Atomic Heart Review

There’s a lot to be said about unapologetically single-player games like Atomic Heart: its entire focus is on creating an intricate world for us to explore and discover for ourselves. An eye-catching blend of super-powered shooting and first-person puzzling, this is a lengthy, tough, and terrific-looking shooter that has us bathing in the blood and gears of elaborately designed enemies both biological and robotic and dispatching them with an impressive set of combat options. Granted, it’s not as clever as it thinks it is when dealing with melee combat or its typical fetch quests, and the story doesn’t quite stick its landing, but the journey from point A to point B is a sight to behold.

Atomic Heart is an alternate-history shooter cut from the same cloth as BioShock and MachineGames’ Wolfenstein series. It’s a kind of retrofuturistic romp back to an imagined past perverted by ridiculously advanced technology; a world where science has made the supernatural a reality and robots are now running rife. These are far from the only shooters Atomic Heart is unafraid to crib from, either. Half-Life and the puzzle-solving of Portal are also clear inspirations, and there’s been an attempted sprinkling of Arkane’s successful brand of first-person stealth, too.

It’s a kind of retrofuturistic romp back to an imagined past perverted by ridiculously advanced technology.

However, it’d be unfair to call Atomic Heart wholly derivative despite such recognisable building blocks. Certainly the idea of a peaceful utopia torn to pieces thanks to technology turning on its ambitious masters is nothing new, but developer Mundfish has still assembled its vision in a confident and compelling way – and the art team here well and truly understood the assignment.

Mechanical Mystery Tour

The most remarkable element here is the superb visual design, especially the look of these well-crafted enemies. Its range of robots is particularly strong, from its sleek and sinister moustachioed terminators that charge at us without ever averting their gaze to its pot-bellied parking meters with mouth tubes that make them look like they’re sucking at the drawstring on an invisible jacket. Its featureless ballerina bots and spindly-legged battle balls are equally memorable – the latter of which are probably best described as scaled-down, Eastern Bloc knock-offs of those things that couldn’t kill Mr. Incredible. There’s even one that looks like Baymax cosplaying as a tank.

Atomic Heart’s outstanding aesthetic also extends to its large range of partially ruined labs, facilities, and transportation hubs – each filled with long, snaking globules of the liquid polymer that powers the advancements of this fantastical 1950s. That said, there is a distinct feeling of ‘look, don’t touch’ in these places (there’s definitely a lack of destructibility; balloons immune to axe swings are probably the worst offenders) but the level of detail overall is strikingly good.

There are some especially tiny touches in Atomic Heart that smack of a great deal of consideration, like the way there are different reload animations for unspent magazines compared to empty ones – the latter of which are flicked away while the former are grasped by the same hand sliding a fresh one in. Watching them play out is a pleasure, which is why it was a bit annoying that my HUD was sometimes cluttered up with pick-up notifications and health bars for minibosses no longer in the area that froze onscreen until I reloaded from a recent save. I’ve also experienced some uneven quality when it comes to graphical glitches as I’ve played on Xbox Series X. The worst is a terrible strobing effect on some fast-moving robots running circuits around a large room, but fortunately it seems mostly isolated to these bot types. I’ve had no such problems with similarly nimble (and often much larger) bosses.

Atomic Heart is, naturally, all tinted with the Soviet-era iconography you’d probably expect from a land tucked away deep behind the Iron Curtain in the mid-1950s, and admittedly the lens through which you may view all this Soviet symbolism is a little different today in 2023 than it was upon its announcement and first reveal back in 2018. Of course, having grown up geographically isolated and politically irrelevant in the southern hemisphere – largely detached from Cold War concerns and raised on Bond movies, Stripes, and Rocky IV – my read on such an overtly Russian backdrop is guaranteed to be markedly different to someone with roots in Eastern Europe. For its part, however, the background does largely fade away as Atomic Heart peels back the layers of its false utopia. At this stage, Facility 3826 and the countryside of rural Russia isn’t much different to the likes of BioShock’s Rapture itself. That is, a place more or less cut off from the outside world and where something has gone deeply, deeply wrong.

Exploring exactly what’s gone wrong is the job of our character, special forces veteran Major Sergey Nechaev, or P-3 as he’s dubbed throughout. The foul-mouthed and amnestic P-3 is admittedly a bit of a relic of games gone by – and his default English-language voiceover doesn’t exactly do him a lot of favours. He comes off as the cookie-cutter American lead of every second shooter ever made.

The foul-mouthed and amnestic P-3 is admittedly a bit of a relic of games gone by.

However, it’s the script that really does him a greater disservice. While I’ll happily admit swearing is virtually my second language, P-3 spews it with the gusto of a teenage boy testing every curse word he’s recently learned twice a sentence. It’s a little exhausting, and the presence of many modern turns of phrase don’t exactly help keep the overall experience seated in the 1950s.

Of course, perhaps I’m being hypocritical in demanding consistency there, because the regularly ruthless soundtrack packed with headbangers courtesy of Doom and Wolfenstein composer Mick Gordon isn’t exactly a sonic journey back to the days of doo-wop, either – and yet the music is pitch perfect as far as I’m concerned. At any rate, there is a Russian-language/English subtitle option for purists, but I would’ve simply preferred an English script that was more tempered for the setting and era.

There are well over 20-odd hours of play here in the main story thread alone, with many more available in the side objectives – some of which border on crucial if you actually want the best weapons. Some of that is padding but it’s a good length overall, and nicely inside that not-too-short, not-too-long Goldilocks zone for a great solo shooter. There are also two endings you can get based on just one choice you make in the finale, although after seeing both I found the first anticlimactic and don’t think the second was worth the reload.

All You Need is Glove

However, while P-3 is disappointingly threadbare as a character, he’s nonetheless very capable and entertaining to play as – largely thanks to his partner, Charles, who is a talking glove. Okay, that’s a bit reductive – rather, Charles is basically an intelligent system embedded in P-3 who is capable of granting him seemingly supernatural abilities, manifested by a set of small, squid-like tentacles that extend from a glove on P-3’s left hand. This not only includes activating an X-ray-style view of your surroundings and tossing certain small objects à la Half-Life 2’s iconic gravity gun, but also the ability to fire bolts of electricity or ice, levitate enemies into the air to shoot or slam into the ground, or even summon a temporary shield.

Akin to BioShock’s Plasmids, these abilities add an important layer of more interesting combat on top of Atomic Heart’s otherwise fairly typical blasting and slightly clumsy melee combat. There’s a great sense of weight when beaning a bot in the brainpan with an axe – and the gouges that appear across their bodies in real-time is a great touch – but I found the weapon swinging too slow and frustrating when swarmed by too many enemies simultaneously.

The juggling act of defeating dense swarms of robots as well as the blender-sized hovering repair bots that continually swoop in to magically resurrect them gets a bit wearisome at times, especially above ground. Atomic Heart’s linear, underground sequences are linked by a decent-sized slab of open world where we’re free to explore and fight wherever we wish, and this zone is initially a nice antidote to the more corralled corridor segments that progress the story or reward us with useful upgrades. However, with their long line-of-sight and overwhelming numbers, I often found myself running or driving away from fights rather than diving in or trying to get the upper hand via stealth before attacking – because they’re not that much fun to fight over and over. There is a way to fry all enemies within a zone for a while if you’re patient, and the robot hordes do become a little less intimidating as P-3 and his arsenal grow stronger throughout the story, but that’s a process that takes some time.

Unlocking and upgrading these abilities requires a steady supply of resources, which the levels and defeated enemies are generally chock full of, even if collecting them can become a bit of a chore. Atomic Heart is smart to keep this process fast by allowing us to extend out a hand and suck up reams of resources like an industrial shop vac, but it still becomes a little tedious having to ransack the same sets of desks and cabinets arranged slightly differently in a hundred-or-so different rooms.

The main character being annoyed for the same reason I am isn’t cute, it’s a tone deaf non-apology for weak game design.

Tedious, too, is Atomic Heart’s overly ambitious attempt to weasel its way out of accountability for leaning on some extremely hackneyed fetch quests. Having the main character cynically gripe and complain about collecting four canisters for a bafflingly unintuitive door-locking mechanism that would never get past any sensible architectural committee isn’t a free pass to proceed with it. The main character being annoyed for the same reason I am isn’t cute, it’s a tone deaf non-apology for weak game design.

It’s a shame that some better context wasn’t baked around these occasional fetch quests because Atomic Heart’s underground chambers feel like a ripe opportunity and are largely great otherwise: eerie, deadly, and mostly devoid of life – unless you count the mutant freaks with skulls shattered into fanged, floral arrangements or the dead bodies that communicate via the confused ramblings of their fading brain implants. It does rely too heavily on repeating the same handful of door lock minigames that serve no real purpose other than to arbitrarily slow your progression from room to room, but I do like the bespoke platforming puzzle chambers and one-off brainteasers – especially the clever visual puzzle you’ll encounter late during your trip to an ornate theatre full of robotic performers.

Huge PS5 and PlayStation Video Game Sale Is Now Live at Multiple Retailers

Good news gamers, PlayStation has currently got a massive sale on a great selection of first-party titles, including the likes of The Last of Us Part 1, Horizon Forbidden West, Ghost of Tsushima, and plenty more as well. This comes at a perfect time since PS5 consoles are now regularly available for the first time, so there will be plenty of us now looking to fill out our PlayStation backlog with even more amazing games.

This sale is available across multiple retailers in the US, including Amazon, Best Buy, and PS Store (with a few double discounts for PS Plus members), but we’ll leave all the relevant links to the sale just below as well. For now, fire up that PS5, here are all our favorite games that have received a generous discount in the new PlayStation February sale. For more deal updates, make sure to follow @IGNDeals on Twitter.

Amazing PS5 Game Sale Right Now

Two of the most notable entries in the sale will definitely be on The Last of Us Part 1, now down to $49.99, and Part 2 which is down to $9.99. HBO’s The Last of Us series continues to impress audiences, and you can read our Episode 6 review here.

Where to Buy a PS5 and Other Current-Gen Consoles

After years of almost nonstop scarcity, you can finally just go to Amazon and buy a PS5 or an Xbox Series X. No “request invitation” button. No inflated third-party pricing. You can just buy one. This day has been a long time coming.

Sony recently said the PS5 shortage is essentially over, and we’re finally seeing that bear out. Right now, you can order all of the latest game consoles at one retailer or another, and they will ship almost immediately. It’s about time.

Deal Alert: Patriot Viper 2TB PS5 SSD for Just $149.99

If you’re buying a bunch of new PS5 games, you might want to consider expanding your console storage so you can install them all without any issues. Amazon is offering the Patriot Viper VP4300 2TB M.2 2280 SSD, which is compatible with the PS5 console, for only $149.99. This makes it definitely the lowest price we’ve seen for a brand name 2TB PS5 SSD, especially since this one even includes a slim aluminum heatsink.

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

PSA: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Art Book Has Seemingly Leaked Online

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is nearly here, and as it has been with many other games, spoilers seem to have begun to leak online early. In this case, it appears people have gotten a hold of the art book that comes in the collector’s edition, so be safe out there, friends!

We aren’t going to be posting any of the spoilers here or linking out to them, but we wanted to share this PSA to let you know to be careful as you are exploring the internet, as the risk of having something ruined for you appears to be greater now.

We also encourage people, if they’d like, to mute keywords on social media platforms to be safe, including The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kindom, Link, Hyrule, Ganon, etc.

I’ve taken a look at these images and there isn’t much context to them, but it does include enemies, locations, outfits, and other items that many would love to be surprised by as they journey through Hyrule once more.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom will be released on Nintendo Switch on May 12, 2023, and we received a brand-new look at the highly-anticipated game at the latest Nintendo Direct alongside the reveal of the collector’s edition and Link amiibo.

For more, check out our breakdown of the latest trailer, the news that The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom will be $70 at launch, why it appears the game may include a classic Ocarina of Time enemy, and how it looks to have the largest file size of any first-party Switch game.

Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

UK Daily Deals: Link Tears of the Kingdom Amiibo Preorders Are Live

We’ve all been waiting patiently for the Link Tears of the Kingdom amiibo preorder to go live in the UK, and thankfully they now are, just not in the form we were expecting. Right now Amazon is the only retailer you can preorder the new amiibo from (see here). But, the catch is it’s currently listed for £29.54 which is a whole £16.55 more than the RRP of £12.99. We’re not entirely sure what’s going on here, but hopefully the price drops before the release on May 12.

For now, if you’re desperate to get the amiibo and not miss out, I’d get the preorder sorted ASAP. Amazon won’t charge you until the amiibo is dispatched in May, so you’ve still got time to cancel the order if they stubbornly don’t reduce the price any lower. For even more gaming and tech deals, check out all the links just below, or follow @IGNUKDeals on Twitter for instant updates.

TL;DR – Best UK Deals Right Now

Where to Preorder Link Tears of the Kingdom amiibo

Preorders are now live for the Link Tears of the Kingdom amiibo in the UK. This listing isn’t from a third-party seller or anything, this is direct from Amazon who currently has it listed for just under £30. Sure, this is going to be a widely popular amiibo, but I’d be surprised if the price inflation isn’t corrected before May 12. Plus, Amazon has a preorder price guarantee, so you’ll pay the lowest price on the listing even if you order now at £29.54.

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AD: Avast One Individual Down to £23.99/Year (was £79.99/Year)

With Avast One Individual, you’ll get all the features you need to stay safe online, including advanced antivirus protection, a powerful firewall, and cutting-edge anti-phishing technology. Plus, you’ll get real-time alerts to keep you informed of potential threats and the peace of mind that comes with knowing that your digital life is protected by one of the world’s most trusted names in cybersecurity.

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.

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Switch OLED Pokemon Limited Edition In Stock

The limited edition OLED Model features art inspired by Pokemon Scarlet and Pokemon Violet with the legendary Koraidon and Miraidon pictured on the system dock. Availability for the Pokemon-themed Switch has been quite sparse since release, so being able to snag one at RRP is fantastic and well worth considering if you missed it during the initial preorder phase last year.

Check Out This Awesome Sale on Nintendo Switch Games

There are some great deals here to check out, with some of my personal favourite Switch games included just below as well. Sonic Frontiers for £32 is a great deal and one of my top games from 2022, and LEGO Star Wars is absolutely one of the best portable games on the market at the moment. I’ve left all the relevant links, just below.

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Best Random Deals I Love Right Now

These are the best random-ish deals that I want to highlight, but can’t necessarily fit anywhere else. A favourite of mine today is definitely the unisex hoodie blanket, down to just £12.99. This is a great price considering you’re looking at £20-30 anywhere else for a similar quality blanket. My top tip for when you buy one, wash it immediately on its own, once it’s dry it’ll be 10/10 comfort.

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Perfect PS5 2TB SSD with Heatsink for £185

This is a very good deal on PS5 SSDs, especially as you don’t need to further invest in a separate heatsink for the Samsung 980 PRO. Plus, you can max out your PS5 storage with another 2TB of additional space to store all the very best PS5 games in 2023.

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The Last of Us Part II Is On Sale Right Now

Here’s a great deal for those who are loving the latest HBO hit, The Last of Us. Yes, this is based on the game as many of us know, and many of us might also know that there’s a sequel to that game. The Last of Us Part 2 is a critically acclaimed darling (with a few controversies thrown in), and it can be picked up for just £8.39 if you’re a PS Plus member right now (down from £34.99).

More Video Game Deals to Check Out

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Amazon Hogwarts Legacy Console Bundle Deals

There’s some great deals floating around at the moment for PS5 and Xbox bundles, and they even include the hottest game right now, Hogwarts Legacy. You can currently get the PS5 with Hogwarts Legacy Bundle for just £516.98 at Argos. (There’s also a bunch of other superb bundles to check out just below as well).

Overall that works out at £479.99 for the PS5, and just £36.99 for Hogwarts Legacy, about £23 off the new game already. 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.

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).

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Amazing Password Manager Deal from Keeper (AD)

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.

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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.

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

IGN Fan Fest 2023: Everything Announced

IGN Fan Fest 2023 is a wrap! Our two-day event brought a ton of exclusive reveals, interviews, announcements, and more. From a new look at John Wick: Chapter 4, to fresh gameplay of the highly-anticipated Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, there was something for every type of fan to enjoy.

To mark the end of Fan Fest, we’ve created this roundup to make sure you don’t miss a moment. Read on to learn about everything announced at IGN Fan Fest 2023.

Diablo IV Beta Kicks Off in March

We finally have a date for the Diablo 4 beta. Fans can look forward to trying out the game next month, where pre-order early access buyers will get to play from March 17 through 19, while the general public will get access from March 24 through 26. We learned this during our interview with director Joe Shely, who also shared the opening cinematic for Diablo 4.

HBO’s The Last of Us: Bella Ramsey Got a ‘Real Black Eye’ During Action Scene

The latest episode of HBO’s The Last of Us had a pretty intense action scene that showed Pedro Pascal’s Joel, and Bella Ramsey’s Ellie forced to avoid waves of infected. In an interview for Fan Fest, we learned that filming this intense sequence left Ramsey with “so many bruises,” and even a “real black eye.” The interview also revealed how Pascal managed to “scare the sh*t” out of Ramsey.

Creed III’s Fights Were Inspired by Anime

Creed III star and director Michael B. Jordan is a big anime fan, and he’s channeling that passion into the fight choreography in Creed III. Jordan said that the fighting in the upcoming film was inspired by the likes of Megalo Box, Naruto, and My Hero Academia, and that there’s even a “Dragon Ball Z punch” in one of the fights. We also learned that Creed 4 is happening, and that Jordan wants to expand the Creed-verse.

Redfall Devs Tease Arkane’s ‘Most Ambitious’ Setting Yet

IGN spoke to Redfall production designer Ben Horne, who brought some new gameplay footage to IGN Fan Fest. We learned that Arkane wanted to focus on world-building and narrative in Redfall. Horne also spoke about the weapons, saying there are some that players will be instantly familiar with, and others that are uniquely related to vampire slaying.

Cocaine Bear Director Elizabeth Banks Stops By Fan Fest

Cocaine Bear looks absolutely bonkers, focusing on a bear going on a blow-fueled rampage, but director Elizabeth Banks shared some heartfelt details about production. The movie contains one of the last performances of legend Ray Liotta, who died in 2022. Banks revealed that Liotta gave a moving speech on the final day of filming that had people in tears.

Lies of P Release Window Revealed

Lies of P, the Souls-like spin on Pinocchio, is coming this August. Along with the release window reveal, we also got a brand new trailer that appears to show the Blue Fairy, a creature that serves as a guide to Pinocchio in the original story.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Directors Share Exclusive Clip

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is coming to theaters next month, and the film’s directors stopped by to share a new clip of the film. John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein showed a scene with the party entering a graveyard and attempting to speak with a corpse. The directors also talked about finding the “very fine line between comedy and horror.” We also learned that the movie doesn’t have a meta gameplay storyline, as the movie is fully immersed in the world of Dungeons & Dragons.

Netflix’s Shadow and Bone Season 2 Gets a New Trailer

We saw an action-packed trailer for Season 2 of Netflix’s fantasy adaptation. The new look showed Ben Barnes’ General Kirigan return from the Shadow Fold, as well as The Darkling’s army made of shadow. Season 2 is hitting Netflix on March 16.

Punch Club 2: Fast Forward Gets Its First Trailer

Lazy Bear Games shared the first trailer for Punch Club 2: Fast Forward, the sequel to 2016’s RPG Punch Club. There’s no release date yet, but we know the sequel is coming to PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, and Steam. The trailer is packed with pop culture references, including a Matrix-like opening.

No Plans Right Now for Hogwarts Legacy DLC

Avalanche Software revealed to IGN that there are currently no plans in the works for Hogwarts Legacy DLC. “We’ve been really heads down bringing [Hogwarts Legacy] to life,” game director Alan Tew said. “So at the moment there are no current plans for DLC.” Right now, the studio is working on patching the game.

Take a Brand New Look at John Wick: Chapter 4

John Wick star Keanu Reeves stopped by IGN Fan Fest to show off a brand new look at the upcoming John Wick: Chapter 4. We also had the exclusive reveal of a new poster for the movie, showing Keanu Reeves’ Wick at the Eiffel Tower.

WWE Star Zelina Vega Talks Street Fighter 6

WWE’s Zelina Vega is a huge fighting game fan. The star stopped by Fan Fest to talk all about her upcoming commentary role in Street Fighter 6. She also faces off against our staff to put her fighting game skills to the test!

Take a Look at Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’s Jedi Chambers Puzzle Rooms

As part of our month-long IGN First of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Respawn design director Jeff Magers showed off one of the Jedi Chambers puzzle rooms in the upcoming game.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is in theaters now, and the cast stopped by IGN Fan Fest to answer one very, very important question: Would the Ant-Man “butt strategy” work on Jonathan Majors’ Kang? You’ll have to watch the video to find out how they reacted and responded to that question.

Super Nintendo World: Your Questions Answered

We’ve been to Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Hollywood, and it’s pretty awesome. To prepare you for your own trip to this theme park version of the Mushroom Kingdom, we answer some of the IGN audience’s biggest burning questions about the park.

Exclusive Clip of AEW: Fight Forever

You can reexperience one of the biggest AEW matches ever, when Hangman Adam Page faced off against Bryan Danielson for the AEW World Title. This exclusive clip from IGN Fan Fest shows real footage from the fight, intercut with gameplay of the upcoming AEW: Fight Forever game.

The Ark Stars Talk Spacesuits and Secrets

We sat down with The Ark showrunners and stars to talk about the sci-fi series. The creatives discuss the inspiration for the spacesuits, cast members keeping secrets from each other, and more.

Bare Butt Boxing Gets Official Gameplay Trailer

Tuatara Games gave us a look at Bare Butt Boxing, a chaotic multiplayer brawler that’s hitting early access on May 4, 2023. The full release is coming to PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and PlayStation 4 later in 2023.

Exclusive Clip of Batman: The Doom That Came To Gotham

The Doom that Came to Gotham is a 1920s-based Batman story where the caped crusader accidentally unleashes an ancient evil on Gotham City. In this exclusive reveal, Bruce Wayne enters an ancient cave to find a crazed Grendon chipping away at a wall of ice, attempting to let loose an ancient evil.

Check Out the Story Trailer for DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters

DE-EXIT: Eternal Matters is an atmospheric light puzzle platformer with hints of stealth. The game is coming to PC, Xbox, and PlayStation, and you can check out our reveal of the story trailer now.

Dungeon Boss: Respawned Is Coming to Netflix Games

This 2015 game has been remstered and is coming to Netflix Games. IGN Fan Fest saw the debut of the brand new trailer for Dungeon Boss: Respawned.

For the King II Gets Official Trailer

For The King II is a turn-based RPG inspired by tabletop games that allows you to play in a party of up to four players. Check out the new trailer for the game, which is coming to PC this year.

New Trailer for PvP Shooter Friends vs Friends

Friends vs Friends is a stylish, frantic PvP shooter that incorporates deck-building mechanics into its gameplay. The game is coming to PC and consoles this year, and you can check out the brand new trailer right now.

Jumplight Odyssey Coming to Early Access This Year

Jumplight Odyssey is coming to early access sometime in 2023. This game puts you in the shoes of a starship captain, where you’ll have to build your ship, manage resources, and explore the stars, all while maintaining your crew.

Not for Broadcast: Live & Spooky Is Coming Next Month

The first DLC for FMV horror game Not For Broadcast is called Live & Spooky, and it’s coming on March 23, 2023. Get a head start on the paranormal investigation by watching the new trailer.

Starship Troopers: Extermination Shares Details on Three Classes

Starship Troopers: Extermination is a cooperative FPS that pits you against an alien race called the Bugs. The game features assault, heavy infantry, and support classes as you work together to fend off the infestation.

Street Fighter: Duel Shows Off Versus Mode

Street Fighter: Duel is a new Street Fighter RPG mobile game where you collect a team of classic Street Fighter characters, and battle your way through an original story. The game also has a versus mode, which the developers showcased in a new video at IGN Fan Fest.

The Alters Is a Game All About Choices and Consequences

Check out the new trailer for The Alters, a game all about choices. In the game, you must make choices and face the consequences by meeting all of your different personalities. Check out the teaser trailer for the game above.

The Expanse: A Telltale Series Gets New Gameplay Trailer

Cara Gee reprises her role as Camina Drummer in The Expanse, the upcoming game from Telltale. The new trailer shows exploration and conversations on the creepy starship called The Artemis.

The Invincible Trailer Sets the Game’s Creepy Tone

The Invincible is a new game based on the novel of the same name by science fiction author Stanisław Lem. The new trailer shows some gorgeous establishing shots of space exploration, excavation, and robots, all while setting the game’s creepy and off-putting tone.

Check Out Valheim Running on Xbox Series X

Valheim was a huge hit on PC, and now the exploration and survival game is headed to Xbox consoles. Check out the new footage of the game running on Xbox Series X, as you prepare to get your friends together to explore the world of Valheim on March 14.

Scream VI: Directors Share the Best Kills in the Franchise

Scream 6 is hitting theaters on March 10, and directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett stopped by IGN fan fest to share the latest on the upcoming movie. Check out our interview to learn about the filmmakers’ favorite kills in the franchise, details on Ghostface’s lair, and more.

Why Star Trek: Picard Season 3 Isn’t Just More of The Next Generation

Jonathan Frakes, Michael Dorn, LeVar Burton, and Picard showrunner Terry Matalas join IGN to talk about what differentiates Picard Season 3 from Star Trek: The Next Generation. And, the cast shouts out some of their favorite episodes of The Next Generation.

Young Rock Actors Talk About the Legacy of Dwayne Johnson

Bradley Constant and Uli Latukefu, who play younger versions of Dwyane Johnson on NBC’s Young Rock, share some secrets about how they bring The Rock’s origin story to life.

Trigun Stampede: Get a Voice Acting Lesson from Johnny Yong Bosch

If you’re interested in voice acting, check out this crash course from voice acting legend Johnny Yong Bosch. Bosch is the voice of Vash from Trigun Stampede, and he also takes some time to answer some fan questions about the anime.

Polite Society Pits Sister Versus Sister in Martial Arts Comedy

IGN is happy to debut a new clip from the upcoming martial arts film Polite Society, which stars Ritu Arya and Priya Kansara. The two main characters are siblings at odds with each other, and their conflict eventually turns into combat after one sister meddles with the other’s engagement.

Homebody Reminds Us of Early 2000s Horror Games

We revealed a quick exclusive trailer for Homebody, an upcoming horror game that’s reminiscent of the PlayStation 2 era of games. In this game, you catch up with old friends and try not to get murdered. Homebody is coming to consoles and PC.

Watch Rawmen’s Developers Eat Really Spicy Ramen

Rawmen is an arena fighter that’s all about food, and we sat down with the developers at IGN Fan Fest. In honor of the title, we gave the creators of the game some very spicy ramen during the interview to pair with the spicy interview questions.

I Am Jesus Christ Gets New Trailer

We showed a new trailer for I Am Jesus Christ, the game that takes players on the journey of Jesus Christ’s life. The first-person game is coming to PC via Steam.

9 Years of Shadows Is Coming Next Month

9 Years of Shadows is a new, stylish Metroidvania coming to PC on March 27. The new trailer showed off the Poseidon, Helios and Gaia Armor, which give players different elemental abilities from swimming through water like a mermaid to manipulating fire to help you platform.

Protodroid DeLTA Looks Like 3D Mega Man Platforming

Protodroid DeLTA is a new 3D platformer coming to PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Switch on April 27. The trailer showed off DeLTA’s Mega Man-like combat abilities, from an arm cannon to laser swords.

Rabbit Hole: New Clip from Paramount Plus Series

We have an exclusive clip of Rabbit Hole, the upcoming Paramount+ series starring Kiefer Sutherland. In the series, Sutherland’s John Weir is framed for murder by powerful forces with the ability to influence the public. The eight-episode season will premiere Sunday, March 26.

Read Only Memories: NEURODIVER Is Coming This Summer

We’ve got a new trailer for Read Only Memories: NEURODIVER, a follow-up to 2064: Read Only Memories. This sci-fi adventure game is coming to PC and consoles this Summer.

Solium Infernum Brings Strategy Gameplay to Hell

Solium Infernum is a new game that takes the gameplay of Civilization and Age of Empires to Hell… Literally. The game is coming to PC, and is available to wishlist now on Steam.

Tchia Gameplay Overview Spotlights Traversal

Tchia looks like a perfect synthesis of the exploration of Breath of the Wild with the island setting of Wind Waker. Game director Phil Crifo stopped by to show off some of the movement options in Tchia, from gliders, to rafts, to swinging on trees. Tchia is coming to PS5, PS4, and PC this Spring.

The Elder Scrolls Online Details Its Newest Class

A new class is coming to Elder Scrolls Online in the newest expansion, Necrom. The Arcanist class will allow players to deal damage, support allies, and absorb punishment from enemies. Necrom is coming to PC on June 5, and Playstation and Xbox on June 20.

The Last Case of Benedict Fox Gets a Story Trailer

The Last Case of Benedict Fox brought its latest story trailer to IGN Fan Fest. The new trailer further establishes The Last Case of Benedict Fox’s dark tone, as we see footage of demons, monsters, and plenty of creepy locations. The game is coming to Xbox Game Pass on April 27.

Witchfire Combat Overview with Developer Commentary

Witchfire, the upcoming dark fantasy first-person shooter, showed off a new video all about how guns work. We saw gameplay of a hand cannon called Hunger, which gains strength from critical hits. Each time you reload the gun, you get extra-strength bullets based on how many critical hits you landed before the reload.

WrestleQuest: 2 Minutes of Gameplay Revealed

We showed off two minutes of gameplay for Wrestlequest, the upcoming pro wrestling RPG. In the game, Macho Man Randy Savage and a lot of other icons will offer guidance as you fight for glory.

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN covering video game and entertainment news. He has over six years of experience in the gaming industry with bylines at IGN, Nintendo Wire, Switch Player Magazine, and Lifewire. Find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.

3 Great Deals You Can Still Get at the IGN Store for Fan Fest 2023: Nintendo, Star Trek and More Merch

IGN Fan Fest is back and bigger than ever for 2023! If you hadn’t heard of Fan Fest before, IGN Fan Fest is a two-day event, bringing fans exclusive interviews and sneak peeks from some of the biggest movies, shows and games you all love.

What better way to celebrate fans than giving out special discounts this week on the coolest merch from your favorite franchises and beyond? Keep reading to see what deals are up for grabs this week only on our very own IGN Store.

TL;DR – What to Expect at Fan Fest 2023

Celebrate Fan Fest With 3 IGN Store Deals!

  1. Save 40% off all items in the New, Limited Time Fan Fest Special Collection with Coupon Code: FANFEST
  2. All IGN Short Sleeve Tees are only $15
  3. Spend $150+ and Get a FREE Black IGN Logo Tee. Add the t-shirt to your cart of $150 in IGN Store merch to see the free shirt applied!

*This week’s deals start February 13th at 12pm PT and end Monday, February 20th at 11:59pm.

Top In-Stock Items You Can Get on the IGN Store Now

? Trending Now: Retro Nintendo Coasters!

For even more, check out all of the cool merch below around IGN Fan Fest favorites at the IGN Store.

About the IGN Store

IGN Store sells high-quality merch for everything you’re into. It’s a store built with fans in mind for all geek culture and fandom we love across comics and gaming. So, whether you’re into comics, movies, Anime, games, or just like to collect cute plushies, this store is for you.

The IGN Store carries collections and apparel from the big fandom franchises. Browse your favorites:

1. Marvel

2. DC

3. D&D

4. Harry Potter

5. Disney

6. Nintendo

7. Star Wars

8. Star Trek

9. Pokemon

More Franchises to Explore from the IGN Store:

IGN Fan Fest 2023 Giveaway terms and Conditions here.

This week’s IGN Store deals start February 13th at 12pm PT and end Monday, February 20th at 11:59pm. For ‘Spend $150+ and Get a FREE Black IGN Logo Tee!’, customer must have $150 worth of items in cart and add the shirt to cart to automatically add the discount for the free shirt. Note: Discounts are not stackable and customers cannot combine deals.

How to Watch IGN Fan Fest 2023

IGN Fan Fest is back for another special celebration of exclusives across your favorite games, comics and entertainment! Full IGN Fan Fest 2023 Schedule is now live and day 2 (Saturday, Feb. 18) will stream right here at 10am PT!

What to Expect at 2023 Fan Fest

From Redfall to John Wick: Chapter 4, we’re excited to bring you exclusive new looks, sneak peeks, and interviews from the games, movies, and shows you love. We’ll showcase exclusive preview content starting Monday, February 13 before the livestream begins on Friday.

What’s more, we’ll be hosting giveaways and freebies during, including giving away an average of 1 free game code per minute* during the streams on February 17 and 18. You can expect codes for Street Fighter V, Resident Evil Village, and many more. Lastly, the IGN Store is also hosting 3 deals for Fan Fest this week only, so be sure to check those out too! Be sure to browse the new IGN Fan Fest 2023 collection.

TL;DR

How to Watch IGN Fan Fest 2023: Day 2

As a free and live virtual event, IGN Fan Fest will be streamed across IGN.com and all of our social channels, with panels available to rewatch after the stream on IGN.com and our YouTube channel. We’ll also be embedding the stream in this article, so feel free to bookmark this page for easy access.

Here’s the full list of places we’ll be streaming IGN Fan Fest so you can watch it on your preferred platform:

ICYMI: Watch IGN Fan Fest Day 1 Stream:

What is IGN Fan Fest?

IGN Fan Fest 2023 is a two-day event, taking place on February 17 and 18 starting at 10am each day. Here are some of the many panels confirmed for IGN Fan Fest 2023: HBO’s The Last of Us, Redfall, Creed III, Shazam: Fury of the Gods, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, Netflix’s Shadow and Bone, Scream VI, Cocaine Bear, including many more surprises!

Fan Fest is an event where fans from all over the world come together to celebrate their most anticipated movies, TV shows, and games. IGN Fan Fest returns following the success of IGN Fan Fest 2022’s show, which included special announcements and previews from Spider-Man: No Way Home, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, the Halo TV series and so much more.

What were you excited to see most from IGN Fan Fest 2023? Let us know in the comments!

*See Giveaway Terms and Conditions here.

Hogwarts Legacy: Developer Confirms There Are No Current Plans for DLC

Hogwarts Legacy developer Avalanche Software has revealed to IGN that the studio has no current plans to release additional content for their Wizarding World RPG.

Speaking during IGN Fan Fest, Hogwarts Legacy game director Alan Tew explained that the team was so busy preparing the game for its launch last week that it hasn’t yet planned on releasing any expansions.

“We’ve been really heads down bringing [Hogwarts Legacy] to life,” said Tew, “so at the moment there are no current plans for DLC.”

That’s not to say Avalanche Software won’t be supporting the game post-launch, of course, as it has already released a patch for the game that includes several performance improvements and other updates.

Hogwarts Legacy has also already received somewhat of an additional mission thanks to the PlayStation exclusive quest that takes place in Hogsmeade.

Fans will just have to wait and see if Avalanche Software announces any proper extras, but given Tew’s comments, it doesn’t look likely. That being said, Hogwarts Legacy did get off to an exceptional start, netting nearly half a million players on Steam even before it officially launched, so the success might motivate its developer and publisher to expand on the Wizarding World.

In our 9/10 review, IGN said: “In almost every way, Hogwarts Legacy is the Harry Potter RPG I’ve always wanted to play.”

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer and acting UK news editor. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.

Punch Club 2: Fast Forward Finally Gets Its First Trailer

Lazy Bear Games has officially released an announcement trailer for a sequel to its 2016 RPG Punch Club in Punch Club 2: Fast Forward.

Revealed as part of IGN Fan Fest, Lazy Bear Games didn’t share a release date for the game but did reveal that it’s coming to PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam.

That trailer showed off some story elements and gameplay from Punch Club 2. Seemingly as full of pop culture references as the last game, the trailer (and game) opens with a Matrix-esque sequence in which the protagonist is told to wake up from the ominous Corporation.

A montage then takes place as the protagonist trains in an empty garage, dances with robots in a club, fights baddies in factories, talks to a head in a jar in a mall, watches news reports in an evil lair, and so on.

In our 6/10 review of the original, IGN said: “Punch Club is tedious at times, thanks to an unfortunate level-down system that artificially extends the road to the championship with grinding repetition, but its upgrades, stat growth, and more compensate with satisfying depth.”

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer and acting UK news editor. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.

Destiny 2: Where Is Xur Today? Location and Exotic Items for February 17-21

The gun genie, Xûr, is now live in Destiny 2 for the weekend until next week’s reset. If you’re looking to get your some shiny new Exotic armor or weapons for your Guardian, look no further.

Each week, Xûr has a random assortment of Exotic armor, one for each Guardian class, as well as a random Exotic Weapon and an Exotic Engram available for purchase. In addition to his Exotic wares, he’s got a random collection of Legendary weapons and armor to deck out your Guardians.

We’ve rounded up all the info on Xûr for the week including where to find Xûr, which Exotic weapons and armor are available, as well as which Legendary weapons you should pick up, either for PvE or PvP.

Where Is Xûr Today?

Xûr’s location can be found at The Tower on February 17 through February 21. To reach him, travel to the landing point at The Courtyard and make your way to the Hangar. Hang a left when entering the hangar and you’ll come face-to-face with space Amazon.com.

What’s Xûr Selling Today?

Exotic Engram

The Queenbreaker – Exotic Linear Fusion Rifle

Young Ahamkara’s Spine – Exotic Hunter Gauntlets

  • 2 Mobility
  • 13 Resilience
  • 19 Recovery
  • 14 Discipline
  • 6 Intellect
  • 10 Strength
  • Total: 64

Eternal Warrior – Exotic Titan Helmet

  • 9 Mobility
  • 11 Resilience
  • 12 Recovery
  • 2 Discipline
  • 17 Intellect
  • 13 Strength
  • Total: 64

Wings of Sacred Dawn – Exotic Warlock Chest Armor

  • 18 Mobility
  • 2 Resilience
  • 10 Recovery
  • 6 Discipline
  • 9 Intellect
  • 16 Strength
  • Total: 61

The Hunter chestpiece and the Titan helmet are decent rolls, but none of the exotic weapons this week are particularly great.

Exotic Weapons

Hawkmoon – Exotic Hand Cannon

  • Paracausal Shot
  • Hammer-Forged Rifling
  • Alloy Magazine
  • Eye of the Storm
  • Smooth Grip

Dead Man’s Tale – Exotic Scout Rifle

  • Cranial Spike
  • Smallbore
  • Flared Magwell
  • Vorpal Weapon
  • Hand-Laid Stock

Hawkmoon‘s roll this week isn’t amazing (Eye of the Storm can be great, but is pretty situational), but Dead Man’s Tale has a fantastic roll with one of my favorite perks: Vorpal Weapon.

Legendary Weapons

Vulpecula – Hand Cannon

  • Fluted Barrel/Polygonal Rifling
  • Tactical Mag/Flared Magwell
  • Tunnel Vision
  • Explosive Payload
  • Handling Masterwork

Tarantula – Linear Fusion Rifle

  • Full Bore/Smallbore
  • Accelerated Coils/Particle Repeater
  • Genesis
  • Dragonfly
  • Charge Time Masterwork

The Third Axiom – Pulse Rifle

  • Extended Barrel/Fluted Barrel
  • Appended Mag/Light Mag
  • Feeding Frenzy
  • Rampage
  • Vanguard’s Vindication
  • Handling Masterwork

Sojourner’s Tale – Shotgun

  • Arrowhead Brake/Hammer-Forged Rifling
  • Appended Mag/Steady Rounds
  • Moving Target
  • Dragonfly
  • Reload Speed Masterwork

Punching Out – Sidearm

  • Arrowhead Brake/Chambered Compensator
  • Extended Mag/Armor-Piercing Rounds
  • Encore
  • Wellspring
  • Vanguard’s Vindication/Suros Synergy
  • Handling Masterwork

Escape Velocity – Submachine Gun

  • Model 6 Loop/Model 8 Red
  • Accurized Rounds/Extended Mag
  • Overflow
  • Quickdraw
  • Range Masterwork

Extraordinary Rendition – Submachine Gun

  • Extended Barrel/Hammer-Forged Rifling
  • Appended Mag/Tactical Mag
  • Surplus
  • Thresh
  • Stability Masterwork

None of the weapons this week are going to blow you away, but The Third Axiom Pulse rifle has potential. Escape Velocity also has a pretty good roll that might be worth trying out.

Warlock Legendary Armor

For Warlocks, Xûr is selling the Holdfast set which includes:

Holdfast Gauntlets

  • 15 Mobility
  • 2 Resilience
  • 15 Recovery
  • 25 Discipline
  • 2 Intellect
  • 6 Strength
  • Total: 65

Holdfast Chest Armor

  • 14 Mobility
  • 12 Resilience
  • 7 Recovery
  • 10 Discipline
  • 6 Intellect
  • 16 Strength
  • Total: 65

Holdfast Helmet

  • 2 Mobility
  • 14 Resilience
  • 16 Recovery
  • 7 Discipline
  • 14 Intellect
  • 9 Strength
  • Total: 62

Holdfast Leg Armor

  • 24 Mobility
  • 2 Resilience
  • 2 Recovery
  • 6 Discipline
  • 10 Intellect
  • 15 Strength
  • Total: 59

Holdfast Bond

Warlocks are looking pretty great this week with two high-stat rolls worth considering.

Titan Legendary Armor

For Titans, Xûr is selling the Holdfast set which includes:

Holdfast Gauntlets

  • 9 Mobility
  • 16 Resilience
  • 6 Recovery
  • 6 Discipline
  • 16 Intellect
  • 12 Strength
  • Total: 65

Holdfast Chest Armor

  • 12 Mobility
  • 16 Resilience
  • 2 Recovery
  • 20 Discipline
  • 10 Intellect
  • 2 Strength
  • Total: 62

Holdfast Helmet

  • 2 Mobility
  • 6 Resilience
  • 23 Recovery
  • 10 Discipline
  • 15 Intellect
  • 7 Strength
  • Total: 63

Holdfast Leg Armor

  • 7 Mobility
  • 9 Resilience
  • 15 Recovery
  • 9 Discipline
  • 2 Intellect
  • 19 Strength
  • Total: 61

Holdfast Mark

Titans have one decent roll this week with those high-stat guantlets, though they aren’t particularly spikey, unfortunately.

Hunter Legendary Armor

For Hunters, Xûr is selling the Holdfast set which includes:

Holdfast Gauntlets

  • 16 Mobility
  • 12 Resilience
  • 2 Recovery
  • 16 Discipline
  • 2 Intellect
  • 9 Strength
  • Total: 57

Holdfast Chest Armor

  • 26 Mobility
  • 2 Resilience
  • 2 Recovery
  • 7 Discipline
  • 10 Intellect
  • 15 Strength
  • Total: 62

Holdfast Helmet

  • 7 Mobility
  • 17 Resilience
  • 7 Recovery
  • 12 Discipline
  • 10 Intellect
  • 10 Strength
  • Total: 63

Holdfast Leg Armor

  • 6 Mobility
  • 6 Resilience
  • 17 Recovery
  • 14 Discipline
  • 9 Intellect
  • 7 Strength
  • Total: 59

Holdfast Cloak

Hunters don’t have anything to recommend them this week — sorry, cloak bois!

That’s a wrap on Xûr for this week, Guardians! What did you think of the Lightfall ViDoc this week? Let us know in the comments! For more on Destiny, check out all the news from the Lightfall reveal and read about how Sony’s purchase of Bungie fits into its larger plans.

Travis Northup is a writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @TieGuyTravis and read his games coverage here.