Activision Blizzard has announced it has hired Julie Hodges from The Walt Disney Company to become the new Chief People Officer and help “build a more inclusive workplace.” Hodges hiring comes as Activision Blizzard continues to confront the fallout of an ongoing gender discrimination lawsuit from the state of California.
Hodges was previously senior vice president of corporate HR, compensation, benefits, and talent acquisition at The Walt Disney Company. According to a press release provided by Activision Blizzard, Hodges was responsible for helping shape corporate culture at Disney.
Hodges will oversee all aspects of human resources “including diversity, equity and inclusion, talent acquisition, employee experience, learning and development, compensation, and benefits and workplace planning,” at Activision Blizzard.
Hodges was hired alongside Delta Airlines’ Sandeep Dube who will serve as the new Chief Commercial Officer, a revenue role.
Hodges will replace Claudine Naughton who is the former Chief People Officer.
The company’s former HR executive, Jesse Meschuk also left in August 2021alongside president J. Allen Brack. Meschuk left following a lawsuit by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing which accused the video game developer of systemically discriminating against women employees in regards to salaries and promotions. Furthermore, Activision Blizzard was accused of fostering a work environment where female employees were sexually harassed.
The lawsuit claims Activision Blizzard’s human resources department was complicit in this workplace and employees were discouraged from reporting to human resources as they “were known to be close to alleged harassers.” An HR employee at Blizzard was pictured in the “Cosby Suite,” photograph.
In a statement, Activision Blizzard’s incoming chief people officer says, “I share the company’s belief that a work environment should welcome all perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds.”
“A workforce where everyone feels valued is critical to the success of our business, as is a trusting, engaging, and safe environment that encourages creativity and innovation and in which all employees can thrive,” says Hodges. “It takes a collective effort to do this, and I’m looking forward to ensuring that we support the diversity of our talent to bring our people together and continue creating amazing entertainment.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story suggested Hodges replaced HR executive Jesse Meschuk. Hodges will be replacing Activision Blizzard’s former Chief People Officer Claudine Naughton who is leaving the company. The story has been edited to reflec this.
Matt T.M. Kim is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.
At a glance, Deathloop, Arkane’s newest game, might seem like its past work on Dishonored and Prey, but Deathloop also introduces new wrinkles to familiar roguelite and first-person shooter elements that might initially be challenging to wrap your head around. Here are the 9 tips we wish we knew before diving into the Groundhog Days of Blackreef.
At a glance, Deathloop, the newest game from Dishonored and Prey developer Arkane, might seem like its past work on Dishonored and Prey. You get an array of varied weapons, a handful of creative powers, and the ability to use them in experimentative and inventive ways to progress. And that’s true, but Deathloop also introduces new wrinkles to familiar roguelite and first-person shooter elements that might initially be challenging to wrap your head around. Fret not, though, as we’ve collected some of the lessons we wish we knew before diving into the Groundhog Days of Blackreef.
From the best early game abilities, to how to navigate Blackreef thoroughly and efficiently, as well as why you should be taking on Julianna at every chance you get, the above video walks you through 9 essential tips to help you survive the island of Blackreef, and take out any Visionary or Eternalist who stands in your way.
Deathloop is available now for PlayStation 5 and PC. GameSpot awarded it a 10/10, with reviewer Tamoor Hussain writing that “it delivers bombastic thrills and wince-inducing kills with intelligence and elegance in equal measure.” Check out the full review on GameSpot.com, or watch it on YouTube.com/GameSpot.
The last-gen versions of Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One have been delayed, with the Xbox Series X|S, PS5, and PC versions all still set to launch this fall. Developer Frogwares said the decision to delay the Xbox One and PS4 versions of Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One came from extensive QA testing of the last-gen versions.
“We understand some players will be upset about this news, but we made the decision with you first in mind. Rest assured, we are not canceling these versions,” Frogwares communications manager Sergey Oganesyan said. “We only need more time and a little breathing room for our team to wrap these up properly. We are talking a few weeks at most, but this is still to be seen.”
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Frogwares plans to reveal the release date for Xbox Series X|S, PS5, and PC versions of Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One on Thursday along with a new gameplay deep dive. Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One takes place on the fictional island of Cordona, where Sherlock and his friend Jon grew up. They must return to solve the mysterious death of Sherlock’s mother.
The gameplay reveal trailer for Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One showed off the combat system of the game, with Sherlock using tricks and deception alongside guns. It also showed the investigations system, allowing players to connect different pieces of evidence and don disguises to stealthily uncover more.
The Kingpin has a decades-long history making life miserable for Daredevil and Spider-Man. But what happens when Wilson Fisk sets his sights higher? Can this ruthless crime boss take on the combined might of Spidey, the Fantastic Four, the Avengers and two Daredevils? That’s what we’re about to find out in the upcoming limited series Devil’s Reign.
IGN can exclusively debut a new preview of Devil’s Reign #1, which features writer Chip Zdarsky and artist Marco Checchetto building on the backbone of their ongoing Daredevil series. Check out the new images in the slideshow gallery below, and read on to see Zdarsky tease what’s coming and why Devil’s Reign isn’t really a Daredevil story at all.
Zdarsky has made waves with his Daredevil run several times already. For example, in issue #1, a weary Matt Murdock committed manslaughter, and later in issue #26, Elektra took up the mantle of Daredevil after Matt turned himself over to the police. In Devil’s Reign, Matt is now free again and sharing the mantle with Elektra. But with Wilson Fisk more powerful than ever, both devils will need a lot of friends to survive the coming days.
Zdarksy revealed that Devil’s Reign isn’t a Daredevil story so much as it is the culmination of Fisk’s recent journey in the Marvel Universe. Since becoming the duly elected mayor of New York City, Fisk has been quietly amassing both political power and an underground army of supervillains. Now, he’s ready to use both in order to rid the city of its costumed vigilante problem.
“From the beginning I had Fisk’s catalyst figured out, the thing that propels him to, well, lose it,” Zdarsky told IGN. “But the fallout and what it meant for New York was something I worked on in the background as the series went along.”
Zdarsky continued, “Part of what shaped the story is the fact that, when I pitched the Daredevil storyline to the Marvel editors and writers, the feedback kept making it bigger. Like, originally it was a big Daredevil story, and then it was suggested we make it a mini event and then when I submitted the first outline it became clear this is much bigger than Daredevil and the street-level heroes, so it got the green light as a big ol’ event!”
Devil’s Reign features a wide cast of New York-based heroes, including the Ben Reilly version of Spider-Man and members of both the Fantastic Four and Avengers. That might seem like an impossible force for a non-superhuman like Fisk, but Zdarsky teases the Kingpin has more than a few aces up his oversized sleeve. For one thing, he’ll be spearheading the newest incarnation of the Thunderbolts as a source of added muscle. For another, he’ll be fighting the heroes in the court of public opinion, bringing to mind Marvel’s more politically topical crossovers like Civil War and Dark Reign.
“He’s trying to sway the public using cherry-picked examples of various incidents, Matt’s recent troubles being one of them,” Zdarsky said. “He’s a politician and he’s actually pretty good at it, which is a problem for our heroes. But, beyond that, he has some aces up his sleeves that are definitely not about politics.”
Zdarsky continued, “What makes Fisk an elevated threat is his mind, not his fists. That’s always been the case. Sure, Thor could turn him into paste, but Fisk knows that and has planned for it. And Marvel superheroes aren’t about to overthrow democracy.”
Naturally, with so many heroes and villains involved in this conflict, Devil’s Reign is being treated as a full-fledged crossover event with tie-in issues and companion books. To date, December’s Spider-Woman #18 is the only confirmed tie-in issue, but it’s safe to expect plenty more Devil’s Reign content in early 2022. Though Zdarsky reassured fans the scope of the crossover won’t grow too large.
“There are tie-ins—it’s an event after all—but we’ve kept it tight. One of the things that’s been stressed in my calls with Marvel is that we want to make sure there are stories to tell here that really spring out of the event and what Fisk does. I’ve seen scripts for a couple of them so far and they’re fantastic.”
As the preview art reveals, Fisk’s real motive is his desire to finally uncover Daredevil’s secret identity. For those who might not have been following the monthly Daredevil series lately, Matt managed to make the entire Marvel Universe forget his secret. That includes Fisk, a man who once used that information to drive Daredevil over the edge in the iconic 1986 storyline Daredevil: Born Again.
Whether or not Fisk recovers his lost knowledge, Zdarsky stressed Devil’s Reign won’t be the end of his ongoing Daredevil saga.
“I have a much bigger story for Elektra and Matt on the other end of this! We now live in a world with two Daredevils, and they have plans,” he said. “And weirdly, they’re not the focus of Devil’s Reign. It’s Fisk’s story and Matt and Elektra are doing their best to save the city from him. They’ve made mistakes and those mistakes have caused this calamity. So, you know, classic Matt Murdock guilt.”
Devil’s Reign #1 will hit stores on December 1, with issue #2 following two weeks later on December 15.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto series is one of most well known and controversial across the gaming landscape. Known for its over-the-top violence and commentary on politics and pop culture, the series has grown and evolved over the years from a top-down 2D game to one of the biggest and most robust experiences that gaming has to offer. With Grand Theft Auto V set for release on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S in March 2022–following a recent delay out of 2021– and rumors of Grand Theft Auto 6 after that, we’re taking a look back at the series by highlighting the best GTA games. Below, we’ve ranked the Grand Theft Auto series from worst to best. Let’s dig in.
10. Grand Theft Auto
GTA
The game that started it all. Grand Theft Auto, which was developed by DMA Design before Rockstar was formed, was released in 1998 for PC. The gameplay involved hijacking cars and zipping around the city, causing as much mayhem as possible and then attempting to escape the law. The game was presented in a top-down perspective, something the series would move away from in later entries. While not exactly fondly remembered by critics, it sold well and its core ideas–being a criminal in an open world with the ability to go anywhere and do anything–proved to be popular with fans.
2005’s Liberty City Stories is a prequel to GTA III that was originally released for PSP, and it’s remembered for being the first 3D entry in the series for a portable console. Also set in Liberty City, Liberty City Stories was designed to take advantage of the PSP’s hardware. And in our review at the time, we said the game succeeded in factoring in “what made the ‘big’ GTA games so memorable.” The story follows a mobster named Tony Cipriani, who is trying to make a name for himself in the criminal underworld. The game continued the franchise’s tradition of non-linear, open-ended gameplay–and of course the prime directive being to shoot first and ask questions later. Overall, we said in our review that Liberty City Stories was a technical marvel for being able to include so much of the GTA console experience into a handheld package.
The long-awaited follow-up to GTA: San Andreas, 2008’s Grand Theft Auto IV is beloved by many upon its release for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It ushered in a new, more realistic presentation of Liberty City, which was modeled after New York City. The size and scale of the world was stunning, giving players even more freedom to explore on a bigger stage. The story followed the immigrant Nico Bellic and his troubles making his new life in America. Here at GameSpot, we scored GTA 4 a 10/10 and one of the best of 2008. In addition to its compelling campaign, GTA 4 laid the groundwork for GTA Online with its own multiplayer mode, letting players duke it out or work together in an online environment. This would go on to pay dividends with GTA Online enjoying runaway success years later. GTA 4 also introduced cover-based mechanics, another feature that Rockstar would employ again in Red Dead Redemption years later and GTA 5 after that. What’s more, GTA 4 moved the franchise forward by introducing new systems like allowing players to make choices that affected the story.
And who could forget the constant phone calls to go bowling. GTA 4 is also remembered fondly for its expansion packs, The Ballad of Gay Tony and The Lost and Damned, which were much loved. They were also representative of a bygone era, as the Rockstar of today tends to put a lot of its focus in online modes like GTA Online and Red Dead Online instead of opting for traditional expansion packs, much to the chagrin of some fans of the series.
2009’s GTA: Chinatown Wars represented a departure of sorts for Rockstar, as the Nintendo DS and later PSP game was the first since Vice City Stories designed specifically for portable devices. And with the DS specifically, the game made use of the system’s touchscreen and second screen to offer a presentation style and setup no previous game could. The game takes place once again in Liberty City, and puts you into the shoes of Huang Lee, a Triad gang member. The game also broke from tradition with its cel-shaded art style and its top-down perspective that harken back to the original days of GTA. Here at GameSpot we loved Chinatown Wars and praised it specifically for how it didn’t feel like a scaled-down portable version of GTA, but instead a game that felt meaningful and worthy, pushing the franchise forward with new features.
A prequel to Vice City, Vice City Stories debuted in 2006 for PSP before coming to PlayStation 2 the following year. Set in the year 1984 (two years before Vice City), the game follows the story of Victor “Vic” Vance and his efforts to develop a criminal empire in Vice City. Vice City Stories definitely improved upon some elements of Vice City–notably, it infused more personality, many critics said–and it offered players another fun romp with the freedom to cause mayhem. We said in our review at the time that Vice City Stories didn’t exactly take the GTA series into new territory, but it translated the trademark GTA experience nicely into a portable experience.
1999’s GTA II followed up the 1997 original and once again plopped players into a fictional city with the aim of causing the most havoc and mayhem possible. Presented from a top-down perspective, GTA II followed the same format as the original. Rockstar’s big focus on storytelling in modern times was not the same back then, and instead players were called on to live out the relatively basic fantasy of being a budding young criminal who wants nothing more than to commit wanton acts of violence and destruction. The visuals were improved in GTA II, making cars and other elements look better. The camera system was improved, too, and GTA II added a multiplayer mode that allowed up to six people to compete on maps designed specifically for multiplayer. GTA II would mark the end of an era of sorts for the franchise, with the series moving into a 3D open world with its subsequent releases.
2001’s Grand Theft Auto III represented a major shift for the series, which was still under development at DMA Design at the time. GTA III moved the series into a 3D world for the first time, following the 2D top-down perspectives of the earlier games. Set in a fictional version of New York City called Liberty City, GTA III was praised for pushing the series into an exciting new direction with its more ambitious open-world with non-linear gameplay. The game was massively influential and helped propel the gaming industry at large toward embracing non-linear open-ended sandbox games that have since become ubiquitous. In GTA 3, there was an astounding (for the time) variety and volume of activities to partake in, it had an excellent soundtrack including an original comedy channel called Chatterbox, and it marked the franchise’s first foray into using Hollywood talent for voice roles (Samuel L. Jackson and Michael Madsen are two of the stars that appeared in the game in voice parts).
Rockstar delayed the game by a few weeks due to the September 11 terrorist attacks and made some slight changes like changing the flight path of a plane so it didn’t look like it could crash into a building. One mission that referenced terrorism was also removed. We said in our original review that “GTA III reinvents the series, updates it for a new generation of consoles, and manages to keep every single positive aspect from the two previous games.”
Released just a year after GTA III, 2002’s Vice City took players back in time to 1986. Set in Vice City, which was modeled after Miami, the story focused on the misadventures of Tommy Verceitti, with its narrative making obvious nods to Scarface and the TV series Miami Vice. Rockstar Games improved upon the open-world, non-linear structure of GTA III in Vice City, expanding on features and systems in the earlier releases and introducing new abilities, items, and mechanics. We said at the time that Vice City was one of “most stylish and most enjoyable games ever released.” It remains one of only a few GTA games to set its story in the past, and many are wondering when Rockstar may return to a period setting for a new GTA game.
2004’s GTA: San Andreas ranks highly on our list because it was a groundbreaking open-world experience when it was released on PS2 and Xbox. Set in a massive open-world based on Los Angeles and other areas, the game puts you into the role of Carl “CJ” Johnson. GTA San Andreas improved upon earlier entries by doing away with loading screens between locations, introducing swimming to the mix, an RPG system of sorts where you put on weight when you eat and need to exercise to stay trim and for offering what was, at the time, a gorgeous world to explore filled with all manner of activities. In our review at the time, we said when a game tries to do many different things, it can become stretched thin, but San Andreas moves from strength to strength to create an especially powerful package overall. The characters and dialogue are smart and well-delivered, and the sound design was praised, too. Not everyone loved GTA San Andreas, though, as many may recall the discovery of the Hot Coffee mod that caused a stir with politicians like Hillary Clinton who pushed for an inquiry. San Andreas’ legacy would live on, with Rockstar electing to use the same setting for its most popular game in the series so far, GTA V.
Grand Theft Auto V makes the top of the list because it is the pinnacle of the series from a design, storytelling, and technical perspective. Released in 2013, the game has stood the test of time and remains immensely popular to this day, thanks in part to its GTA Online mode. The game’s narrative took a unique approach for the series by featuring three playable protagonists. Michael, Trevor, and Franklin each came from distinct backgrounds and offered their own unique perspectives and gameplay opportunities, which kept the experience fresh. And the stories tied together in what felt like a satisfying way in the end. Set in a fictional version of Los Angeles called Los Santos and the surrounding area known as Blaine County, GTA V dropped players into an expansive world teeming with life and things to do, places to explore, and people to meet.
The GTA Online mode is a treasure unto itself, offering a virtual playground with all manner of quests and activities to take part in such as heists, races, PvP, and countless other challenges. The phenomenon that is GTA V is set to continue in March 2022 on the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, where players can expect better visuals and an improved experience overall. When it’s released on those new platforms, it will be the third generation of consoles that the game has been released on, which is highly unusual but not surprising given the game remains a top-seller every month and has sold an astonishing 150 million copies to date.
Stand-up comedian Norm Macdonald has died at 61 after what had been, until this news, a private and ongoing nine-year battle with an undisclosed variety of cancer. The Canadian comic’s death was first announced by Deadline, which received a statement from a statement from Macdonald’s longtime producing partner and friend, Lori Jo Hoekstra.
“He was most proud of his comedy,” Hoekstra, who was with Macdonald when he died, said. “He never wanted the diagnosis to affect the way the audience or any of his loved ones saw him. Norm was a pure comic. He once wrote that ‘a joke should catch someone by surprise, it should never pander.’ He certainly never pandered. Norm will be missed terribly.”
Although Macdonald got his start as a writer on The Dennis Miller Show and the original Roseanne series, it was his gig as Weekend Update anchor on Saturday Night Live from 1993 until early 1998 that cemented his reputation and made him a household name. A singular talent with a deadpan wit and unparalleled strengths as a writer, Macdonald went from SNL to a memorable run of screwball movies (Dirty Work) and his own ABC sitcom in the late ’90s. For the decade, there was no greater career height for a comedian.
Macdonald also proved to be a popular, reliably hilarious, and always unpredictable guest on talk shows including Late Night with David Letterman, The Howard Stern Show, and Conan. One doesn’t have to search for long on YouTube to find clips of Macdonald effortlessly “saving” another guest whose interview might be stumbling. Letterman and Macdonald teamed up on the latter’s criminally short lived 2018 Netflix show, literally titled Norm Macdonald Has a Show.
Macdonald was scheduled to perform in the New York Comedy Festival lineup in November.
Black Ops Cold War‘s Zombies storyline is set to conclude with a final map in Call of Duty Season 6, and Treyarch tweeted a teaser to reveal the setting and some vague details for this upcoming round-based map.
The tweet shows an image that players will be familiar with if they played the Black Ops Cold War campaign. The large building in the photo is the Soviet military training facility in Ukraine that operators Woods and Bell work to infiltrate in Cold War’s Operation Redlight, Greenlight mission.
There is a note scribbled on the picture that says, “Weaver, This is the place. We must make our stand here. -Ravenov.”
In addition to revealing this new map location, Treyarch posted two more teasers on social media. Treyarch’s Instagram has a similar black and white photo of something that looks like a vault door.
From Treyarch’s Instagram: “Kravchenko plans to open a special gateway. They are trying to find him.”
The caption on this image says, “Kravchenko plans to open a special gateway. They are trying to find him.”
On Facebook, another black and white image shows a device that looks similar to the machine on Cold War’s Die Maschine map, which is used to open the portal to the Dark Aether.
From Treyarch’s Facebook: “Omega’s next operation is already underway. They have been constructing for months.”
The caption reads, “Omega’s next operation is already underway. They have been constructing for months.”
Black Ops Cold War’s Zombies storyline has been a constant chase as the CIA’s Requiem research team works to stop the Omega Group, who are responsible for all the Dark Aether portals and zombie chaos. These notes presumably show Requiem is now in a race to stop Omega from opening an even bigger portal at the Ukraine training facility, as story clues hint that Omega are attempting to capture and harness the power of a monster living within the Dark Aether.
There’s no release date for this next and final round-based survival map, but Treyarch confirmed the map would arrive with Season 6. There are still 22 days left of the Season 5 battle pass, so Season 6 won’t begin until around the first week of October.
The Season 5 Reloaded update recently added new Outbreak content to Zombies, with a new map, Black Chest world event, and more.
In other news, early access to Call of Duty: Vanguard’s beta went live on PlayStation from September 10-13, but there’s still another opportunity to play. Next weekend will feature a cross-play beta for PlayStation, Xbox, and PC players. Here are our thoughts on Vanguard after getting hands-on with the beta.
Call of Duty: Vanguard will arrive on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, and PC on November 5. The release is still on schedule as Activision Blizzard faces a lawsuit from the state of California over harassment and discrimination against women.
A new trailer for Star Wars Hunters–the upcoming multiplayer action game from Zynga–has been released, showcasing eight of the game’s playable warriors for the first time.
The cinematic trailer introduces multiple playable characters in the middle of an intense battle. We first see Rieve, an adept lightsaber user and follower of the dark side, taking fire from a Mandalorian called Aran Tal. After a while a Wookiee called Grozz, A Rebel fighter named Zaina, and even some Jawas stacked under one hood all make an appearance on the battlefield.
In all eight characters are shown in the trailer, but we also get a look at the planet Vespaara hosting the battles, including a side view of the full arena map as well as a Hutt Ship hovering overhead. The game’s newly revamped website has a profile on all eight of these playable characters, as well as more information about the arena itself.
“Today’s reveal gives viewers their first look at the Arena, a competitive, spectator stadium attracting Hunters from the far reaches of the galaxy to seek their fortunes,” President of Publishing at Zynga Bernard Kim said in the official release. “Giving a brief glimpse of the Arena’s high-stakes, team-based action, this trailer showcases just a few of the dynamic characters inspired by the Star Wars galaxy that fans will experience in the game.”
Star Wars Hunters is an upcoming multiplayer arena combat game set in the Star Wars universe. It was first announced during the February 17 Nintendo Direct as a Nintendo Switch console exclusive. The game will launch on both the Switch and mobile devices in 2022.
Electronic Arts Electronic Arts has brought back skate.Reel, a website that players could access to upload clips of Skate gameplay for the community to see. The original service was shut down back in 2014.
Now that the new site is back up, players can submit clips, screenshots, and fan art that can then be shared with EA’s social channels or on the featured section of the skate.Reel page. In order to do submit an entry, players need an EA account, along with a URL of their creation like a link to a YouTube video. The submission also requires a PSN ID, Xbox Gamertag, or EA ID.
For our first annual skate. Day we wanted to celebrate the franchise and our community. That’s where our new skate. Reel page comes in. We love checking out what you’re creating and now we have a place for it all… so let’s see those clips https://t.co/lU9Fms0Jpkpic.twitter.com/cKO6Y1Qt5p
There are also several style options to choose from to indicate what kind of creation the submission is, such as Realistic, Casual, or Offboard. Other well-known Skate community creators including Calplex, Nebula, Skate3Tommy, and KellyLitz have already started sharing content on the new website.
Skate and Skate 3 are available to play on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S via backward compatibility as well as EA Play. Additionally, Skate 3 can be played on PC through Xbox Game Pass Ultimate’s cloud gaming feature.
Today Plex brought back its annual 20% off discount on the very popular Plex Lifetime Pass. If you’ve built yourself a sizeable digital collection of movies or music, this service is totally worth investing in. For those of you who are looking to upgrade your PS5 internal storage, the WD SN850 solid state drive (with heatsink) is back in stock at the WD Store, with the 500GB and 2TB models cheaper than anywhere else, even Amazon. Last but not least, score a free Newegg gift card when you purchase an Oculus Quest 2 VR headset or its accessories.
20% Off Plex Pass Lifetime Subscription
Plex hosts this offer only once or twice a year, and it’s the best deal you’ll find for a Plex Pass subscription. A lifetime sub normally costs $119.95, so you’d be paying a one time only fee of $95.99 after the discount. Plex is an incredibly useful service that lets you organize your movies, TVs, podcasts, and music from all of your different sources into one centralized location, and then stream them to any of your devices, like your TV, PC, or phone.
New Oculus Quest 2 VR Headset with More Storage, Same Price, and Bonus Newegg Gift Card
The Oculus Quest 2 has so far been the best value when it comes to VR gaming. It’s hundreds of dollars cheaper than its competitors, it has phenomenal tracking, it doesn’t need to be tethered to a PC, and it boasts a huge library of games (even Half Life: Alyx is easily playable on the Quest 2). Now, Oculus has re-released its Oculus Quest 2 VR headset with double the storage (128GB vs 64GB) for the exact same price. There’s even less of a reason now to pick something else. I purchased an Oculus Rift when it first launched, played the heck out of it, and now own a Quest 2. In my opinion, and with price factored in, it’s far and away the best VR headset to get into Beat Saber.
Buy Quest 2 Accessories, Get a Newegg Gift Card
The Oculus Quest 2 is a bargain at $299, and thanks to the low price, you can pick up some very convenient accessories without having to feel like you just stepped out of your budget. Newegg is offering a bonus gift card when you purchase any of the accessories below. That includes the Elite Strap, the Elite Strap with Battery Pack, the Link Cable, and more.
Back in Stock (Including 1TB Model): WD Black SN850 M.2 SSD with Heatsink
The Western Digital official storefront has all models of the SN850 SSD with heatsink in stock right now, and that includes the extremely hard to find 1TB model. This is currently the most popular (and probably the best) SSD to get for your PS5 storage upgrade. It’s blazing fast drive with transfer speeds rated at up to 7,000 MB/s and a PCIe Gen4 interface and it comes preinstalled with a heatsink. It’s also confirmed by Western Digital themselves to be compatible with the PS5.
Apple AirPods Pro Noise-Cancelling Earbuds
If you regret not picking the Airpods Pro up on Amazon Prime Day, here’s your chance to get it today for an even lower price. Today the price of the AirPods Pro has dropped $70, or 28% off. This is the lowest price we’ve seen for a brand new pair of these highly rated earbuds. The AirPods Pro is considered by many to be the best truly wireless noise-cancelling in-ear headphones you can get, and a very big step up in quality from the standard AirPods.
$2,600 Off Lenovo ThinkPad 15″ 4K RTX 3080 Laptop
Update: The ship date listed on Lenovo’s site shows 4+ months, and that seems to be exaggerated. Some buyers have reported receiving their laptops in about 2-3 weeks.
Lenovo ThinkPad laptops are known for their best-in-class ruggedness and reliability, and even if it ever breaks down, Lenovo offers the best customer service in the business. Usually there’s a steep price premium for this. Today, however, this $5000 MSRP laptop is discounted by $2600 thanks to a combination of an instant discount and a new coupon code that popped up today. If you’re looking to purchase a ThinkPad that’s got the power to do some serious gaming, you won’t find a price like this anytime soon.
Dell XPS Intel Core i7 RTX 3060 Ti PC for $1369
Enjoy high end PC gaming on a budget. There is one of the best deals we’ve seen for an RTX 3060 Ti equipped PC and handily beats out a similar deal we saw on Labor Day by over $100. The RTX 3060 Ti is a very powerful video card; it’s better than the previous generation’s RTX 2080! It’s a big upgrade from the 3060 non-Ti model and the one to get if you’re going to play games at resolutions of 1440p or higher. This particular deal is found on the Dell Small Business site, but anyone can purchase there just like on Dell’s regular site; you can treat Dell Small Business as exactly the same as Dell Home.
Preorder the Middle Earth 6-Film Ultimate Collector’s Edition (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital)
This impressive Middle Earth Collector’s Edition includes both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit Trilogies over a whopping 31 discs. That’s because there are separate 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray discs for both the Theatrical Editions and the Extended Editions. You also get digital HD copies for free, and they are compatible with MoviesAnywhere so you can merge it into your digital library. As far as extras go, you get a Special Features Blu-ray disc, a 64-page booklet, and 7 travel poster art cards. All the discs are stored in collectible foil sleeves.
