Daily Deals: Complete Harry Potter Book Series for $38

Welcome to IGN’s Daily Deals, your source for the best deals on the stuff you actually want to buy. If you buy something through this post, IGN may get a share of the sale. For more, read our Terms of Use.

dealsharry

Complete Harry Potter Book Series for $38.04

All seven books wrapped up neatly in a fancy special boxed set. Includes several bookmarks and matching art styles across all book covers. This is the lowest this set has ever been on Amazon. Use the promo code NOVBOOK18 for a $5 discount.

Continue reading…

Red Dead Online’s Beta Is Missing What Makes RDR 2 Great

A month after Red Dead Redemption 2 first released, its online multiplayer portion is now in beta. Red Dead Online borrows from both GTA Online as well as the multiplayer portions of the original Red Dead Redemption and incorporates RDR 2’s massive open world, with all its fine details and mechanics. But Red Dead Online lacks what made that vast, slow, meticulous world work, and as a result it leaves the weakest parts of it painfully exposed.

Red Dead Redemption 2–the single-player experience–is not concerned with your priorities. There are plenty of side distractions, and a few details will change here and there depending on your honor, but there are some missions you just can’t roleplay–you’re locked into one playstyle or one outcome. That can be frustrating in the moment, but it’s also a brilliant narrative device, one that gives you deeper insight into Arthur and his own struggle between what he wants to be and what he is. The fight against the game’s guiding hand is what gives the story its impact; you have to be a little tired of Red Dead Redemption 2 to fully appreciate what it’s trying to do narratively.

Gallery image 1Gallery image 2Gallery image 3Gallery image 4Gallery image 5Gallery image 6Gallery image 7Gallery image 8

All that is to say Red Dead Redemption 2 is not what I’d call “fun.” In single-player, that’s a good thing. But in Red Dead Online, the things that don’t always feel good to play–the need to eat and sleep, the limited fast travel options, the often clumsy gunplay–have nothing to anchor them. There’s a small amount of story content at the moment, but nothing so engaging and personal as to give you a purpose in this world. The purpose, it seems, is either to kill or be killed, and frequently, though there doesn’t seem to be much of a reason to kill another player except to create chaos.

Currently, it’s difficult to achieve anything or get anywhere without being killed, disconnected from the server, or both. But even when you do get to play the game, it feels dated. Your character is understandably silent, and NPCs even acknowledge it, commenting often on your reticence. But the disconnect between your character and the rest of the world is pronounced. A solo mission given by Red Dead Redemption’s Bonnie MacFarlane, for example, involves a brief cutscene to give context, and then you’re tasked with the chore of locating and returning a cart of hers. When you return with the cart, there’s nothing–no cutscene, no acknowledgment from Bonnie at all. Just a pop-up with your slim reward.

Competitive multiplayer fares a little better. The snappy auto-aim is useful and gives some modes a looser, more fun feel, despite the clumsy gunplay, and getting headshots still takes skill. But movement is also clumsy, and it drags down the head-to-head modes. Accidentally ambling over rocks or struggling to mantle over a wall during a gunfight grinds everything to a halt, and the frustration is hard to shake.

Red Dead Redemption 2 as a whole is a lonely game filled with things to do. In single-player, riding alone through the plains and looking up at an enormous, open sky is powerful. In Red Dead Online, your emotional connection to the world and its inhabitants is missing entirely. There’s also a lack of content in general–you can wrap up the story missions in a number of hours, and after that, you’re left mainly to scrounge for money and wander aimlessly. In its current form, there’s nothing about Red Dead Online that makes me want to keep playing. It just makes me want to go back to Arthur’s story.

No Caption Provided

As much as I like Red Dead Redemption 2, I would be more compelled to play Red Dead Online if it shedded the single-player’s more belabored mechanics and opted for a faster, looser approach to the Wild West. The multiplayer experience would be better as a Western playground in earnest, rather than the blend of slow, solitary activities with potentially fun multiplayer chaos that it currently is. If GTA Online is any indication, there’s a lot of potential for Rockstar to iterate upon and expand Red Dead Online, both in the amount of content available and the nature of that content. But for now, I’ll stick with Arthur and the gang.

Monster Hunter World Winter Event Now Live On PS4, Xbox One, And PC

A new seasonal event has begun in Monster Hunter World. The Winter Star Fest is now underway on PS4, Xbox One, and PC, bringing an assortment of new and returning Event Quests, as well as new winter-themed armor and other content, to the game for a limited time.

During the event, the Gathering Hub is decorated with ornaments, tinsel, and other wintry decorations. You’ll receive two Lucky Vouchers as part of your daily login bonus rather than the usual one. Capcom is also giving players one free Winter Star Ticket.

Winter Star Tickets can also be earned by completing daily limited bounties; if you collect enough of them, you’ll be able to forge the new Santa-themed Orion α and Orion armor, pictured below. You’ll also be able to exchange the Winter Star Tickets for a snowman armor set for your Palico, and a new Event Quest–Timberland Troublemakers–will reward you with Bristly Crake Tickets which can be used to make the ridiculous-looking Bristly Pincushion hammer.

No Caption ProvidedGallery image 1Gallery image 2

On top of that, Capcom says “almost all” previous Event Quests, including those that were exclusive to the Summer Twilight Fest event, will return, giving you another chance to craft the Wiggler helm and other items. You can find the full event schedule on the official Monster Hunter World website.

Finally, all facilities will hold sales on in-game items throughout the Winter Star Fest, and a new seasonal platter is available in the Gathering Hub. Capcom has also added new winter coats for both the Handler and your Poogie. The Winter Star Fest is scheduled to run through December 17.