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The Witcher 3 on Nintendo Switch Finally Gets Next-Gen Update’s Best Features

The Nintendo Switch version of The Witcher 3 has finally caught up with its PlayStation and Xbox counterparts as CD Projekt has released a patch that includes the best features from version 4.0, otherwise known as the next-gen update.

Patch 4.04 was announced on the Witcher website, and while this includes a handful of bug fixes and smaller updates to all versions of the game, it’s the Switch version that will see the biggest changes.

Though it doesn’t include more technically demanding features like ray-tracing that the PS5, Xbox Series, and PC versions get to enjoy, the Switch has finally received the more exciting parts of the updates like gameplay changes, major quality of life improvements, and a new quest.

Combat is at one pillar of these changes, as CD Projekt’s addition of the Quick Sign Casting option, dynamic item use, Full Combat Rebalance mod, and other gameplay changes completely refresh The Witcher 3’s action.

The quality of life improvements include quick looting of smaller items like herbs, less fall damage for Geralt’s dodgy knee, dynamic HUD options, an alternative sprint mode, and the default map filter that removes the hundreds of pesky question marks (if players wish) alongside other changes.

A wealth of changes have also been made to various quests, and Switch players can now take on the side quest In the Eternal Fire’s Shadow, inspired by Netflix’s The Witcher, and find an alternative appearance for Dandelion based on the show, too.

In our 9/10 review of the base game, IGN said: “Massive in size, and meticulously detailed, The Witcher 3 ends Geralt’s story on a high note.”

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

Call of Duty Has 90 Million Players, Half of All Engagement on Mobile

Call of Duty has around 90 million monthly players, with half of all Call of Duty engagement on mobile, Activision Blizzard has revealed.

Confirmation comes as Microsoft’s long-running pursuit of Activision Blizzard nears its conclusion. Today, Microsoft and Activision Blizzard officially postponed their merger deadline to allow more time for the $69 billion deal to gain approval from the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). A resolution is expected in the coming weeks.

The importance of Call of Duty was at the heart of the Federal Trade Commission’s failed attempt to block the deal, with Sony boss Jim Ryan drafted in to highlight the phenomenal popularity of the shooter series. Call of Duty, it was argued, is the world’s premier shooter, and not even EA with its Battlefield series can compete.

New financial figures released today by Activision Blizzard show why Call of Duty causes so much of a fuss. Activision revenue grew 17% year-over-year for the three months ending June 30, with operating income up a whopping 80% year-over-year. All this was “driven” by growth across the Call of Duty franchise, Activision Blizzard said.

Premium Call of Duty sales (most of these will be for last year’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2) grew “sharply” year-over-year. Second quarter in-game net bookings (DLC and microtransactions) were higher than both the first quarter and the year ago period, with Season 3 being “the highest-grossing Modern Warfare 2 in-game season to date, driven by a strong community response to gameplay enhancements and the new BlackCell battle pass offering”, Activision Blizzard said.

Activision Blizzard overall generated $1.5 billion from DLC and microtransactions during the quarter, up 30% year-on-year. This figure will have been boosted by the massive, early June launch of Diablo 4, which includes an in-game cosmetics shop, but Call of Duty microtransactions will have made up the bulk of the total.

Call of Duty Mobile engagement and net bookings, meanwhile, were described as “stable” year-over-year. Lifetime worldwide consumer spending on Call of Duty Mobile since its October 2019 launch passed $3 billion in the second quarter, Activision said.

Despite the success of Call of Duty, Activision’s own Monthly Active User (MAU) figure for the quarter was down year-on-year by two million to 92 million. Activision MAUs have fallen dramatically following the launch of Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2.0, which fuelled a 111 million MAU total for the three months to December 31, 2022.

Activision is set to reveal Call of Duty 2023, widely expected to be Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, soon. Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile is currently in testing, with a release expected later this year.

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.

Overwatch League Teams to Vote Over Fate of the League at Season’s End

Activision Blizzard has revealed that Overwatch League teams will vote to decide the fate of the league at the end of this season, while lay-offs signal a dark future for the company’s esports plans.

Revealed in its second quarter 2023 financial results, Activision Blizzard announced it’s offering Overwatch League teams like the San Francisco Shock and London Spitfire a $6 million payout if they opt not to continue. “As previously disclosed, our collaborative arrangements for our professional esports leagues continue to face headwinds,” the report said.

“Following the conclusion of the current Overwatch League season, the teams will vote on an updated operating agreement. If the teams do not vote to continue under an updated operating agreement, a termination fee of $6 million will be payable to each participating team entity (total fee of approximately $114 million).”

“Our collaborative arrangements for our professional esports leagues continue to face headwinds.”

Activision Blizzard also noted the franchise-based esports model brings in hardly any cash. “Total revenues from the Overwatch League comprise less than 1% of our consolidated net revenues.” it said.

The esports business is considered to have cooled off in recent years, with one Valorant team owner calling it “one of the worst things you can get into” in June. This vote to decide the fate of the Overwatch League will therefore perhaps be seen as an opportunity to get out by many.

Its teams voting not to continue won’t necessarily mean the end of Overwatch esports according to league commissioner Sean Miller. Speaking to The Verge, Miller said Overwatch “remains committed to a competitive ecosystem in 2024 and beyond” and the company is currently “building toward a revitalized global scene that prioritizes players and fans”.

It’s unclear exactly what that means, of course, and perhaps even Miller won’t know until the teams cast their vote, but fans of Overwatch esports will seemingly have at least something to look forward to in the future.

This comes despite significant lay-offs within Activision Blizzard’s esports department. As The Verge reported, around 50 employees lost their jobs in what was described by one as a “significant gutting of Activision Blizzard esports”.

In our 8/10 review of the game IGN said: “Overwatch 2’s switch to a 5v5 format breathes new life into what was once the sharpest shooter around. It just hasn’t quite recaptured all of that glory – yet.”

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

The Best PS5 SSD Deals So Far (July 2023): 2TB with Heatsink for Under $90

2023 is finally the year where 2TB PS5 SSD upgrades are actually worth the price. Last year, prices for 1TB PS5 SSDs averaged around $150, whereas 2TB SSDs hovered closer to $300. This year, we’re seeing 1TB SSDs trickle below the $80 price point and 2TB SSDs are as low as $120. Note that you can’t use any old SSD and expect it to perform well on the PS5 console. You’ll want to pick up an PCIe Gen4 x4 M.2 solid state drive with a rated 5,500MB/s read speed to match the PS5’s internal drive.

Note that Sony recommends a heatsink attached to your SSD. Not all SSDs listed here have pre-installed heatsinks. For the ones that do, we’ll be sure to mention it. For the ones that don’t, all you have to do is purchase your own heatsink (we recommend this one for $10) and install it yourself. It’s very easy.

For our recommended picks for PS5 SSDs, check out our Best PS5 SSDs of 2023.

Silicon Power 2TB PS5 SSD with Heatsink for $89.07

Includes built-in heatsink!

The Silicon Power XS70 SSD with a preinstalled robust aluminum heatsink costs just under $100. The aluminum heatsink is still slim enough to fit in the PS5 without obstruction. It boasts transfer speeds of up to 7300MB/s read and 6800MB/s write, comfortably faster than the 5500MB/s minimum recommended requirement. It actually performs a little better than the Crucial P5 Plus, the original WD Black SN850, and the Samsung 980 Pro, although that won’t make a difference in your PS5.

WD Black SN850X 2TB PS5 SSD with Heatsink $119.99

The WD Black SN850 is the most popular SSD upgrade option for the PS5 console. That’s not a surprise, considering WD is the only company that sells an officially licensed PS5 SSD. The SN850X is WD’s fastest M.2 SSD current available. It’s a generation update from the original SN850 with faster speeds. It easily fulfills all of Sony’s requirements, like a minimum read speed of 5,500MB/s, a PCI-Express Gen4x4 interface, and a slim yet effective heatsink that fits within the confines of the PS5 bay.

Crucial P5 Plus 2TB M.2 SSD with Heatsink for $129.99

You can’t ever go wrong with Crucial. The company has been making reliable and widely compatible flash memory for as long as I can remember. The Crucial P5 Plus boasts transfer speeds of up to 6,660MB/s which is well above the 5,500MB/s minimum threshold. Yes there are faster SSDs out there, but if your intention is to put this in your PS5, then that extra speed is worthless because you’re bottlenecked by the original PS5 SSD. Crucial even has an official YouTube PS5 SSD install guide to see you through the process.

Samsung 980 Pro 2TB PS5 SSD for $119.99

Looking for a fast and inexpensive M.2 SSD from a brand that you recognize? Here’s your answer. Amazon is offering the Samsung 980 PRO 2TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe Gen 4 solid state drive for only $119.99. In terms of performance, it’s no longer the fastest SSD on the market (the 990 Pro is), but it’s still a very fast drive. It certainly more than meets the minimum 5600MB/s speed requirement to be used as a PS5 storage upgrade, with speeds of up to 7,100MB/s.

Adata Premium 2TB M.2 SSD for PS5 for $94.99

It’s happened, folks. A 2TB PS5-compatible SSD has broken past the $100 price barrier. The Adata Premium SSD boasts transfer speeds of up to 6,100MB/s, which is more than fast enough to surpass the PS5’s recommended minimum speed threshold of 5,500MB/s. Yes there are faster SSDs out there, but if your intention is to put this in your PS5, then that extra speed is worthless because you’re bottlenecked by the stock PS5 SSD. Better to save that money and put it to better use. It also includes a thin aluminum heatspreader… too thin to be appropriately called a heatsink, but still enough for the PS5 console.

Corsair MP600 PRO LPX 2TB “Optimized for PS5” SSD with Heatsink for Only $119.99

Corsair is a very well known brand for DIY PC builders. Corsair makes some of the best gaming products on the market, and that includes solid-state memory like RAM and SSDs. The MP600 Pro is Corsair’s fastest M.2 SSD and the “LPX” model is “optimized for PS5” because it includes a rugged preinstalled heatsink that is slim enough to fit in the PS5 bay without any issues. We like this RAM so much, we rated it the best PS5 SSD for 2023.

Nextorage 2TB PS5 SSD with Heatsink for $139.99

There’s an interesting story behind this drive. Nextorage was actually originally created by Sony as an SSD division catered to the PS5 console. For whatever reason, Sony decided to ditch that idea and sold this business to another stakeholder in the company, Phison (they make memory controllers found in SSDs from Seagate, Corsair, and Sabrent, and more). Phison eventually accomplished the goal of releasing an SSD catered specifically for the PS5 console in the form of this product right here.

Budget to Best: PS5 SSDs

There may be other SSD deals out there, but these are the PS5 SSDs we’ve tried ourselves and highly recommend. They also double up as outstanding boot drives for your gaming PC, in case you don’t need additional storage for your PS5 console.

How easy is it to install the SSD?

It’s extremely easy! Removing the case cover is completely toolless. In fact, the only screw you have to remove is the one that keeps the cover for the SSD bay in place. You don’t even put it back when you’re done. Sony has a quick and easy YouTube video guide.

What if the SSD I bought doesn’t have a heatsink?

Sony recommends you install an SSD that has an attached heatsink. If the SSD you purchase doesn’t include one, it’s simple enough to buy one for about $10 on Amazon and add it yourself. Most of these heatsinks are just attached using an adhesive like thermal tape.

PlayStation’s Summer Sale Has Started, So Here’s How to Save a Little Extra in the UK

PlayStation’s Summer Sale is now on in the UK, and you can save up to 75% on a massive selection of digital PS5 and PS4 games. This is a good opportunity for all PlayStation 5 owners, but especially those who have got the digital-only version. There are some great deals to consider, such as Elden Ring for £34.99, Cyberpunk 2077 for £19.99, or Grand Theft Auto V for £14.99. Check out our favourite picks just below.

But, if you’re interested in saving a little extra before making any purchases, we’ve found a great deal for you. Trusted UK retailer ShopTo has currently got a brilliant selection of PlayStation Gift Cards at discounted prices; for example a £50 for £42.85, or the £84 card for £71.85.

These make great gifts, but they’re also perfect for topping up your own PSN account and saving a little extra on top of the current deals in the Summer Sale. There are plenty more gift cards available, so we’ve left some handy links just below.

You can maximise your savings by purchasing a large amount of credit, or just save a little extra off the top with a £20-£50 gift card instead. For example, you could get Cyberpunk 2077 for £18.85 instead of £19.99 with the £20 gift card, and use that extra £1.14 you’ve saved towards a different purchase. It’s a win-win overall.

If you’re after any more gaming deals, you can currently score 12 months of Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack for £26.85 (normally £39.99). There’s also Metroid Prime Remastered for just £21.99, and these beautiful pastel Joy-Cons are down to £59.99 (save £10) as well. For more UK deal updates, make sure you’re following @IGNUKDeals on Twitter and Threads.

More Great Deals in the UK

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

Diablo 4 Players Slam Latest Nerf Patch, Blizzard Promises to Address Backlash

Blizzard has promised to address “feedback” from players on Diablo 4’s latest patch following backlash from the community.

Diablo 4 got its long-awaited pre-Season 1 patch, 1.1.0, yesterday, and it didn’t take long for players to criticise Blizzard for implementing heavy-handed nerfs.

The patch makes sweeping nerfs across the board, with Sorcerer players in particular bemused by the significant hit to the power of their class. The popular endgame activity, Helltides, has been made harder and, with an increase to the cost of opening Mystery Chests, slower (the low Cinder drop rate is a bug).

Experience bonus for killing monsters at higher levels has been nerfed, and, crucially, Blizzard significantly nerfed crit strike damage, vulnerable damage, cooldown reduction, as well as certain affixes, which reduces the effectiveness of many established builds.

“In general, we prefer build-specific changes to be bonuses instead of decreases, but we feel these changes are necessary for the overall health of the game,” Blizzard explained. “Diablo 4 is a game that is continually evolving through its Seasons, thus the adjustments we make will evolve with them.”

The upshot is the Diablo 4 community believes the changes have slowed down progression across all aspects of the game, and, in turn, reduced the power fantasy that comes from overpowering enemies.

“It is not like this game was lightning fast to begin with, but now it is a proper slog,” wrote TheMorals in a Reddit post that has over 19,000 upvotes.

Diablo-related subreddits and social media platforms are packed with complaints from players about the patch, with some saying they will down tools until Blizzard takes action.

Last night, Diablo community development director Adam Fletcher took to Twitter to say Blizzard staff will address this feedback in a Campfire Chat set for later this week.

“We have been hearing feedback from players regarding some of the changes in 1.1.0 for Diablo 4,” Fletcher said. “We are going to have a Campfire Chat later this week on Friday to talk more about it. We will have more details [and] timing in the next day. Thanks again for the feedback!”

This backlash will be the last thing Blizzard hoped for going into the launch of Season 1, dubbed Season of the Malignant, on July 20. Diablo 4 has enjoyed a largely successful launch (it’s Blizzard’s fastest-selling game of all time), and despite controversy around always-online and some server issues, is well-received. The pressure is now on Blizzard to defend its decision-making with patch 1.1.0 and, players will hope, announce changes.

If you’re still playing, check out our interactive Diablo 4 map to start tracking your progress as you play.

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.

The Borderlands Compilation: Pandora’s Box Leaked by South Africa Ratings Board

The Borderlands series may be getting an all-in-one collection, fittingly titled The Borderlands Compilation: Pandora’s Box, according to a new listing from the South Africa ratings board.

As first spotted by Gematsu, The Film and Publication Board of South Africa’s list of classified films and games for April and May 2023 leaked, which includes The Borderlands Compilation: Pandora’s Box, having been rated for PC and consoles on April 21.

That’s not the only news that came out of the listings; Baten Kaitos I & II HD Remaster also got a PC rating on May 11. While we already knew the remaster of the beloved Gamecube games was coming to the Nintendo Switch, a PC version was not previously revealed.

But as for Borderlands, Pandora’s Box very well could be a collection of all the previous games in the series plus various other features. It’d be likely that the four core games (Borderlands 1-3 and the Pre-Sequel) would be included, in addition to spinoffs Tales From the Borderlands and the most recent Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands (although it should be noted that the latter doesn’t actually take place on Pandora).

Even still, that’s just speculation, and the series already has a collection with the Borderlands Legendary Collection. That includes the Game of the Year edition of Borderlands as well as Borderlands 2 and the Pre-Sequel, but it’s missing Tales From the Borderlands, Borderlands 3, and Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands. There’s also the Handsome Collection – named after none other than Handsome Jack, of course – that has only Borderlands 2 and the Pre-Sequel.

Alex Stedman is a Senior News Editor with IGN, overseeing entertainment reporting. When she’s not writing or editing, you can find her reading fantasy novels or playing Dungeons & Dragons.

Diablo 4’s Hefty 8GB Season 1 Patch Has Arrived, Bringing Big Changes to Uniques and More

With Diablo IV Season 1 nearly upon us, Blizzard has released a hefty 8.84GB patch featuring balance changes to classes, unique items, and more.

Diablo IV Patch 1.1.0a, which is intended to prepare for the upcoming Season of the Malignant, introduces a number of gameplay changes, such as making Altars of Lilith unlocks account-wide. It also heavily rebalances some of the classes, most notably the Sorceress, which is getting a heavy nerf to the Devouring Blaze skill that is critical to many of their builds. This is on top of changes to monster movement, XP progression, accessibility and more.

But it’s the new Unique Items that will really catch the eye of players. Here are some of the highlights.

General

Ahavarion Spear of Lycander (Uber Unique Staff – World Tier 4): Gain a random Shrine effect for 10-20 seconds after killing an Elite enemy. Can only occur once every 30 seconds.

Barbarian

Azurewrath (Unique Sword): Lucky Hit – Your Core Skills have up to a 20% chance to Freeze enemies for 3 seconds and deal 0.75-1.5 Cold damage to them.

Druid

Fleshrender (Unique One-Hand Mace): Debilitating Roar and Blood Howl deal 0.5-1.0 damage to Nearby Poisoned enemies.

Necromancer

Lidless Wall (Unique Shield): Lucky Hit – While you have an active Bone Storm, hitting an enemy outside of a Bone Storm has up to a 5-25% chance to spawn an additional Bone Storm at their location. Each of your active Sacrifice bonuses increases the chance by 25% and the total number of additional Bone Storms you can have by +1.

Rogue

Eaglehorn (Unique Bow): Penetrating Shot has a 30-80% chance to fire an arrow that bounces off walls and scenery. Hitting enemies from behind with Penetrating Shot will make them Vulnerable for 3 seconds.

Sorcerer

The Oculus (Unique Wand): Gain the effect of the Teleport Enchantment for free. When you Evade using Teleport Enchantment, you are taken to a random location.

Unique items have become a community focal point over the past few weeks as fans have argued over drop rates and other areas of interest. The world first Andariel’s Visage first dropped back in late June.

The patch arrives just ahead of the anticipated release of Diablo Season 1, which is set to commence on July 20. In addition to the release of the battle pass, Season of the Malignant will feature new mechanics, a new boss, and lots more. You can read everything you need to know about it right here.

Kat Bailey is IGN’s News Director as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.

Diablo 4 RockLove Jewelry Is Coming Exclusively to the IGN Store

Here’s some good news for fans of Diablo IV, the latest installment in Blizzard’s popular action RPG franchise: A limited collection of handcrafted jewelry based on the game is coming exclusively to the IGN Store. It’s from RockLove Jewelry and Blizzard Entertainment, and it includes a number of high quality pieces based on characters from the game. You can register here to receive an exclusive discount and early access to the collection starting Thursday, July 20.

Sign Up for Early Access to RockLove’s Diablo 4 Jewelry Collection

The Diablo IV jewelry collection consists of five pieces based on the characters Lilith and Inarius. There’s a necklace and a ring inspired by the rogue angel Inarius. Lilith, queen of the succubi, is the inspiration for a ring, collar, and a pair of earrings.

RockLove is a jewelry company that specializes in licensed pieces. You can find RockLove jewelry based on properties like Marvel, Disney, Star Wars, Pokemon, and many more.

The Diablo IV jewely will be available in limited quantities, so sign up for early access for the best chance to add these pieces to your very own collection. You’ll also receive an exclusive discount.

First Three Yakuza Games About to Disappear From PlayStation Plus Games Catalogue

Sony has revealed the modern console versions of the first three Yakuza games — Yakuza 0, Yakuza Kiwami, and Yakuza Kiwami 2 — are about to leave the PlayStation Plus Games Catalogue.

As reported by Push Square, the PlayStation 5’s Last Chance to Play section has been updated to reveal 10 new games leaving the service on August 15. This includes Borderlands 3, Nidhogg, DCL – The Game, GRIP, The Crew 2, 8-Bit Armies, Carmageddon: Max Damage, and the three Yakuza games.

The removal of these games doesn’t bode well for the remaining Yakuza games on the PS Plus Games Catalogue, though Sony is yet to confirm whether or not Yakuza 3 through Yakuza: Like a Dragon will also be removed.

The August end date will mark one year since the first three games were added to the service, with the remaining entries added in the following months, though it’s worth noting the most recent Yakuza: Like a Dragon was added alongside the original three games but isn’t being removed next month.

IGN gave Yakuza 0, which is a prequel to the original Yakuza story, an 8/10 in our review, while Yakuza Kiwami earned a 7/10 and Kiwami 2 earned an 8/10. The most recent entry, which also changed the series name from Yakuza to Like a Dragon in the west, earned a 7/10.

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