Category: IGN

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Game & Watch: The Legend of Zelda Is on Sale for $25

Here’s an excellent deal for fans of classic Nintendo games. Game & Watch: The Legend of Zelda is on sale for $25 at Walmart right now, with the sale price showing when you add it to your cart. That’s a pretty sweet discount, considering it normally costs $49.99. It’s an adorable handheld device that functions both as a clock and a retro gaming machine. This is the lowest price we’ve seen yet (it’s also on sale at Amazon for $42.99, if you really dislike Walmart for some reason).

Game & Watch: The Legend of Zelda Deal

Like Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros., this Zelda gizmo is a dedicated handheld device that offers a few different functions. For one, it comes with three games.

Games Included

  • The Legend of Zelda (NES)
  • Zelda II: The Adventures of Link (NES)
  • The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (Game Boy)

That’s a lot of hours of classic gaming (34 hours total, according to How Long to Beat). It includes both the Western and Japanese versions of the first two Zeldas, which feature different soundtracks and sound effects, as well as the Game & Watch game Vermin. The screen looks nice, clear, and colorful, and the speakers offer plenty of volume.

In addition to offering games, it also functions as a clock. In this mode, in addition to telling the time, the display features Link automatically walking around in Zelda landscapes and fighting enemies. There’s also a timer function you can set for between one and 10 minutes. In this mode, you can take control of the green-clad hero and clash swords with octoroks and mobilns yourself. This mini-game-of-sorts counts how many enemies you kill at each time setting.

The box the device comes in also functions as a stand, which comes in handy when using it in clock mode. You can check out our full Game & Watch: The Legend of Zelda review for even more details.

In any case, if you’ve been on the fence about picking this thing up, now’s a good time to do so, seeing as it’s on sale for the lowest price it’s ever been.

Chris Reed is a deals expert and commerce editor for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @_chrislreed.

Xbox Developer Direct Event Confirmed for January – Unlocked 577

Microsoft confirmed a Developer Direct event for January 25 that will showcase Redfall, Forza Motorsport, Minecraft Legends, and Elder Scrolls Online with a separate standalone event for Starfield coming at a later date. This will be a deep dive into the games with much less presentation and more gameplay according to the team at Xbox. As the titles listed are promised for the first half of 2023 we can’t wait to see more. Plus, the Unlocked crew discusses the big Ubisoft news and some energy-saving options coming to Xbox consoles.

Subscribe on any of your favorite podcast feeds, to our YouTube channel, or grab an MP3 of this week’s episode.

Be sure to check out the latest gameplay from Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty with this month’s IGN First:

Miranda Sanchez is the executive editor of guides at IGN and a member of Podcast Unlocked. She’s a big fan of stationery and fountain pens. You can sometimes find her on Twitter.

Deal Alert: Save 40% Off the Wingspan Board Game from Stonemaier Games

For a limited time, Amazon is offering the excellent Wingspan board game for only $38.81. That’s a substantial 40% off the original retail price of $65. If you missed the deal on Black Friday, this is another chance for you to pick up a highly rated and very accessible board game for a deal-worthy price.

Wingspan Board Game for $38.81

Wingspan from Stonemeier Games is an incredibly good board game. So good in fact that we deemed it the best board game of 2019. Wingspan looks like a deceptively simple game; the endgame goal is to attract as many birds as you can to your wildlife preserve and help them proliferate. There are only four actions you can perform: draw a bird card, play a bird card, get food, and lay eggs. Sounds simple enough, right? Well let’s just say these four actions mask an incredibly complex engine-building game with which you will have to juggle between bringing new birds into the fold and keeping your existing birds well stocked and in a breeding frenzy. Wingspan is infinitely replayable, and you’ll find yourself developing and honing new strategies with every subsequent playthough.

It certainly helps that this is a very accessible game for both casuals and enthusiasts. The board game design is gorgeous, featuring over 170 detailed bird illustations by Elizabeth Hargrave, charming game board backdrops, and cute little tokens and egg minatures. The rules are easy to follow, and each game lasts about an hour, so you won’t need to carve out a huge chunk of time to play it. When we deemed it the best board game of 2019, we valued it against its original retail price; at 40% off this is a steal.

For more deals, take a look at our daily deals for today.

TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge Is on Mobile as a Netflix Exclusive

Months after its console and PC release, beat ’em up Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge is the latest game to head to mobile for Netflix subscribers.

Yesterday, Netflix announced the game’s arrival on mobile with a trailer. According to Netflix’s in-app description, the mobile port still features controller support and online multiplayer gameplay.

Inspired by arcade beat ’em ups of the ’90s (and including quite a few improvements to their combat systems), TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge sees the classic Turtles, along with a few newly playable characters, taking on new foes through a campaign mode and an arcade mode.

IGN gave TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge an 8 in our review, praising its “fun combat, a charming and nostalgic pixel aesthetic, and one of the best soundtracks of the year so far” despite its occasionally tedious level design.

In recent months, Netflix has added quite a few notable games to its roster, including indies like Spiritfarer, Into the Breach, and Before Your Eyes. The streaming service is also developing games of its own, including what seems to be an AAA shooter game, through its new studio.

However, Netflix hasn’t had an easy time getting subscribers to play its games, with less than 1 percent of subscribers playing games via Netflix as of August.

Amelia Zollner is a freelance writer at IGN who loves all things indie and Nintendo. Outside of IGN, they’ve contributed to sites like Polygon and Rock Paper Shotgun. Find them on Twitter: @ameliazollner.

Ubisoft Cancels Three Unannounced Games, Delays Skull and Bones for the Sixth Time

Ubisoft has announced that it has, for the sixth time, delayed Skull & Bones, as well as canceled three more unannounced games amid “major challenges” in the industry, the underperformance of Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope and Just Dance 2023, and an upcoming “restructuring.”

In a press release today, Ubisoft outlined a new strategy for the remainder of its fiscal year, as well as lowered expectations for the last fiscal quarter. Ubisoft explains the move as a result of the company “facing major challenges as the industry continues to shift towards mega-brands and long-lasting titles than [sic] can reach players across the globe, across platforms and business models.”

While Ubisoft notes its goal has been to build large, overarching, global brands, the release adds that “games from this investment phase have yet to be released, while our recent launches have not performed as well as expected.” Specifically, the press release later calls out Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope as underperforming in the final weeks of 2022 and early January despite “an ambitious marketing plan.” Just Dance 2023 underperformed as well.

In response to these issues, Ubisoft is delaying Skull & Bones for the sixth time, and is also canceling three unannounced projects on top of the four it already canceled last year.

Developing…

EA to Remove Madden NFL 23 CPR Touchdown Celebration Following Damar Hamlin Incident

EA Sports is planning to remove the CPR touchdown celebration from Madden NFL 23 after Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin collapsed on the pitch on January 3.

As reported by CBS, EA is working on an update that will remove the CPR celebration in the coming days.

Though the animation has been in the game for three years, many players called for its removal after Hamlin went into cardiac arrest and received CPR for around 10 minutes on the pitch.

“EA Sports is taking steps to remove the celebration from Madden NFL 23 via an update in the coming days,” a spokesperson said.

The animation in game can be triggered after scoring a touchdown, and sees one player lie down on the ground as another pretends to perform CPR on them. A third player imitates the use of a defibrillator.

Hamlin is expected to be released from hospital in the next 48 hours after improving considerably. His heart had to be restarted twice after collapsing during the game and he was left in a critical condition.

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

PlayStation VR 2: Oculus Founder ‘Blown Away’ by Sony’s New Headset

Oculus founder Palmer Luckey has revealed he was “blown away” by Sony’s upcoming PlayStation VR 2 virtual reality headset.

Replying to a tweet from head of PlayStation Indies Shuhei Yoshida (below), Luckey said he’d had the chance to try the new headset recently and has high expectations for its future.

“I was blown away when I used PSVR 2 recently,” he said. “The first PSVR was arguably the biggest success of the generation, [and] this version will do even better.”

PlayStation VR 2 will seemingly be a major upgrade over the original headset, not just because it’s being released seven years later, but due to the inclusion of brand new VR specific controllers.

The upgrade in tech has naturally created an increase in price, however, as where the original PSVR was the best “budget” headset on the market, Sony’s latest costs a hefty $549.99 – $50 more than the required PlayStation 5 console itself.

A Horizon: Call of the Mountain bundle will also be available from launch on February 22 for another $50, though users can still buy it separately alongside the other 20-something launch games.

It’s the only official PS VR2 bundle confirmed so far, though Sony has also announced a $49.99 controller charging station as an optional accessory.

Details on the software available at launch are still a little hazy, as while Sony has announced several games coming to the PS VR2 including Ghostbusters VR and Resident Evil Village, release windows for most remain at a vague 2023.

Other games announced for the platform include Crossfire: Sierra Squad, The Light Brigade, Cities VR – Enhanced Edition, Cosmonious High, Hello Neighbor: Search and Rescue, Jurassic World Aftermath Collection, Pistol Whip VR, Zenith: The Last City, After the Fall, Tentacular, and more.

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

Final Fantasy 16 Producer Denies Existence of PC Version: ‘Buy a PS5’

Final Fantasy 16 producer Naoki Yoshida has denied that the upcoming Square Enix game will appear on PC, telling interested fans to buy a PlayStation 5.

A video clip published to Japanese website Nico Video was shared on Twitter by industry insider Genki (below), who translated Yoshida’s comments (which have been verified by IGN) regarding a PC version of Final Fantasy 16.

“Nobody said a word about a PC version releasing,” said Yoshida. “Why is it like a PC version is releasing six months later? Don’t worry about that, buy a PS5. Sorry, I went overboard. We did our best, so please look forward to it.”

The claim that “nobody said a word about a PC version” is untrue, however, as Square Enix itself did. The original reveal trailer for the game claimed blatantly that it is “also available on PC”, and while Square Enix mysteriously scrapped this claim soon after, the PS5 exclusivity was brought into question again in November 2022.

An advertisement for the PS5’s DualSense controller said Final Fantasy 16 would only be a “PS5 exclusive for six months”, implying that it would arrive on another platform (whether it be Xbox, Nintendo Switch, or PC) in December 2023 – six months after its June 22 launch.

The exact nature of its exclusivity is still unclear though, and based on Yoshida’s comment, this is even the case at its developer. IGN has reached out to Square Enix for comment.

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

Xbox Game Pass in January 2023: Persona 3 Portable, Monster Hunter Rise, and More

It’s a slightly quieter start to January for Xbox Game Pass, with only six more games confirmed to be hitting the service so far this month. We already knew about all six of these, including the three Xbox has chosen to highlight in their first Xbox Wire Game Pass blogpost of the year. But, there are normally several other Game Pass announcements across every month, so we could still hear about even more games to come in January.

For now, the most recent announcement has reaffirmed Game Pass will be getting Persona 3 Portable (January 19), Persona 4 Golden (January 19), and Monster Hunter Rise (January 20) on console, PC, and cloud gaming. These are two iconic Japanese franchises, and despite the limited selection for January, all three games will certainly be making their way onto a lot of gamers’ libraries on console and PC this month.

Persona 3 Portable and Persona 4 Golden on Xbox Game Pass

After January 19, Persona 3, 4, and 5 will all be available for Xbox Game Pass members on console, PC, and cloud gaming. This was initially announced back at Xbox’s summer showcase, and we have since seen Persona 5 Royal enter the service in October 2022.

Everything Coming to Xbox Game Pass in January 2023 (So Far)

  • Stranded Deep – January 3 (Console, PC, Cloud)
  • Persona 3 Portable – January 19 (Console, PC, Cloud)
  • Persona 4 Golden – January 19 (Console, PC, Cloud)
  • Monster Hunter Rise – January 20 (Console, PC)
  • Age Of Empires 2: Definitive Edition – January 31 (Console, Cloud)
  • Inkulinati – January 31 (Console, PC)
  • Roboquest – January TBA (Console)

Everything Leaving Xbox Game Pass in January 2023

  • Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc (Cloud, Console, and PC)
  • Nobody Saves The World (Cloud, Console, and PC)
  • Pupperazzi (Cloud, Console, and PC)
  • The Anacrusis (Game Preview) (Cloud, Console, and PC)
  • We Happy Few (Cloud, Console, and PC)
  • Windjammers 2 (Cloud, Console, and PC)

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

New Super Mario Galaxy 2 World Speedrunning Record Set at AGDQ

A new speedrunning world record has been established in Super Mario Galaxy 2, with Twitch streamer Jhay managing to beat their own record by just over four seconds.

The new record was set during the Awesome Games Done Quick stream, which saw Jhay take on Mutantsabyss, Hardcoregaming, and Supervipert302 in a speedrunning race. Jhay’s Any% with Bank run — a reference to the Bank Toad who is required to unlock the game’s final galaxy — was completed at 2:54:51.33, which was 4.4 seconds faster than his previous record of 2:54:55.

Jhay celebrated his new record by tweeting in all caps, “I just got WR live at GDQ in front of 80k people how in the actual universe. I have peaked in life. Galaxy forever.”

Super Mario Galaxy 2 is one of many speedrunning events taking place during Awesome Games Done Quick, which is running all this week on Twitch. Other notable events include runs through The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, and other popular games.

Awesome Games Done Quick will run until Saturday, January 14, with all proceeds from viewer donations benefiting the Prevent Cancer Foundation.

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