boss and their own set of Modifiers and rewards.

Duel with Rogue Exiles
On your travels you will sometimes encounter Rogue Exiles – others like you who have been exiled and are openly hostile. They will challenge you – a fight to the death. These Exiles have capabilities to Dodge Roll, avoid your abilities with smart pathfinding, smart-targeting, and much more action-packed gameplay. Rogue Exiles use the same skills available to players, and even the same items. They aren’t just dressed up in those items, they know how to take advantage of the Uniques they are using.

Of course, if you are able to slay these Exiles, those items will all drop on the ground!

Dynamic improvements to endgame
Dawn of the Hunt significantly rebalances the endgame. The number of towers has been drastically reduced but they have been made much more powerful. Tablets now affect twice as many areas and running higher tier Maps in Towers increases this number further still. In addition, each Tower will be able to consume up to three Tablets at once.

These changes significantly reduce the amount of busy work required in endgame while improving your ability to use them. On top of that, Towers can now spawn with all mechanics, and have their own new Bosses!

Prepare for the Hunt
Rise as a hunter, or fall as prey on April 4th. The Dawn of the Hunt content update will also be made available in existing Early Access leagues for those wishing to play their existing characters. It is recommended to start anew in a fresh economy to get the full, recommended experience in the Dawn of the Hunt leagues.

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.

In a space as crowded as the soulslike genre, it can be difficult to stand out, but after two hours with the uber-difficult Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, it seems the folks at Leenzee Games may be onto something. Taking place in a magical reimagining of dynastic China, you play a pirate warrior who has some serious moves, making use of intricate and deadly spells, an arsenal of weapons with potent movesets, and an upgrade tree that’s much more involved than your typical action-adventure game. This makes for an adventure where, more often than not, I felt like the scary badass the rest of the world should be afraid of, rather than the other way around. Of course, the upper limit on just how much I could make myself feel like an overpowered Dynasty Warriors character was my own skill level and understanding of Wuchang’s extremely complex systems, which I could only dive so deep with during my limited demo. But what I’ve seen so far has me quite optimistic.

The main way Wuchang: Fallen Feathers seems to differentiate itself from its peers is that here, instead of a few basic sword moves, a handful of meager spells and abilities, and a tiny health bar, you’re given a pretty extensive toolkit of formidable tools to play with. Each weapon allows you to unleash unique flurries of attacks that send you soaring into the air, darting across the map, and performing insane feats of dexterity that are far beyond what’s possible in most soulslikes. It got to the point where I felt like the area boss stomping my enemies flat, rather than a scared, cautious adventurer facing incredible odds.

That feeling of superiority might have something to do with how those abilities are acquired: by harvesting them from fallen enemies. That’s right! Every defeated foe is more than just a handful of upgrade materials. You actually get to learn their moves and put them to use against future opponents, eventually turning you into a deadly reflection of everyone you’ve bested in battle, and in my time with it I already began to feel like a power-stealing badass in short order. And this was just the opening areas of the adventure too – I can only imagine how wild things get later on when you’re squaring off against more powerful opponents and presumably unlocking even more insane abilities.

Don’t get me wrong: there were still plenty of instances where my eagerness or lack of awareness got me absolutely smashed to pieces, but I also felt like I had way more options for cutting the enemy down to size. For example, one move I was given while wielding a giant ax let me leap straight into the air to ludicrous anime-level heights, then smash down on my opponent, stomping them flat and leaving a minion-shaped impression in the earth. Another weapon, fast moving dual blades, gave me the ability to fire off a bunch of small, sticky explosives every time I dodged, which then exploded doing a small amount of damage, but more importantly, interrupting enemy movement.

These abilities and weapon combos, combined with spells that let me do things like fire off a deadly disc of fire, allowed me to play much more aggressively than I’m accustomed to, and it’s clear there’s just a whole lot more to learn with Wuchang in general. I didn’t have nearly enough time to fully wrap my mind around the various skill trees, ability customization options that let me alter how my weapons functioned, and spellcasting system, but it’s clear this borrows quite a bit from RPGs and will need to be thought through if you want to max out your levels of badassery.

That will be pretty helpful to do too, because of the two bosses I took on in Wuchang, one of them was extremely aggressive and equally beefed up with fancy movesets. It took me quite a few tries to learn her quick, convoluted attack patterns, and master the timing for parrying her attacks, especially in the second half of the fight when each swipe of her blade sent out massive gusts of wind that knocked my on my butt and did way more damage than I thought the wind was capable of. Eventually, though, I stood triumphant against her devilish tricks. Rather than a feeble goon hopelessly outmatched by an enemy clearly above my power level, Wuchang’s boss fights made me feel a lot more like a peer locked in a duel with strong weapons and destructive abilities to see who was more worthy of success.

If there’s one part I didn’t get a completely strong read on, it’s Wuchang’s story, which centers on a disease spreading throughout the lands that drives people mad and makes them sprout feathers. I didn’t see enough to say whether or not this is likely to go the distance, but I will say I’ve lost count of the number of soulslikes in the past few years that have leaned on that incredibly tired trope. I get that having a disease that turns people into monsters offers a pretty easy reason to make everything in the world want to kill you, which is very helpful in this kind of game, but man am I ever tired of seeing it. I’d really like to see Wuchang break free from some of the story cliches in the same way it seems to be switching things up when it comes to combat style.

It’s also worth noting just how visually impressive Wuchang is, which is by no means the norm for the genre. Even if I was dying half a dozen times to the same boss or lost among a sea of disgusting, mutated enemies, I was at least able to content myself with how downright gorgeous everything looked, ruined and deeply troubling as the world was. That said, I did notice somewhat long load times after each humiliating defeat that respawned me back at a checkpoint, and I have to wonder how much of that hang time is owed to the world and characters looking so dang good. In fairness, there’s very little chance this thing’s been optimized enough to be representative of the final product, but since I was playing on a PC that seemed fairly powerful, it’s definitely something I’m going to want to keep an eye on as I check out future builds.

With only a short exploration area and two boss fights to contend with, I only caught a small glimpse at Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, but I already feel pretty good about its chances at being more than just another soulslike to add to the ridiculously overflowing pile. The movesets are intricate and interesting, the RPG mechanics seem deep and offer a lot of freedom (even if I can’t claim to understand some of them fully), and the boss fights gave me a serious run for my money that’s rare these days. All that’s already got me pretty excited to play more.

While Marvel Rivals players have spent months speculating about which heroes will soon join its roster, developer NetEase Games quietly added a Venom twerk emote that lets Spider-Man’s longtime rival throw it back like never before.

Fans of the super hero shooter have been beside themselves today after the version 20250327 update added a mysterious April Fools’ Day reward to the Galacta’s Cosmic Adventure event. It’s almost impossible to believe, but the evidence is undeniable: Venom can really shake it.

Social media has since been flooded with reactions to Venom’s newfound twerking abilities as fans try to cling on to the reality of the situation. It’s perhaps the most tongue-in-cheek thing NetEase has done since Marvel Rivals launched, and it opens the door not only for wackier April Fools’ Day shenanigans but stranger emotes in general, too.

It’s unclear if more April Fools’ Day-themed Marvel Rivals cosmetics are on the way, but if this is the only addition players get, it’s more than enough. It’s not technically available to claim and use just yet, but you can see some leaked footage shared by X/Twitter user @RivalsInfo below.

NEW Venom Twerk Emote In-game 🔥 #MarvelRivals pic.twitter.com/BMbQbk3tuZ

— RivalsInfo (@RivalsInfo) March 27, 2025

ARE WE DEADASS??? Even the game developers agree that venom is a freak istg😭😭😭 https://t.co/O1cTmUhscK

— Bagandži🥾 (COMMS CLOSED) (@Bagandzi) March 27, 2025

Dr Strange player: *opens portal in front of enemy team*
Venom player with the twerk emote: pic.twitter.com/unBjOTx0Uc

— Club_Black (@anima8791) March 27, 2025

Whether you’re a Marvel Rivals player or someone who has been keeping tabs from the sidelines, it’s been nearly impossible to dodge mentions of how “caked-up” Venom is in Marvel Rivals. It’s no doubt one of the team-based multiplayer game’s prevailing memes as post-launch updates continue to roll out, and NetEase has taken notice. Now, the Venom twerk emote will let you and your friends dance on the competition in a whole new way.

How to unlock the free Marvel Rivals Venom twerking emote

Unlocking the Venom twerk emote for yourself is relatively easy – and completely free. All you need to do is head to the Galacta’s Cosmic Adventure event in-game and start chipping away at each of its boardgame-like tiles by completing challenges. Roll enough dice to check every box and nab every reward and you’ll be granted access to what NetEase previously referred to as a “hidden twist surprise.” We now know that the mystery reward is this incredible Venom twerk emote, and it’ll be available to claim (assuming you’ve met those aforementioned requirements) come April 1.

If you’ve been itching for a game that lets you dive into the world of Game of Thrones, then the free-to-play action-adventure RPG Game of Thrones: Kingsroad that’s coming soon on PC and mobile will be right up your alley.

Bringing a new, original story in Westeros, it’s set during the latter half of Season 4 of Game of Thrones. Your character is a new addition to the series lore, an heir to House Tyre, a minor house in the North that has been caught up in the web of political intrigue of the realm

Your journey will bring you into contact with well-known characters like Jon Snow, Samwell Tarly, Lord Varys, and Cersei Lannister, and you’ll see events you’ve never gotten to witness before — from House Bolton’s shifting allegiances to the rise of the White Walkers. Players will travel across the continent to iconic locations like King’s Landing, Castle Black, and Highgarden, which have been re-created to emulate their look from the show.

The game’s open world exploration allows you to freely roam through each of these locations, as well as the wilderness beyond the Wall and in new hidden towns to discover. Within each town, you’ll find unique quests and challenges to complete that tie into the rich lore of the Game of Thrones world.

As well as the familiar main quests to propel the story forward and side quests to keep you bust, there are a bevy of other activities to keep you entertained as you explore Westeros. Faction and Estate tasks let you earn money, gear and crafting items to customize your loadout and character just the way you want to.

This being Westeros, your travels will be full of danger — and not just the political kind. The realm is full of desperate people willing to kill to survive, which is where the action RPG combat comes in.

Combat is defined by the character’s class. There are three options: Knight, Sellsword, or Assassin, each of which is inspired by types of characters in Game of Thrones. The Knight is based on Westerosi knights. They use a longsword and rely on precise, calculated strikes. The Sellsword relies on raw, brute strength, inspired by Wildlings and the Dothraki. Assassin wields double daggers with deadly agility, inspired by the Faceless Men and fighters of Dorne.

Each class offers unique gear, traits, and skills, so how your character evolves is up to you. Trait trees are separated into Attack, Defense, and Support, each containing unique nodes that grant fixed effects. Players can choose to specialize in one of those areas or spread out their growth to be a jack of all trades. Four skill slots are available, where you can equip special skills you unlock, and each class has its own unique skills.

Combat is reliant on reading enemy attacks and reacting accordingly. Players can guard and parry, but some enemies have unblockable attacks that can only be avoided if dodged. That means you need to pay attention, analyze enemy attack patterns, and strike when the opportunity is right. You’ll need to think strategically to claim victory over your enemies, this isn’t a system where you simply mash one button over and over to win every fight.

In addition to the main single-player story mode, there’s a multiplayer mode called Altar of Memories where players can team up with others to fight legendary creatures.. That includes ice spiders the size of hounds, unicorns from Skagos, majestic griffins, and grotesque cockatrices.

The game will launch in Early Access on March 26, and you can pre-register for Game of Thrones: Kingsroad on the official website right now. Pre-registration is available on both PC and mobile devices, and you can wishlist it on Steam. It’s scheduled to release in 2025 and will offer cross-play and cross-progression across all its platforms. To stay up to date on all news and updates, you can also follow the game on Twitter, Facebook, and Discord.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows has seen over 3 million players since launch, Ubisoft has announced.

The player milestone comes seven days after Shadows launched on May 20, and is up from the 2 million reported on day two, surpassing the launches of both Origins and Odyssey.

Other stats reported by Ubisoft today were already revealed by IGN’s coverage of an internal email in which the company contextualized Shadows’ opening weekend performance, saying it’s better compared to Origins and Odyssey rather than the “perfect storm” 2020’s Valhalla launched into.

Shadows saw the second highest day one sales revenue in Assassin’s Creed franchise history, behind only Valhalla, the biggest Ubisoft day one ever on the PlayStation Store, and has seen over 40 million hours played so far.

There is enormous pressure on Assassin’s Creed Shadows to do well for Ubisoft globally after a number of delays and the sales failure of last year’s Star Wars Outlaws. Indeed, Ubisoft suffered a number of high-profile flops, layoffs, studio closures, and game cancellations in the run up to Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ release.

Things got so bad at Ubisoft that its founding Guillemot family was reportedly exploring talks with Chinese mega-corp Tencent and other investors on a buyout deal that would let it preserve control of the company’s intellectual property. So, the video game world is watching Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ early performance closely for signs of its success — or failure.

There’s also a lot of attention on Shadows’ Steam concurrents, which are being compared to those of other triple-A single-player games that recently released, as well as previous Assassin’s Creed games on Valve’s platform.

Shadows became the most-played Assassin’s Creed game ever on Steam over the weekend with 64,825 peak concurrent players, although it’s worth noting that it was the first game in the series to launch day-one there since 2018’s Odyssey. BioWare’s single-player RPG Dragon Age: The Veilguard saw a peak of 89,418 players on Valve’s platform.

It’s hard to make a call on whether Shadows is below, meeting, or exceeding Ubisoft’s expectations without knowing what those expectations were, a revenue figure, or a sales figure.

Money talks, of course, and irrespective of player numbers and engagement, it will be revenue brought in by Assassin’s Creed Shadows that determines the fate of not just the game, but Ubisoft itself. We may not get a clear picture of that until Ubisoft’s next financial report in the coming months.

Adventuring across feudal Japan? Check out our comprehensive Assassin’s Creed Shadows guide, including our Assassin’s Creed Shadows walkthrough, our detailed Assassin’s Creed Shadows Interactive Map, and our guide to all the crucial things Assassin’s Creed Shadows doesn’t tell you.

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.

Announced during Nintendo Direct March 2025, Marvel Cosmic Invasion is a retro brawler from Tribute Games, developer of the much-loved Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge. It’s due out on PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Xbox in 2025.

This co-op beat ’em up rekindles memories of the arcades of the ‘90s, and features the likes of Wolverine, Captain America, Spider-Man, and Storm.

The debut trailer is below:

Here’s the official blurb:

Opening with spectacular hand-drawn animation reflecting the game’s visual homage to colorful ’90s era Marvel comic books, Dotemu revealed the first set of playable characters from the roster: Captain America, Wolverine, Spider-Man, Storm, Phyla-Vell, Venom, and Nova. The trailer’s sneak peek at gameplay finds these legends uniting to throw down against menacing enemies in classically inspired side-scrolling brawls.

In Marvel Cosmic Invasion the immortal Super Villain Annihilus has launched an unprecedented attack across the galaxy, threatening all life as we know it. Fighters both Earth-born and cosmic must now join forces in a star-spanning adventure against the deadly Annihilation Wave. Brawl through the streets of New York City all the way to the depths of the Negative Zone to foil Annihilus’ vow to spread death across the cosmos.

Choose and control your own team of two characters while tagging between them mid-fight with the innovative Cosmic Swap system, capitalizing on distinct superpowers and special attacks to create unique team-ups and dish out devastating damage. Unlock stellar powerups and rewards while experimenting with different duos and bash through a fantastic collection of locales and nemeses from the Marvel universe. Marvel Cosmic Invasion’s action includes a range of accessibility features, empowering the whole family to be Super Heroes (or villains), and supports four-player drop-in/drop-out local and online co-op with crossplay.

For more, check out everything announced at Nintendo Direct March 2025.

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.

During today’s Nintendo Switch Direct, we got another look at Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, including a fresh look at new, psychic-infused gameplay and a red-and-purple suit for Samus.

The new footage focused on a selection of psychic abilities that Samus will be able to use to explore when launch arrives later this year. It’s all very BioShock-y as everyone’s favorite space bounty hunter scans stone figures and blasts new enemies on the planet Viewros using purple energy that she controls with her free hand. Little is known about this strange jungle world she’s been “unexpectedly transported to,” but it’s clear intelligent life has surrounded the massive tree in its center for quite some time.

Nintendo may be keeping tight-lipped about when Metroid Prime 4 will launch outside of the promise of its 2025 release window, but today’s gameplay did reveal how some of these new abilities will work. These powers can be used to operate mysterious mechanisms, for example, but players can also expect to use her powers to guide energy shots through the planet’s wildlife.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond has had a roller coaster of an announcement and development cycle, having first been revealed with just a title logo at E3 2017, before vanishing for several years, changing developers, and eventually reemerging last year with our first look at actual gameplay. With today’s Direct focused entirely on the current Nintendo Switch, there remain numerous questions about whether Metroid Prime 4 will receive any kind of enhanced treatment on Nintendo Switch 2. We do know, at least, that it will be playable across both platforms.

You can catch up on everything announced at today’s Nintendo Switch Direct right here.

Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).

One of the biggest barriers to jumping into the current generation for PlayStation players has been the rising cost of living, squeezing wallets so tight that there’s sadly been no room for a PS5 in the budget.

In 2025, however, PlayStation has three new ways that get a new PS5 for less: an almost £110-saving Astro Bot Bundle, an added £50 bonus when trading in a PS4, or a hassle-free leasing option with low monthly payments. Scoring a PS5, my friend, is easier than ever right now.

Editor’s Note: Brought to you in partnership with PlayStation.

PS5 Astro Bot Bundle – Save £109.99

For those almost ready to pull the trigger on buying a PlayStation 5, but have been waiting for a price drop, buying the Astro Bot bundle is the best way to get on board in more ways than one.

The bundle comes in two forms: you can either buy a PS5 Slim (with disc drive) & Astro Bot for £429.99 or purchase a Digital Edition PS5 Slim with Astro Bot for £339.99.

Whichever you go for, those prices are £109.99 lower than if you bought each console and the game individually, which you can put towards more games, another DualSense controller, or leave nestled safely in your savings account.

The delightfully beloved platformer that won Game of the Year at the Game Awards 2024, Astro Bot is arguably one of the best titles to have bundled with a new console if you haven’t had the chance to play it yet.

Since it’s a PEGI 7-rated celebration of PlayStation’s history & a fun adventure in its own right, it’s one of the finest for any gaming household, whether to play yourself or with the children in your family.

An Extra £50 Trading In A PS4 Console

Although trading in your PS4 to put towards a PS5 or PS5 Pro has been an option already, PlayStation is offering an extra £50 on top of what you would normally get for your old console, going as high as £150.

At PlayStation’s Trade-In hub page, you can quickly get your PS4 evaluated, ship your console over free of charge, and receive an added £50 voucher along with what you would get for the trade-in as standard.

For example, you could get £100 for a PS4 Pro in good condition and £50 with the trade-up voucher, totalling £150 off a £339.99 PS5 Digital Console & Astro Bot bundle, leaving you with only £189.99 left to pay for your shiny new PlayStation 5 console and added game to get you started.

If you already have a PS5, but your old PS4 has since been going unused and gathering dust, you can still send in your PlayStation 4 in and put your boosted trade-in money towards a PS VR2 headset—so you can jump into exclusive games like Horizon Call of the Mountain for a more affordable price.

Lease a PS5 with PlayStation Flex

For you who want to dive into the PS5 ecosystem but don’t have the immediate funds to do so, PlayStation Flex is the console-maker’s new interesting way to add a PS5 to your home for as low as a mere £10.99 a month.

This is thanks to PlayStation UK’s new partnership with Raylo, a top tech leasing service that has been on the service and earning high Trustpilot reviews since 2019.

Through the new PlayStation Flex page powered by Raylo, you can effectively set up a rental agreement and have a PS5 Pro, PS5 Slim, or PS5 Digital Edition delivered to your door. Including those consoles, you can also lease a PSVR 2 and some accessories too:

• Playstation 5 Pro consoles – from £18.95 a month
• PlayStation 5 Digital Edition (with extra DualSense Controller) – from 13.95 a month
• PlayStation 5 Console (Slim with Disc Drive) – from £11.99 a month
• PlayStation 5 Digital Edition – from £10.99 a month
• PlayStation Portal Remote Player – from £6.49 a month
• PlayStation 5 Digital Edition & Astro Bot Bundle – from £11.49 a month
• PlayStation VR2 Horizon Call of the Mountain Bundle – from £12.95 a month
• DualSense Edge Wireless Controller – from £7.99 a month

You can choose a 36-, 24-, 12- or rolling monthly lease with payments being lower the longer you sign up for. No matter which way, PlayStation Flex can make for a quick and easy barrier to entry to start your PS5 journey.

Ben Williams – IGN freelance contributor with over 10 years of experience covering gaming, tech, film, TV, and anime. Follow him on Twitter/X @BenLevelTen.

Ahead of the hotly anticipated Switch 2 Nintendo Direct, two former employees of the company have expressed concern about Mario Kart 9’s ability to convince people to upgrade to Switch 2.

Nintendo revealed the Switch 2 with a brief look at the new Mario Kart game, which gave us an idea of what to expect from what is likely a launch title.

There’s a huge deal of excitement around Mario Kart 9 and the Switch 2, but in a video published to their YouTube channel, former Nintendo PR managers Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang questioned Nintendo’s ability to out-d the all-conquering Mario Kart 8.

“Everybody has the expectation, ‘oh my gosh Mario Kart it’s a slam dunk, it’s a system seller, this is definitely the right game to put in front of this new system,’ but I think you’re right because if you look at the situation of Mario Kart up to this point, it’s a little bit different than what has been in the past and I’m not sure that transition for Nintendo or for the people who have been playing Mario Kart, I’m not sure that’s the slam dunk that people think it is.”

Ellis and Yang’s point here is that Mario Kart 8 and the Switch version, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, have been so successful for so long, that Nintendo faces an uphill battle convincing the mainstream Nintendo audience to upgrade, especially if they’re having to hand over at least $400 on a Switch 2 to do so.

Nintendo is, they believe, a victim of its own success here. Mario Kart 8 has sold an incredible 67.35 million copies on Nintendo Switch, which itself is the second best-selling console of all time with 150.86 units shifted. Pretty much everyone with a Switch has Mario Kart 8 at this point, and while it isn’t part of the video game zeitgeist, it is about as perfect a Mario Kart game as can be expected.

How does Nintendo top Mario Kart 8 and 67 million sales, then? Ellis and Yang believe Nintendo may struggle to do so, which is bad news for a company that always wants to see the numbers go up.

“It’s a bit unconventional to have a game coming out that’s probably going to be the premier launch title for your new console to have this kind of history,” Yang said.

“This is very unlike Nintendo. Usually when they have a launch title, like Breath of the Wild for example, it’s like this new game-breaking, genre-bending thing that’s never been seen before, and that’s what’s going to make you want to buy the new hardware.

“But we’re kind of in a bit of a different situation with Mario Kart and honestly it’s because of how successful Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has been for Nintendo.”

The question now is whether Nintendo has done enough with Mario Kart 9 to convince existing Switch owners to upgrade. While there are plenty of familiar vehicles and faces in the Mario Kart 9 footage we’ve seen so far, there’s also a new track and some interesting details that suggest a new twist on the established formula. The most prominent theory posed by the community so far is that this may be the Mario Kart entry that finally takes the series open world.

Undoubtedly, the pressure is on Nintendo to deliver. “How is Nintendo going to convince me that I want to get the new Mario Kart?” Yang wondered. “That I need a Switch 2 to get the new Mario Kart?”

Ellis added: “I do think there are going to be some people who ask themselves, ‘I’m pretty happy with the Mario Kart I’ve been playing,’ and… Mom: ‘hey kids, we have Mario Kart at home…’ like, looking at this box and be like, ‘hmm, I’m not sure we need this Timmy.’

“I have no doubt this is going to be an incredible game. I have no doubt that every Mario Kart sells well. But in terms of the hill that this one in particular has to get over… This is Nintendo’s goal. This is always their goal: ‘we have to do better than the last one.’

“It’s like, well are you really going to do better than 75 million? And it’s the same question with the Switch 2. It’s like, ‘oh you just did the best-selling console ever.’ It’s just these goals that they have for themselves are going to be incredibly hard to match.”

Ellis said that because of how extensive Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is already with the sheer number of tracks and characters already available, Nintendo can’t use the same messaging with Mario Kart 9 that it did with Mario Kart 8. Nintendo needs, according to Ellis, find a new angle to differentiate Mario Kart this time around.

The pair also called into question Mario Kart 9’s visuals as being significantly improved on Mario Kart 8, saying that in graphics terms “it’s not really blowing Mario Kart 8 Deluxe away.”

“I could probably play that for another 10 years and still think it looks okay,” Ellis said of Mario Kart 8.

“Its positives is also its downfall,” Yang added.

We’ll find out hat Nintendo has up its sleeve for Mario Kart 9 soon enough, of course, during the Nintendo Direct on April 2. In the shorter term, Nintendo is set to host a Nintendo Direct focused entirely on the existing Nintendo Switch today, March 27.

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.

Amazon quietly restocked a bunch of Pokémon TCG bundles just days ago and stock is already running low. These Scarlet & Violet sets have been MIA for weeks, and now they’re back at retail prices. I already added a couple to my cart, Surging Sparks Booster Bundle, Shrouded Fable ETB and Paldean Fates Booster Bundle. Trainers need to snap these up quick. If they’re gone by the time you get there, that’s on you.

PlayStation Slim Disc Edition (Import) for $367.94

Deals For Today: Pokémon TCG – Surging Sparks Still In Stock and Cheap Power Banks+

I also spotted a couple of power banks on sale from INIU and Anker. If you’ve ever watched your phone die mid-flight or mid-text, you know why I’m excited. These things are cheap, fast, and less annoying than asking strangers for a charger at an airport. Do with that information what you will. Oh, and while we’re on the topic of things I absolutely don’t need but definitely want: the Gamera: Attack of Legion action figure is up for preorder at the IGN Store for a cool $560, and Humble Bundle just dropped a massive Dragonlance book bundle that practically dares you to add 25+ fantasy novels to your backlog for the price of lunch.

Pokémon TCG: Scarlet & Violet – Surging Sparks Booster Bundle

Pokémon TCG: Scarlet & Violet – Paldean Fates Booster Bundle

The World of Dragonlance Bundle

Pokémon TCG: Scarlet and Violet Shrouded Fable Elite Trainer Box

Gamera – Attack of Legion – Action Figure

INIU Portable Charger, 22.5W 20000mAh

Anker Power Bank (PowerCore 10K)

Samsung 49″ Odyssey QD-OLED (G93SC) Series Curved Gaming Monitor

Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite 10.4′ 64GB WiFi Android Tablet

Humble Heroines Bundle 2025

roborock S8 MaxV Ultra Robot Vacuum & Sonic Mop

Amazon Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition (32 GB)

Beats Studio Pro – Wireless Bluetooth Noise Cancelling Headphones

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth – Exclusive Amazon Edition

Sony WH-1000XM5

Smart LED Display Case Smarter Kit (4 Pack)

Sony WH-CH520 Wireless Headphones Bluetooth On-Ear Headset with Microphone

Kingdom hearts Integrum Masterpiece

B100 Bluetooth Speaker

INZONE H3 Wired Gaming Headphones With Mic, PS5 Headphones

Sony ULT Field 1 Waterproof Portable Bluetooth Speaker

Sony ULT WEAR Over-Ear Noise Cancelling Bluetooth Headphones with Alexa Built-in

Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless Premium Noise Canceling Overhead Headphones

Sony BRAVIA Theater U Wireless Wearable TV Speaker with Bluetooth

Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 8

Sony SRS-XP700 X-Series Wireless Karaoke Party-Speaker

Sony 65-Inch Mini LED QLED 4K Ultra HD TV BRAVIA 7

Sony 85-Inch Class 4K Ultra HD BRAVIA 3 LED Smart TV

Sony 65 Inch Mini LED QLED 4K Ultra HD TV BRAVIA 9 Smart Google TV