Xbox hardware sales are way down again in Microsoft’s Q4, while gaming content sales skyrocketed again thanks to the company’s acquisition of Activision-Blizzard last year.
The company posted its earnings today, which included a report of hardware revenue down 42% year-over-year. Hardware sales saw a significant dip of 31% year-over-year last quarter as well, though sales were up slightly (3%) in Q2 thanks to a series of holiday discounts and promotions. But hardware was also down 7% prior to that in Q1, and yes, dropping steadily for several quarters prior to that too.
For what it’s worth, Xbox is far from the only console maker seeing dips in hardware sales. Everyone’s impacted, according to Circana’s most recent report. Xbox, Sony, and Nintendo all say “double-digit percentage declines” in May of 2024, and the Switch saw the most significant drop. This is likely reflective of the fact that all three consoles are on the back halves of their life cycles, and is reflective of fairly normal, cyclical industry trends. Xbox has already confirmed that a “next-gen” console is in the works, and has expressed plans to share more information about hardware of some sort around the holiday season.
Gaming revenue overall appears to be doing more than fine in terms of year-on-year comparisons, even setting quarterly records. This is largely due to the boost offered by the acquisition of Activision Blizzard – it wasn’t there to make money for the company last year, now it is, so the numbers have gone up. Gaming revenue was up 44% year-over-year, but with 48 points of net impact from the acquisition, this indicates that Xbox’s not-Activision-Blizzard-related business isn’t doing quiiiiite as well as it was last year. Xbox content and services revenue faired better, up 61% year-over-year, with 58 points of net impact from the acquisition.
Overall, Microsoft’s More Personal Computing division (which includes Xbox as well as other segments such as Windows) brought in $15.9 billion in revenue, up 14% year-over-year. Microsoft will hold its Q4 earnings call and field questions from investors and analysts shortly.
Some studios will spend years of development time and hundreds of millions of dollars chasing emotional, Hollywood-quality stories and realistic graphics, but the Earth Defense Force series proudly prefers to remain the most pure video game nonsense ever conceived. Don’t be fooled by the PS3-era graphics, atrocious voice acting, absurd story, and uneven technical performance of Earth Defense Force 6 – developer Sandlot knows exactly what it’s doing with this over-the-top satire that makes Helldivers 2 look highbrow by comparison. Like its predecessors, EDF6 leans into its rough edges and silly cooperative mayhem, prioritizing mindless fun above all else, and the result is yet another wonderfully amusing entry in the ongoing saga. But even going in with the right expectations, it’s not all sunshine and dismembered thoraxes, as this inadvisably long campaign has tons of repetition, plenty of levels that are more boring than amusing, and at times crosses the line from knowingly campy to just plain bad. Still, this giant insect-filled monster fest is more often than not a hilariously good time, and that’s something we could certainly use more of.
Earth Defense Force 6 is a goofy as heck cooperative third-person shooter that throws you and up to three friends into a version of our world under siege by aliens. Called the Primus, these primarily insectoid invaders are a grab bag of dorky monsters that range from generic flying drones, knockoff Godzilla kaiju, oversized evil Battletoads, massive spiders that jump everywhere, and more. Across the 80+ hours it took me to complete its 147 level main campaign, you’ll blast these low-res goons to bits using a growing arsenal of guns, rocket launchers, grenades, turrets, vehicles, and giant Gundam mechs, some of which feel great while others are experiments gone horribly wrong. Wrap all of this ridiculousness in some contentedly outdated graphics and a framerate that becomes unstable whenever your explosive shenanigans reach a fever pitch, and you’re in for an uproarious good time.
It’s hard to beat rocket launchers that can level cityscapes in seconds.
You’ll also bounce between four returning character classes: the Ranger, a standard soldier whose only advantage is that their weapons are the best around; the Wing Diver, a Valkyrie-like class whose jet-pack and wings give her unmatched mobility (offset by the fact that she’s killed by a light breeze); the Air Raider, an often second-fiddle support class who specializes in calling in massive bombing runs, relies on gadgets like drones to squish bugs, and can summon vehicles to deal serious damage; and the Fencer, a dual-wielding tank class who can absorb serious damage with a giant shield and smash things to bits in melee, but who is also quite difficult to play well. It might be a little milquetoast, but I favor the Ranger – it’s just hard to beat rocket launchers that can level cityscapes in a few seconds and assault rifles that plow through hundreds of aliens with ease.
While the stories in Earth Defense Force games have always been charming rubbish, EDF 6 sets a new bar with a tale that actively makes no sense at various points (even if, like me, you’re following along very closely and occasionally taking notes). It makes heavy use of time travel and has humanity losing the war against the Primus, only for you and the aliens to both go back in time to try again – but the good guys perplexingly make very little use of the knowledge gained in the previous timeline, so you’ll have to watch them slowly piece together what’s happening while you and your character are already miles ahead of the buffoons trying saving humanity.
Most of the time, this insanity is as amusing as you might hope, like when one part introduces giant frog enemies and says they’re “just like humans” without addressing the fact that they’re clearly frogs, then later introduces cliche humanoid gray martian enemies and describes them as “not humanoid.” Other times, though, it’s just painful, like one section where they explain the origins and biological breakdown of a flying dragon monster while making you fight it about five times in a row, reminiscent of a filler episode of Dragonball Z.
The story’s insanity is as amusing as you might hope most of the time.
The extremely poorly written story is eclipsed in its dreadfulness only by the voice acting, which sounds like it was performed by some poor souls who were rejected by their local improv troupes and decided to give video game voices a try. One part nearly made me spit-take when a character says, in the most monotone voice imaginable, “you have no idea how relieved I am” – you’re right, my dude, I definitely do not. But between all of that cringey dialogue and senseless plot development, there’s a ton of joy. There is still plenty of the kind of bad-by-design silliness at which EDF excels, and the times where it manages to walk that line properly are a gift that keeps on giving.
Thankfully, the heart and soul of Earth Defense Force 6, its over-the-top combat against all manner of blurry foes, is actually a lot of fun – and oftentimes pretty darn challenging. Dodging, dashing, and flying out of the way as monsters, aliens, overgrown insects, and robots rock the screen (and threaten the framerate) is exactly the kind of action-packed madness I love about this series, and it’s never been done better than in this iteration. The fundamentals of that action may be almost identical to what we got a few games ago, but EDF6 adds a ton of weapons and new enemy types to the mix and then dreams up interesting scenarios to put you in, like one level where you’re defending a beach from an entire army of giant poisonous reptiles. Playing through on the normal difficulty can be challenging enough, especially if you don’t have a competent crew at your back, but it gets absolutely insane once you dial that up to the harder options. It requires an intense amount of grinding to get the requisite powerful weapons and armor to put up a fight, plus a team who absolutely knows what they’re doing. As with prior entries, combat’s simple setup and silly attitude don’t get in the way of being extremely entertaining and genuinely satisfying to overcome, and that can make it pretty hard to put down.
That said, some of the design decisions definitely go a step beyond janky fun and into being straight up obnoxious, like how if you’re killed and waiting to be revived by a teammate, you just have to sit there staring at your own corpse until they come to get you. There’s no option to watch what other players are doing if they aren’t standing right by you and no respawn timer, which is just plain boring. There are also a handful of maps you’ll find yourself running missions on quite a few times, and while the enemies and objectives are usually at least a little different, the lack of variety definitely grated on me at times. Also, you’re occasionally made to play some slower-paced, story-focused levels that are simply the worst, though they at least only show up at a few specific moments. This isn’t the kind of story that’s at all worth slowing down the pacing to tell, and those segments just absolutely waste your time in a campaign that’s already way longer than it probably should be.
Today Amazon is offering the recently released Crucial T500 2TB PCIe 4.0 M.2 NVMe SSD with pre-installed heatsink for only $135.84. The Crucial T500 was released in October of 2023 and it is currently one of the top performing PCIe 4.0 SSDs on the market. This solid state drive works equally well as additional storage for your PS5 console or as a blazing fast boot drive for your gaming rig.
2TB Crucial T500 SSD (PS5 Compatible) for $135.84
The T500 is Crucial’s newest flagship PCIe 4.0 SSD and replaces the P5 Plus. The T500 utilizes a Phison E25 controller with 232-layer Micron TLC NAND flash memory. It has proven to be one of the fastest SSDs on the market with sequential speeds of 7,300/6,800MB/s and random speeds of 1.15M/1.44M IOPs. It’s on par with other top-tier SSDs like the WD Black SN850X, the Samsung 990 Pro, and the SK Hynix P41 Platinum and it’s currently the least expensive of the bunch. It’s also backed by a 5 year warranty.
The Crucial T500 also makes for an excellent PS5 SSD. It fulfills all of Sony’s requirements, like a minimum read speed of 5,500MB/s and a PCI-Express Gen4x4 interface. A robust aluminum heatsink is also already pre-installed, so you don’t need to spend time and money installing one yourself.
If you’re looking for more SSD storage upgrade options for your PS5 console, check out our best PS5 SSD deals of 2024. There are even less expensive options if you’re not married to any brand.
It seems impossible that Star Wars Outlaws is the first-ever open-world Star Wars game, but indeed it’s true. With that first comes plenty of expectation, but also lots of excitement – particularly when the studio handling the effort is Massive Entertainment, the talented developers of The Division. Speaking personally, I confess that I don’t often get hyped up for too many open-world games these days outside of those made by Rockstar – as those can be counted on to raise the bar every single time – but I have been plenty hyped for Outlaws. After all, it’s set after Empire Strikes Back, you play as a Han Solo-caliber scoundrel instead of yet another Jedi, and you’ve got an awesome alien creature pet named Nix by your side at all times, who promises to have an impact on gameplay and not just follow our hero Kay Vess around being adorable. In other words, it’s got a lot going for it on paper.
And while it doesn’t seem like Outlaws will do any Rockstar-like bar-raising, after playing a near-final build of it for four hours across two different sections of gameplay, I can say it’s still one of my most anticipated games yet to come out in a busy second half of 2024, and it feels very Star Wars in all the right ways.
Ubisoft has developed a reputation for making “checklist” open-world games; big spaces where you’re given a to-do list of sidequests and activities to complete outside of the golden path. Generally this is not a compliment. But one of the things that impressed me about Star Wars Outlaws is that I didn’t get the sense that I was just checking boxes to inch closer to 100% game completion. Don’t get me wrong – there is plenty to do in Outlaws, but those sidequests and activities feel a lot more organic than they do in the publisher’s other games. For example, while wandering around the town of Mirogana on the planet Toshara, I walked by an arcade mini-game of sorts. I wandered up and played a round. I also stumbled upon a betting stand where I could wager on holographic-horse races. I managed to bet on the right one by sheer good luck, which gave me a chuckle later when I discovered a datapad lying around elsewhere that gave me a strong hint on who to lay my money on. I also encountered a down-on-their-luck gambling addict who begged me for money. I obliged, enabling his vice and leaving with a promise that he’d share in his winnings should he find himself back on Lady Luck’s good side. Naturally, there’s also a cantina, and I even saw a Sabacc table, but I lacked sufficient funds at the time to buy in and play.
Massive has, based on what I’ve seen so far, done an excellent job of setting an authentic Star Wars stage.
All of these optional activities feel very natural on the planets and towns of Outlaws, and that’s true in part because of the excellent art direction that makes every location ooze Star Wars authenticity. From the lighting to the architecture to the NPCs milling about, Massive has, based on what I’ve seen so far, done an excellent job of setting an authentic Star Wars stage.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t add how the story of Star Wars Outlaws only supports and reinforces all of this. Kay is just out to make her way in an unforgiving galaxy, lying or double-crossing as she needs to in order to look out for number one. This plays out in occasional dialogue choices that pop up during cutscenes, adding a bit more player agency to what would otherwise be a mini-Star Wars in-game movie. Will those choices affect how the plot ultimately plays out? I wouldn’t bet on it, but there is a laudable faction reputation system that tracks how much (or little) each of the in-game syndicates likes you. Double-cross the Hutts and you’ll harm your reputation with them, but increase your standing with the Crimson Dawn. Piss off a faction enough and they won’t let you into their territory (meaning you’ll have to sneak in and stay undetected if you want access).
But, you’re probably wondering, what of the moment-to-moment gameplay? In this, Star Wars Outlaws made me happy. This is a stealth game if you want it to be. And if you mess up in that attempt, I honestly like that you don’t have a lightsaber to save you. You’ll have to use Kay’s blaster – which, yes, is upgradeable – to get out of trouble, and that adds to the sense of danger because you’re not a laser sword-wielding demigod. As such, the blaster battles felt like they had meaningful stakes, and the stealth gameplay had a bit of weight to it because I knew that I’d be up against it if I messed up.
Naturally, there’s lockpicking too in the form of data spikes, and I quite like how Outlaws handles it. Each lock has a particular audio signature, and it’s up to you to match that pattern by pressing the right trigger in time with the beeps. The longer you take, the more likely you are to be spotted. Similarly, the hacking minigame is also really fun. Here, you’ll need to line up the right symbols in the right order, which usually takes multiple attempts. Fail too often and you’ll fail the hack entirely. It took me a few tries to wrap my head around, but once I did I really enjoyed the opportunities I got to do some hacking.
The core stealth gameplay is aided by the breakout star of Outlaws, Nix. Yes, Nix is the BD-1 of this game, but compared to Cal Kestis’s droid companion, Kay’s organic pal can do a lot more for you. He can distract an enemy – by getting the bad guy’s attention and adorably playing dead – or flat-out attack them. He can hit buttons or switches too, and retrieve items. This is useful when you’re pinned down in a firefight and a more potent A300 Blaster Rifle is across the room. Nix can fetch it and drop it at your feet without you leaving cover. I even like how Outlaws handles these larger weapons: they can’t be reloaded, meaning that once you fire all the rounds, you just drop the empty gun and go back to your trusty blasters. This is likely a design decision to ensure that Kay never feels overpowered, thus making sure the player is always on their toes in combat.
Finally, you couldn’t have an open-world Star Wars game without ways to get around that expanse, and in Outlaws, Kay has a speeder bike that, as you’d guess, can also be upgraded. You can win credits doing races, or just stop off along the way to your destination at some interesting-looking pit stop. The bike controls well – it almost feels like driving a boat in Waverace 64 in that it’s pretty fast and maneuverable but hardly handles like it’s on rails.
Complementing this is Kay’s ship, the Trailblazer (and yes, it’s upgradeable). I got to do a bit of outer-space ship-to-ship combat, and I had a good time! I’ll need plenty more time in the pilot’s seat to really solidify my opinion here, but flying the Trailblazer made a good first impression.
If there’s one thing that concerned me during my hands-on time, it’s bugs. Outlaws went gold well before the preview event, meaning that if I wasn’t playing the certification build, it was something mighty close. And while yes, there will inevitably be a day-one patch as most games have nowadays, it was still disappointing to see as many annoying little – admittedly mostly visual and harmless – glitches as I did. Hopefully that day-one update will knock out the bulk of them.
Ultimately, though, I had a fantastic time with Star Wars Outlaws. Open-world games tend to be jacks-of-all-trades, masters-of-none, and while I’m not sure Outlaws will master any of its gameplay components, it nonetheless not only does them all very well, but it does so with a convincing Star Wars sheen. And since there’s somehow never been an open-world Star Wars game before, it feels new, fresh, and most welcome. I’m glad this is arguably the first big-name game out this Fall on August 30, because I can’t wait to play more of it.
Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s executive editor of previews and host of both IGN’s weekly Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, as well as our long-form interview show, IGN Unfiltered. He’s a North Jersey guy, so it’s “Taylor ham,” not “pork roll.” Debate it with him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan.
Although Star Wars has become a fixture of movie culture over the generations, it’s also left a signature stamp on the world of video games. From LEGO spin-offs and NES movie adaptations to pod-racing simulators, it’s hard to talk to someone about games they loved as a kid without the words Star Wars cropping up in there somewhere.
And as the series has grown into a powerhouse in the gaming world, so too have video games become a key part of the Star Wars universe as a whole. In recent years, we’ve seen more and more video games become official parts of the franchise’s canon timeline, whether that’s Cal Kestis’ adventures through a post-Order-66 world in the Star Wars Jedi series or Iden Versio’s transformation from Empire trooper to Resistance hero in 2017’s Star Wars Battlefront 2.
So, for those looking to catch up with the video-game-exclusive chapters of the Star Wars history books, let’s take a look at all of the canon Star Wars games in chronological order.
Considering Star Wars has been making its way to video game consoles for over four decades at this point, there are a lot of Star Wars games spread across the history of the series. To be specific, there are well over 100 Star Wars games in total, including everything from first-person shooters and tactical strategy games to dance titles and even educational point-and-click adventures.
That’s a lot of games, although only a very small selection are part of the series’ official storyline. Since Disney wiped the extended universe from the canon, there are now eight games canonto the timeline of the series. Only one of these games won’t feature on our chronological list, and that’s Star Wars: Uprising. Although the mobile RPG was an official continuation of the Star Wars story, it was closed down back in 2016 due to low player counts and is no longer available.
We also haven’t included any of the Star Wars web browser games or titles that act as retellings of the events of the main story, such as the Star Wars Journeys series.
All Canon Star Wars Games in Chronological Order
1. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
The first notch on the official canon timeline, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is set half a decade after the events of Star Wars: Revenge of The Sith, and follows a survivor of the Order 66 Jedi purge.
After years of hiding from the Empire and their ruthless Jedi-hunting soldiers, the Inquisitors, Fallen Order’s story sees former padawan Cal Kestis rekindle with the force after his powers are discovered, sending him on a galaxy-wide adventure in the hopes of rebuilding the Jedi order. Along the way, he’s pursued by the merciless Second Sister; a powerful Sith Inquisitor determined to hunt Cal down and put a stop to his plans.
Fallen Order takes heavy inspiration from the soulslike genre, with players exploring iconic and all-new planets while taking part in frantic, fast-paced lightsaber duels and building their arsenal of force powers. It was the beginning of a franchise for developer Respawn Entertainment, who went on to make a sequel four years later. Speaking of…
2. Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
The official sequel to Fallen Order, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is set five years after the events of the previous game. Now an older and more wizened Jedi Knight, we pick up Cal’s story as he searches for a place to hide from the Empire and raise a new crop of Force sensitive warriors. However, after discovering a powerful Jedi who served during the High Republic era, Cal quickly becomes embroiled in a new battle which tests his abilities and connection to the Jedi teachings.
Much like its predecessor, Survivor focuses heavily on soulslike combat spread across several explorable planets, taking players to new locations alongside a few fan favorites. All the while they’ll get to test their mettle with brand new fighting stances, allowing them to duel-wield a saber and a blaster, or channel Kylo Ren, and carve through their foes with a powerful crossguard lightsaber.
3. Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series
Set after Revenge of the Sith and before Rogue One, Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series takes place over three episodes and follows a nameless smuggler who becomes entangled in a mysterious plot tied to Darth Vader’s past.
After their ship is pulled out of hyperspace by the Empire, the smuggler is forced to explore Vader’s castle on Mustafar, where they learn about a mystical artifact with the power to conquer death. Vader Immortal aimed to grant players the childhood dream of wielding a lightsaber with their own hands, planting them in the world of Star Wars via a VR headset and fully immersing them in the Jedi experience.
4. Star Wars: Battlefront 2 (2017)
Although Star Wars: Battlefront 2’s multiplayer takes place across the various eras of Star Wars history, the story mode begins just after the events of Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. It follows Iden Versio: the commander of an Imperial squadron known as Inferno Squad. Spanning thirty years, it follows Versio and her allies’ journey, from the destruction of the Second Death Star all the way to the climax of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Along the way, she meets various iconic characters and explores some of Star Wars’ most famous battlegrounds, including Bespin, Endor and Naboo. In-game, players can expect plenty of third and first-person firefights, battling across lovingly recreated maps while wielding blasters, flying ships and even picking up a lightsaber as one of the game’s many hero characters.
5. Star Wars: Squadrons
The next notch on the timeline belongs to Star Wars: Squadrons; EA’s space-fighting spin-off. Strapping players into an array of iconic starships, they’ll engage in huge battles across the vast reaches of the galaxy, getting into intense dog fights from behind the controls of X-Wings, Tie Fighters and more.
Although the beginning of the story takes place during the events of A New Hope, the bulk of Squadrons’ campaign is set after the Return of the Jedi, with players switching between the roles of a Resistance and Empire pilot.
Shifting back and forth between both perspectives, it tells the story of a secret Rebel project codenamed Starhawk, which poses a major threat to the Empire. Intending to prevent its completion, the Empire rushes to stop the plans, leading to plenty of all-out, space-based skirmishes.
6. Star Wars: Hunters
Hitting shelves in 2024, Star Wars: Hunters is a free-to-play multiplayer arena shooter set after the events of Return of the Jedi. It sees players pick one of several heroes and team up with friends, taking on rival teams in fast-paced combat.
Like most hero-based shooters, players can dive into a large roster of characters each with their own unique weapons and abilities, with the list featuring everything from droid Jedis and Wookie berserkers to Mon Calamari technicians and even a Jawa tag team.
7. Star Wars: Droid Repair Bay
Set during the events of The Last Jedi, Star Wars: Droid Repair Bay is an entirely free VR experience that tasks players with repairing BB-8 and a series of other droids. They’ll have to remove and replace faulty parts, tweak circuits and ensure the droids are ready for field deployment. Droid Repair Bay was a tie-in with the release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, with players cast as a mechanic on the Raddus space station shortly before its battle with the Supremacy dreadnought during the events of the film.
8. Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge
The final slot on the timeline comes via Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge. Set between the events of The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker, Galaxy’s Edge is a VR experience where players step into the shoes of a nameless droid mechanic and explore the planet of Batuu: the same setting as Disneyland Park’s Star-Wars-themed attraction.
After crash-landing on Batuu to evade smugglers that boarded your ship, Galaxy’s Edge has you shooting your way through First Order soldiers and Guavian criminals while solving puzzles and delving deeper into the planet’s various mysteries. It eventually got an expansion called The Last Call, which allowed players to train as a Jedi and suit up as the legendary assassin droid, IG-88.
All Canon Star Wars Games in Release Order
Star Wars Uprising (2015)
Star Wars Battlefront 2 (2017)
Star Wars: Droid Repair Bay (2017)
Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series (2019)
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (2019)
Star Wars: Squadrons (2020)
Star Wars: Tales From The Galaxy’s Edge (2020)
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (2023)
Star Wars: Hunters (2024)
What’s Next for Star Wars Video Games?
Although the current list of canon video games in the Star Wars universe is relatively small, over the next few years, it appears to be growing significantly. On August 30, Ubisoft is set to add another major entry to the franchise in Star Wars: Outlaws. An open-world RPG casting players as underworld thief Kay Vess, it promises expansive worlds to explore and a new canon story, featuring some returning Star Wars characters like Jabba the Hutt and Qi’ra.
The theme for Freedom’s Flame is, predictably, burn damage and survivability, with new weapons, armor, emotes, capes, and skins all set to hit the game next week, Mitch Ayre, Junior Community Manager at developer Arrowhead Games Studios, said in a post on the PlayStation Blog.
As with previous Premium Warbonds, expect Freedom’s Flame to cost 1,000 Super Credits. While you can earn Super Credits from gameplay and the warbond itself, you can also buy them for real-world money. Via the in-game shop, 1,000 Super Credits costs $9.99. Premium warbonds do not expire, so you can work your way through them at your own pace safe in the knowledge their items will remain available.
Here’s everything included in Helldivers 2’s Premium Warbond, Freedom’s Flame
Firepower
Primary:
SG-451 Cookout
Burn, baby, burn! A pump action shotgun that unleashes a burst of incendiary phosphorus pellets at your helpless enemies.
FLAM-66 Torcher
A lightweight flamethrower shooting pressurized fuel through a nozzle into a roaring, open flame. Sounds safe. It isn’t. Watch where you’re standing.
Secondary:
P-72 Crisper
A flamethrower that fits in your pocket for the Helldiver on the go! What will those guys think of next? This lovely compact handgun projects a jet of freedom flames over short distances.
Booster:
Fiery Drop – Firebomb Hellpods
Scorch the earth (and anything else) below as you touch down with attitude and ignite the dropsite.
Armor:
I-09 Heatseeker
Proudly display the burnished blood-red plates that were forged in righteous fire, like the heroes they were wrought to protect — a true vision of democracy.
I-102 Draconaught
Ah, there’s nothing quite like those satisfying screeches as the enemies of freedom burn. Enjoy it all in this 14-cm sheathed silica fiber foam armor with an exclusive tube-to-ear feature.
Armor Passive
Inflammable! Enjoy 75% damage resistance to fire as you run head-first into danger like the unstoppable legend your mum said you’d be.
Title: Fire Safety Officer
You can now call yourself a Fire Safety Officer. Doesn’t come with a certificate.
Skin: Safety Orange
Repaint your Shuttle, Hellpod, and Exosuit in striking Safety Orange.
Capes & Cards
Purifying Eclipse
A heartfelt tribute to the Liberation of Choepessa IV in the First Galactic War, in which so much orbital ordnance was detonated that its sun was occluded by ash for an entire lunar cycle.
The Breach
The final mission of the 361st Freedom’s Flame saw this storied unit deploy into the heart of a Supervolcano in a mission of heroic sacrifice. Triggering a huge eruption, this act of incredible bravery wiped out a massive Terminid swarm. As documented in the bestselling graphic novel ‘The Breach,’ it is available at all good bookshops on Super Earth.
Emotes
Big Stretch, Deep Reflection, and Thoracic Collision Exultation Maneuver Co-emote. If you’re going to win. Win in style.
Freedom’s Flame is set to arrive two days after the Escalation of Freedom update, Helldivers 2’s biggest so far. This update, due out August 6, adds new missions, objectives, enemies, planets, and even a new difficulty mode.
Helldivers 2’s explosive launch across PC and PlayStation 5 in February saw it become the fastest-selling PlayStation game of all time, with an incredible 12 million copies sold in 12 weeks. IGN’s Helldivers 2 review returned a 9/10. We said: “Helldivers 2’s combat feels fantastic, its missions stay fresh and interesting, and its smart progression system doesn’t nickel and dime you.”
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
Based on the Loyal Three and their Moochi-feeding mythical master, Pecharunt, the Shrouded Fable set features some key players of the Pokémon Scarlet & Violet DLC: Hidden Treasures of Area Zero, amongst new additions. It’s a packed set, with Kingdra ex also making a royal splash in the expansion.
As night falls, Pecharunt ex emerges, commanding the Loyal Three—Okidogi ex, Munkidori ex, and Fezandipiti ex—in their evil mission. Meanwhile, Revavroom ex lights up the battlefield as a Lightning type through Terastallization.
Here’s a firsthand look at our highlights from the Elite Trainer Box, Kingambit Illustration Collection, Kingdra ex-Special Illustration Collection, and some standout cards from Pokémon TCG: Scarlet and Violet—Shrouded Fable.
Shrouded Fable Elite Trainer Box Preview
The Pokémon TCG: Scarlet and Violet—Shrouded Fable Elite Trainer Box is an absolute must-have if you’re a dedicated trainer. Everything is neatly organized in a collector’s box with four dividers, making storing and transporting your collection easy. Plus, a Pokémon Trading Card Game Live code card for the set is included for digital pack openings. Still, nothing beats ripping open the included boosters!
Inside, you can find nine Shrouded Fable boosters, all bursting with diverse cards to enhance your deck. This is alongside a foil promo card featuring Pecharunt, a powerful addition to your Dark-type deck and a collector’s gem. There’s also 65 card sleeves centered around Okidogi, Munkidori, and Fezandipiti, all rocking a cool purple and green metallic design, perfect for a new deck build.
Shrouded Fable Elite Trainer Box – What’s In The Box?
Nine Shrouded Fable booster packs
Full-art foil promo card featuring Pecharunt
65 card sleeves featuring the Loyal Three
45 Pokémon TCG Energy cards
A player’s guide to the expansion
Six damage-counter dice and a competition-legal coin-flip die.
Two plastic condition markers
Kingambit Illustration Collection Preview
The Kingambit Illustration Collection looks stunning! The titled stage two card is hands down the best card art out of the big boxes in Shrouded Fable in our opinion. Kingambit commands respect and overcomes all challengers. This collection is perfect for those looking to strike, slash, and take command in their battles.
The promo card Kingambit we’ve found inside showcases the big blade Pokémon in a menacing classical painting style, alongside foil cards featuring Pawniard and Bisharp completing Kingambit evolution chain for a cool Steel type playset straight out of the box! There’s also four Shrouded Fable boosters, each a chance to find powerful and rare cards, and codes for Pokémon TCG Live.
Kingambit Illustration Collection – What’s In The Box?
The Kingdra ex-Special Illustration Collection is another fantastic addition that we love. This collection adds artistic flair to your deck while strengthening strategy with bench-damaging cards, making it a must-have for collectors.
Inside you’ll find stunning classic Japanese print artwork and powerful gameplay features from the Kingdra ex promo card, another full playset line out of the box with foil cards featuring Horsea and Seadra, codes for Pokémon TCG Live, alongside a set of five Shrouded Fable boosters. It’s nice to see those included as well.
Kingdra ex-Special Illustration Collection – What’s In The Box?
1 full-art foil promo card featuring Kingdra ex
2 foil cards featuring Horsea and Seadra
5 Shrouded Fable booster packs
A code card for Pokémon TCG Live
Our Favorites Pulls From Pokémon TCG: Scarlet and Violet—Shrouded Fable
Kingambit – Illustration Rare
Stats:
Type: Dark
HP: 180
Attacks:
[D] Dark Slice (50 damage)
[D][C][C] Night Slash (90 damage): Switch this Pokémon with one of your Benched Pokémon.
Rarity: Kingambit Illustration Rare is a literal Pocket Monster. With amazing-looking artwork and two devastating attacks, this card will be very sought after by both players and collectors!
How to Play: Once a player’s Pokémon has put at least 4 damage counters on an opponent’s Bench and active Pokémon, it’s time to bring Kingambit in. Even if there are one or two Pokémon left over under 140HP, Massive Rend will one-shot them.
Fezandipiti – Illustration Rare
Stats:
Type: Psychic
HP: 120
Attacks:
Ability: Adrena Pheromone – If this Pokémon has any [D] attached and is damaged by an attack, flip a coin. If heads, prevent that damage.
[P] Energy Feather (30 X damage): This attack does 30 damage for each Energy attached to this Pokémon.
Rarity: As an Illustration Rare, Fezandipiti is rare, and it is very playable in dark decks. Expect this one to attract buyers with cash on the hip!
How to Play: Fezandipiti offers a superb blend of offense and defense, making it invaluable in any dark deck. Start stacking Energy on this Pokémon as soon as it hits the Bench, bringing it in to clear out any hush HP active Pokémon with Switch or sacrificing energy for retreating. Make sure to have some Energy Retrievals on hand, just in case!
Pecharunt – Illustration Rare
Stats:
Type: Dark
HP: 80
Attacks:
Ability: Toxic Subjugation: As long as this Pokémon is in the Active Spot, put 5 more damage counters on your opponent’s Poisoned Pokémon during Pokémon Checkup.
[D][C] Poison Chain (10 damage) Your opponent’s Active Pokémon is now Poisoned. During your opponent’s next turn, that Pokémon can’t retreat.
Rarity: Although it can be found easily in Shrouded Fable Elite Trainer Boxes, Pecharunt’s ability is very powerful and can be used from the Bench. When in play, this Pokémon can cause 7 damage counters per Pokémon checkup, so there is no doubt this card will be seen in players’ decks quickly.
How to Play: Pecharunt is a fantastic Poisoner and can slow an opponent’s game from the Bench. Ideally, you should use another Pokémon to poison opponents and then use Pecharunt’s ability to enhance the poison. Using it alongside Garbador’s “Poisonous Puddle” ability from Rebel Clash would be a fantastic combination from a player’s Bench, allowing an active Pokémon to clean up!
Pecharunt EX
Stats:
Type: Psychic
HP: 190
Attacks:
Ability: Controlling Chains: Once during your turn, you may switch 1 of your Benched [D] Pokémon, except any Pecharunt ex, with your Active Pokémon. If you do, your new Active Pokémon is now Poisoned. You can’t use more than 1
Controlling Chains Ability each turn.
[D][D] Irritating Burst: 60x damage. This attack does 60 damage for each Prize card your opponent has taken.
Rarity: Pecharunt EX is a rare and powerful card, although not as much as its full-art variant. It’s also extremely playable, so it’s likely to be in high demand!
How to Play: Using Pecharunt EX alongside any Loyal Three EX is a winning combination and allows for switching of Dark types once a turn with no retreat cost. In our opinion, this can really slow down opponents, saving Pecharunt EX when you are low on Prize Cards to devastate an opponent’s active Pokémon.
Where to Preorder Pokémon TCG: Scarlet and Violet—Shrouded Fable
Shrouded Fable is busting out all of the usual box sets and booster bundles, this time centered around the Loyal Three of Kitakami, Okidogi, Munkidori and Fezandipiti.
They’ll all be getting EX cards alongside the malicious Pecharunt, looking to shove its cursed Moochi treats into the face of any human or Pokémon it can. Here are all the details you need to secure the your preorders for Pokémon TCG: Scarlet and Violet—Shrouded Fable, releasing on August 8.
We’re always watching the latest Pokémon deals here on IGN, not to mention giving our readers early previews of upcoming sets such as Twilight Masquerade. Stick with IGN for everything Pokémon TCG for the latest.
Christian Wait is a UK-based freelancer for IGN, you can follow him @ChrisReggieWait on Twitter/X.
Elden Ring developer FromSoftware has released update 1.13 for the game following a period of server maintenance across all platforms.
This second post-Shadow of the Erdtree patch, live now on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X and S, follows early July’s 1.12.3 update, which tweaked the Golden Hippopotamus fight, among other things.
Publisher Bandia Namco released the 1.13 patch notes, and there are a few changes worth highlighting. For example, fans are getting excited about this quality-of-life change:
“Changed the default selection of the OK / CANCEL prompt that shows up when using the ‘Spectral Steed Whistle’ while the spectral steed is dead. The default selection position is now OK.”
However, localisation staff removed from the credits are still yet to be added in. The patch notes say:
“In update 1.12, an error was included in the credits of the game. This issue will be corrected in the next update.”
IGN’s Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree review returned a 10/10. We said: “Like the base game did before it, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree raises the bar for single-player DLC expansions. It takes everything that made the base game such a landmark RPG, condenses it into a relatively compact 20-25 hour campaign, and provides fantastic new challenges for heavily invested fans to chew on.”
Elden Ring update 1.13 patch notes:
PvP-exclusive balance adjustments
Equipment
Increased poise damage of normal attacks for the following weapon types: Light Great Swords / Backhand Blades / Hand-to-Hand Arts / Beast Claws
Increased poise damage of dual wield attacks for the following weapon types: Straight Swords / Thrusting Swords / Curved Swords / Katanas / Spears / Whips / Fists / Claws
Increased poise damage of the Claws of Night throwing attacks.
Decreased the backstep invulnerability window when the Fine Crucible Feather Talisman or the Talisman of All Crucibles are equipped.
Skills
Savage Lion’s Claw
The second hit of the follow-up attack is now easier to land.
Decreased damage animation of the first attack against other players.
Raging Beast
Decreased invulnerability window against other players’ attacks.
Blind Spot
Decreased invulnerability window against other players’ attacks.
Palm Blast
Decreased poise amount generated when charging this skill.
Spell and Incantations
Miriam’s Vanishing
Decreased invulnerability window against other players’ attacks.
Knight’s Lightning Spear
Increased attack power of the initial lightning spear.
Decreased attack power of the spears launched after the first one.
Decreased poise damage of all spears generated by this spell.
General balance adjustments
Increased damage animation of the Light Greatsword charge attacks against enemies (other than players).
Increased the stats & status of the following NPCs that can be summoned in some areas:
Increased attack power and poise damage of the first attack.
Swift Slash
Reduced movement distance when using this skill
Extended recovery time.
Overhead Stance
Increased attack power against enemies (other than players).
Aspects of the Crucible: Wings
Increased attack power.
Increased directional control, as well as amount of poised generated when using this skill.
Lightspeed Slash
The additional light attacks are now affected by the attack power and ability scaling of the weapon.
Rancor Slash
Increased attack power of the vengeful spirits.
Increased stamina damage against guarding enemies.
Revenger’s Blade
Increased directional control for follow up attacks after a strong attack.
Horn Calling
Increased attack power against enemies (other than players).
Horn Calling: Storm
Increased attack power against enemies (other than players).
Weed Cutter
Increased the speed of attacks.
Romina’s Purification
Increased poise value when using this skill.
Red Bear Hunt
Increased attack power.
Increased poise value when using this skill.
Rancor Shot
Decreased status buildup generation when used with Arrows that have status effects.
Repeating Fire
Adjusted attack power to compensate for increase in weapon damage
Feeble Lord’s Frenzied Flame
Reduced Frenzy status effect buildup against enemies.
Revenge of the Night
Increased poise damage and attack power when this skill is used immediately after guarding against an enemy attack.
Spell
Glintblade Trio
Increased attack power.
Blades of Stone
Adjusted attack power of the first, second and third charge attacks.
Increased attack power of the non-charged attack.
Increased attack power of the first hit of the charged attack, and reduced attack power of the second and third hits.
Increased attack range and attack speed.
Glintstone Nail
Increased attack power and improved enemy tracking.
Glintstone Nails
Increased attack power and improved enemy tracking.
Impenetrable Thorns
All generated Impenetrable Thorns will now track enemies.
Decreased attack power and poise damage.
Decreased the Hemorrhage status buildup and stamina damage against guarding enemies.
Rings of Spectral Light
Increased attack power and Frostbite status buildup.
Vortex of Putrescence
Increased attack power and Frostbite status buildup.
Incantation
Minor Erdtree
Increased HP recovery amount.
Land of Shadow
Improved enemy tracking.
Spira
Increased attack speed.
Watchful Spirit
Improved enemy tracking.
Divine Beast Tornado
Increased attack power.
Enemies hit by the tornado will now be launched upwards.
The tornado will be less likely to disappear due to collision with the terrain.
Rain of Fire
Increased attack power.
Reduced the interval between each hit.
Roar of Rugalea
Increased poise damage and attack power.
Furious Blade of Ansbach
Increased attack power.
Rotten Butterflies
Increased Scarlet Rot status buildup.
Reduced the interval between damage ticks.
Increased attack range.
Ash
Wandering Noble
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Noble Sorcerer
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Nomad Ashes
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Putrid Corse
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Skeletal Militiaman
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Skeletal Bandit
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Albinauric
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Winged Misbegotten
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Demi-Human
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Clayman
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Oracle Envoys
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Man-Fly
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Lone Wolf Ashes
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Rotten Stray Ashes
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Giant Rat Ashes
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Warhawk
Increased HP, physical attack power and Fire attack power.
Increased Stance status.
Land Squirt
Increased HP.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Spirit jellyfish
Increased HP, physical attack power and poison status ailment buildup on enemies.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Spider Scorpion
Increased physical attack power, poison status ailment buildup on enemies and damage negation except for strike and fire attributes.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Fingercreeper
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Fanged Imp
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Bigmouth Imp
Increased HP and Fire attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Gravebird
Increased HP and magic attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Soldjar of Fortune
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Archers
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Greatshield Soldiers
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Page
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Vulgar Militia
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Marionette Soldier
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Avionette Soldier
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Kaiden Mercenary
Increased HP and physical attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Mad Pumpkin Head
Increased physical attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Fire Monks
Increased HP and Fire attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Ancestral Follower
Increased physical attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Horned Warrior
Increased HP and damage negation except for pierce attacks.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Azula Beastman
Increased HP and lightning attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Man-Serpent
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Crystalian
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Increased physical attack power.
Kindred of Rot
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Bloodfiend Hexer’s
Increased hemorrhage status ailment buildup on enemies.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Glintstone sorcerer
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Twinsage Sorcerer
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Inquisitor
Increased HP.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Godrick Soldier
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Raya Lucaria Soldier
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Leyndell Soldier
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Radahn Soldier
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Haligtree Soldier
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Mausoleum Soldier
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Messmer Soldier
Increased Hp and physical attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Stormhawk Deenh
Increased HP and physical attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Increased duration of effect to increase the attack power given to allies.
Banished Knight Oleg
Increased physical attack power and damage negation against physical attacks.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Banished Knight Engval
Increased physical attack power and damage negation against physical attacks.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Bloodhound Knight Floh
Increased HP, physical attack power and damage negation against physical attacks.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Black Knight Captain Huw
Increased physical attack power and damage negation against physical attacks.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Black Knight Commander Andreas
Increased damage negation and guard boost against Holy and Physical attacks.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Fire Knight Hilde
Increased Fire attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Fire Knight Queelign
Increased Vigor and Faith.
Swordhand of Night Jolán
Increased Vigor and Dexterity.
Jolán and Anna
Increased Vigor and Dexterity.
Battlemage Hugues
Increased physical attack power and magic attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Latenna the Albinauric
Increased HP, physical attack power, and magic attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Perfumer Tricia
Increased HP.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Depraved Perfumer Carmaan
Increased fire attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Omenkiller Rollo
Increased HP, physical attack power, and Fire attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Blackflame Monk Amon
Increased HP and Fire attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Curseblade Meera
Increased HP and physical attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Demi-Human Swordsman Yosh
Increased HP, physical attack power, and magic attack power.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Ancient Dragon Knight Kristoff
Increased Lightning attack power and damage negation against Physical, Lightning, and Holy Attack affinities.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Redmane Knight Ogha
Increased physical attack power and damage negation against Physical and Fire attack affinities.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Lhutel the Headless
Increased physical attack power and damage negation against physical attacks.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Cleanrot Knight Finlay
Increased physical attack power and damage negation against Physical, Magic, and Holy Attack affinities.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Black Knife Tiche
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Divine Bird Warrior Ornis
Increased HP and damage negation against Physical attacks except Pierce attacks.
Will no longer stagger as easily.
Ancient Dragon Florissax
Increased Arcane.
Increased damage negation against all affinities.
Increased Skills and Incantations usage rate.
Increased the speed and poise values during some attacks.
Finger Maiden Therolina Puppet
Increased Vigor and Faith.
Jarwight Puppet
Increased Vigor.
Dolores the Sleeping Arrow Puppet
Increased Vigor.
Nepheli Loux Puppet
Increased Vigor and Strength.
Dung Eater Puppet
Increased Vigor.
Nightmaiden & Swordstress
Increased HP and physical attack power.
Bug Fixes
Changed the default selection of the OK / CANCEL prompt that shows up when using the “Spectral Steed Whistle” while the spectral steed is dead. The default selection position is now OK.
Adjusted the placement of NPC summon signs in certain boss fight areas.
Changed the NPC summon signs in certain boss fights to allow the user to summon NPCs simply by pressing the action button once.
Fixed a bug where the damage of some normal attacks of the Dark Moon Greatsword were lower than intended.
Fixed the physical attack attribute menu display of the “Warpick” weapon.
Fixed a bug where some attacks of the “Swift Spear” weapon were different than expected in terms of power, damage motion and hitbox generation timing.
Fixed a bug that prevented the “Twinblade Talisman” from affecting the Perfume Bottles weapon type when equipped and used in the left hand.
Fixed a bug where the physical attack attributes of some attacks of the Thrusting Shields weapon type were different than expected.
Fixed a bug that allowed the use of Arrows / Great Arrows / Bolts / Great Bolts that should not be usable for the following weapon types: Light Bows / Long Bows / Greatbows / Crossbows / Ballistas
Fixed a bug where the effect of increasing the power of the Incantation “Light of Miquella” of the “Circlet of Light” helmet was not applied correctly.
Fixed a bug that caused FP consumption when using the “Unending Dance” Skill while not meeting the ability requirements of the weapon “Dancing Blade of Ranah”.
Fixed a bug where the physical attack attribute of some attacks of the “Deadly Dance” Skill was different than expected.
Fixed a bug where the physical attack attribute of the “Scattershot Throw” Skill of the “Claws of Night” weapon was different than expected.
Fixed a bug where the following Skills did not change correctly when performed with or without FP.
Dynastic Sickleplay / Raging Beast / Repeating Crossbow Fire
Fixed a bug where a different Rage Art was sometimes performed when following up with a strong attack after using the “Raging Beast” and “Dynasty Sickleplay” Skills.
Fixed a bug that caused certain Skills to perform differently than expected under certain circumstances.
Fixed a bug that prevented some Spells / Incantations that can be used in the air from being used in the air under some conditions.
Fixed a bug that caused the “Golden Arcs” Incantation to generate attacks slower when cast with the left hand.
Fixed a bug where the “Rain of Fire” Incantation sometimes did not hit enemies.
Fixed a bug where the “Furious Blade of Ansbach” Incantation did not apply Hemorrhage status build up.
Fixed a bug where under some circumstances, the move distance when casting some Spells / Incantations was different than expected.
Fixed a bug that sometimes interrupted the cast of the “Roar of Rugalea” Incantation.
Fixed a bug where the “Cherishing Fingers” magic attack sometimes did not hit.
Fixed a bug in the behavior of the Mimic Tear spirit when casting Spells, Incantations and Skills.
Fixed a bug where NPCs could be summoned when the maximum number of cooperative multiplayer members had been reached.
Fixed a bug that caused some items to display different icons than expected.
Fixed a bug where exiting the game or going through a loading screen immediately after defeating “Count Ymir, Mother of Fingers” could make the dropped items unobtainable.
Fixed a bug that prevented the player from performing Critical hits on some enemies.
Fixed a bug in which some attacks on certain enemies were interpreted differently than expected.
Fixed a bug that prevented rune gains when defeating some enemies.
Fixed a bug that prevented some enemies from working properly under certain circumstances.
Fixed a bug where the Multiplayer area borders were different than intended in some areas.
Fixed a bug where the player would spawn in a different place than intended when invading another player’s world
Fixed a bug in the map menu that caused some NPC icons in the Realm of Shadow to not display properly.
Fixed a bug in the design of the map of Realm of Shadow and the “Map Fragment” icon.
Fixed a bug where some cutscenes were not displayed correctly under certain circumstances.
Fixed a bug where some sound effects did not play correctly.
Fixed a bug where some effects were not displayed correctly.
Several performance improvements and other bug fixes.
Steam-only adjustments
Fixed a bug where “Anti-aliasing Quality” was unintentionally set to “High” each time the game was restarted.
Correction of end credits
In update 1.12, an error was included in the credits of the game.
This issue will be corrected in the next update.
Possible unstable performance fixes
For the PS5 version of the game, unstable framerate may be improved by using the “Rebuild Database” option from the device’s safe mode.
In some PC versions, Ray Tracing may be unintentionally enabled and cause unstable performance. Please check the Ray Tracing setting in the “System” > “Graphics ” > “Ray Tracing Quality” from the title screen or in-game menu.
In the PC version, the message “Inappropriate activity detected” may appear without cheating.
To fix this issue, please verify the integrity of the game’s files before restarting the game.
App Ver. 1.13 Regulation Ver. 1.13.1
In PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S versions, Regulation files can be downloaded by logging in to the server.
If the Regulation Ver. listed in the lower right corner of the title screen is not1.13.1, please select LOGIN and apply the latest regulation before enjoying the game.
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.
Buying new video games, hardware, and accessories for your preferred console doesn’t need to make a massive dent in your wallet. Deals happen all the time for items like these, so you can save money while investing in your favorite hobby. Some of our favorite deals at the moment are on this 3 month Xbox Game Pass Ultimate membership, which is down to $45 at Amazon, and this incredible all-time low discount on the PSVR 2 (down to $349), but there are plenty more to check out. Whether you play on PS5, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, or PC, you’ll find the very best deals listed below. And if you’ve taken advantage of lots of these deals, see our roundup of game storage ideas.
If all you want is the hardware itself, you can pick up this bundle that includes the headset, two PSVR 2 Sense controllers, and all the cables you need to play. This is a terrific deal, landing it at $150 less than the price of Meta Quest 3 (see at Amazon).
PSVR2 Horizon Call of the Mountain Bundle for $399.99 (was $600)
The bundle that includes the PSVR2 hardware, along with the flagship title Horizon Call of the Mountain, is also on sale. It costs $50 more than the non-bundle (and is probably worth picking up, imo; check out our Horizon Call of the Mountain review for details).
Best Xbox Game Pass Deals
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate has been discounted at Amazon, providing another opportunity for users to stack their membership at a discounted rate. Amazon has three-month memberships discounted to $45, which is well worth taking advantage of.
Score a Nintendo Switch Lite with Animal Crossing for $159
Walmart still has this excellent deal available, which is worth taking advantage of if you’ve been hoping to get your hands on a Switch console. Right now, you can grab a Nintendo Switch Lite (Timmy & Tommy’s Aloha Edition) bundle with Animal Crossing for 20% off, marking it down to $159.
PS5 Slim Consoles on Sale (Save $50)
Sony’s Back to School Sale on several of their PlayStation products even includes the consoles. The PS5 Slim Disc Edition has dropped to $449.99 from its $500 MSRP and the PS5 Slim Digital Edition has dropped to $339.99 from its $450 MSRP. These deals will all expire on August 3.
There are plenty of excellent deals for PC players to enjoy right now, from newer releases like Dragon’s Dogma 2 to God of War Ragnarok preorders for PC. More importantly, you can also score an excellent deal at Fanatical right now on Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree expansion. There’s no better time to journey to the Realm of Shadow. You can check out even more of our favorite PC game deals below.
Do you prefer to play on a dedicated tower? Navigating the options online can be quite the ordeal. Desk space, portability, and price point are often factors in the decision. However, there are some great PC deals that pop up every now and again that are worth jumping on. One of our favorite deals at the moment is on this Alienware RTX 4070 SUPER Gaming PC, which is available for $1499.99. To see even more PC deals, check out our roundup of the best gaming PC deals.
SSD prices have been rising in 2024, making now the perfect time to buy with significant discounts available. This is one of the best deals on a 2TB SSD post-Prime Day: Amazon is offering the TEAMGROUP MP44Q 2TB SSD for just $104.99. It, unfortunately, does not have a heatsink so you’ll have to invest in one, but you can easily do that here for under $10. It also offers transfer speeds of up to 7,400MB/s read and 6,500MB/s write.
Our Favorite Micro SD Cards for Switch and Steam Deck Are On Sale
The best Switch or Steam Deck SD card should be fast, reliable, and as future-proof as possible. That last one is important, as it was recently revealed a Switch successor will be announced within the fiscal year. Therefore, you’re going to want to opt for the latest in SD card tech, which is a micro SDXC UHS-I U3 A2 V30 memory card. That’s a lot of random letters, so to save you a bit of time we’ve left our top suggestions and deals just below for your convenience. To see even more SD card deals, make sure to check out our roundup of the best SD card deals.
More SD Card Deals
Our Favorite Power Bank for Steam Deck is Discounted Right Now
Some excellent power banks are discounted at the moment that are perfectly portable and packing plenty of power to keep you going. In particular, the fantastic Anker 737 Power Bank is down to $109.99. This is a great discount on a reliable power bank that likely won’t last long, so grab it at this price while you can!
Select Xbox Controllers Down to $44
There are quite a few discounts on Xbox controllers right now at Amazon. While not as low as they were during the two-day Prime Day sale event, they’re still worth picking up at these prices. The Robot White, Shock Blue, Velocity Green, and Carbon Black controllers have dropped down to $44, but you can see even more controller deals below.
Pop into the Call of Duty subreddit on any given day, and you’re almost certainly going to trip over a few people complaining about SBMM, or skill-based matchmaking, and how it’s ruining Call of Duty. But according to a recent study by developer Activision, getting rid of SBMM would be far, far worse for the game as a whole, and it’s got the data to prove it.
In a 25-page white paper published last week, Activision reveals that it actually conducted an experiment in 2023’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 where it reduced SBMM for some of its players, resulting in more players quitting games or not coming back to the game for more sessions.
Matches Made in…Heaven?
Currently, Activision says the way matchmaking works in Call of Duty is by taking into account a number of factors. Top priority is player connection quality and the time it takes to enter a match, but other factors including skill, platform, recent maps and modes, and other things are considered too. And skill itself is a complex equation that takes into account individual match total kills, kill/death ratios, and kills/deaths by enemy ratios (to ensure players can’t drop their skill levels on purpose by self-killing). Skill levels are recalculated after every match, and Activision says it’s constantly trying to find a happy balance of ensuring players aren’t seeing wild swings in where the game thinks they’re at, but also to adjust quickly if a player’s having an off day or trying out a new loadout. In short, it’s skill calculations and matchmaking are finnicky processes, but Activision is doing the best it can.
In the study earlier this year, Activision ran a “deprioritize skill test” where the developers decreased skill’s importance in matchmaking in the algorithm, but did not shut it off entirely. It ran the test for 50% of its North American playerbase for a two-week period in early 2024, and the results are… pretty conclusive!
In Figure 3 we can observe the percent difference in the number of players returning after 14 days between the treatment and control groups. With deprioritized skill, returning player rate was down significantly for 90% of players. The 10% of highest skilled players came back in increased numbers, but in aggregate, we see meaningfully fewer players coming back to the game. This effect may appear small, but this change was observable within the duration of the test. This will compound over time, just like interest, and will have a meaningful impact on our player population. This is a concern for all players, including the top 10%, as if this pattern is allowed to continue, players will exit the game in increased numbers. Eventually a top 10% player will become a top 20% player, and eventually a top 30% player, until only the very best players remain playing the game. Those original top players will become increasingly likely to not return to the game. Ultimately, this will result in a worse experience for all players, as there will be fewer and fewer players available to play with.
While single-digit percentages might not seem like a lot, given the sheer volume of participants over a relatively short period of time, this is a fairly significant difference in drop-off. What’s more, Activision expects that based on other studies it has done over time, this would compound. If left unchecked, the lowest-skilled players would disappear at higher rates, meaning only players of higher skill levels would remain. Maybe that sounds great for the higher-skilled players, but in the smaller pool of players, those who had previously been mid-level would now be the lowest-skilled, and would themselves start to drop off at higher rates. Basically, it’s bad news for player retention all around, and retention is necessary to keep an online game alive.
Skill Issues
The paper details other data as well, including a similar survey where Activision tightened the skill constraints in matchmaking and saw inverse results: higher-skilled players dropped off at higher rates, but lower-skilled players stuck around more frequently. It also saw a higher rate of “blowouts” (when one team wins a match with a significantly higher score than the losing team) when skill was deprioritized, which players find less fun, and lower kill-per-minute rates with lower-skilled players. Basically, when SSBM was turned down low, the vast majority of players had less fun, and didn’t come back to play the game more as frequently as when SSBM was on.
In response, players have expressed skepticism about the study. Some point out that the algorithm is too aggressive and shouldn’t recalculate skill after every single game, while others point out that a matchmaking system based on wins/losses would be better than the numerical system Activision uses. It’s a controversial subject, one that online gamers and Call of Duty players in particular have been debating for years. Much of it boils down to, it’s fun to win and less fun to lose, and losing a lot feels exceptionally bad. Should players who are very good at the game be rewarded by being allowed to win a lot against random pools of players, or should games like Call of Duty try to balance the experience by pitting players against others of relatively equal skill so everyone wins and loses a roughly equal amount over time? Activision, at any rate, is erring on the side of keeping more players playing Call of Duty for longer.
In our review, we gave Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3’s multiplayer a 6/10, saying it “reheats and reserves the same multiplayer from Modern Warfare 2 with some extra maps and tweaks as garnishes.” And Activision just dropped its Season 5 update last week, with a long list of balance change and improvements for that multiplayer mode.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
