Category: Games

One of the best Nintendo Switch controllers is undoubtedly the Hori Split Pad Pro, and it just got an awesome new design. In celebration of Monster Hunter Rise’s release, Hori is releasing a themed version of its Joy-Con alternative. The Monster Hunter Split Pad Pro is $60 and releases April 26, a month after the game. It features a gorgeous design featuring the new Magnamalo monster done in a Japanese ink painting style.

Another cool feature of the Hori Split Pad Pro is the ability to turn Turbo on, which makes it so each button press triggers multiple inputs and holding them triggers rapid fire. And while the Hori Split Pad Pro’s size is quite large, you are still able to slide the Nintendo Switch into its dock while using them.

Because of the Split Pad Pro’s bigger controls, it’s bound to work well with Monster Hunter Rise. The upcoming action game received a 9/10 in GameSpot’s Monster Hunter Rise review-in-progress. Critic Richard Wakeling wrote, “The moment-to-moment combat is as impeccable as it’s ever been and puts Rise on a pedestal as one of the feathers in the Nintendo Switch’s cap.”

Less than a year after DC Comics’ shocked the industry by cutting ties with Diamond Comics Distributors, Marvel Comics is making a similar transition. Marvel announced plans to shift its direct market distribution to Penguin Random House as part of “a multi-year partnership.”

Starting on October 1, Penguin Random House will begin distributing Marvel’s monthly comics and graphic novels to comic shops. Hachette Book Group will continue to handle distribution to the bookstore market.

“Marvel’s entire history is built on telling great stories. And as we’ve seen for decades, those stories go hand in hand with equipping the comic shops who share them. Marvel and Penguin Random House stand by that vision, and we are excited to build and expand those opportunities for our talent, retailers, and fans,” said Marvel Entertainment President Dan Buckley in a press release. “Comics are the core of the Marvel Universe, and we are confident this new partnership will continue to grow and evolve this resilient industry. We look forward to advancing our capabilities with PRHPS to serve our fans and the Direct Market. We thank Diamond for their many years of support and partnership as we continue our relationship with them in other areas.”

IGN reached out to Marvel, and the company confirms there are no immediate changes expected in terms of cover prices or Marvel’s digital comics distribution. Marvel is also sticking to the traditional Wednesday release schedule for new comics.

There is one significant difference where retailers are concerned, however. Whereas DC cut ties with Diamond completely in 2020, Marvel is still giving store owners the option to order comics through Diamond. However, in those cases Diamond will now act as a wholesaler rather than a distributor.

That’s a potential ray of light for Diamond, a company that held a near-monopoly on direct market distribution until DC’s split in 2020. Diamond had been Marvel’s exclusive direct market distributor since 1997, following Marvel’s failed attempt at self-distribution via Heroes World. Like many companies, Diamond has struggled to deal with the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The company was forced to suspend distribution for several weeks in March 2020 and postpone Free Comic Book Day 2020. Marvel’s transition toward Penguin Random House may raise new concerns about Diamond’s long-term future, echoing those raised by former DC president Diane Nelson in 2020.

In response to a Facebook post from retailer Brian Hibbs, Nelson wrote, “I can say purely as a private individual that Diamond has, for a long time, been unwilling or unable to modernize and support and grow the biz as needed for a healthy direct channel. And may not even be solvent. It would be imprudent for any publisher to not have a distribution contingency plan.”

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However, Diamond’s chairman, president and CEO Steve Geppi downplayed the potential impact of this change in a statement.

“The change Marvel announced today represents a behind-the-scenes shift in how Diamond interacts with Marvel for certain products, but does not impact our ability to supply our customers with Marvel comics, trades, and graphic novels,” Geppi wrote. “I expect the discount terms under which our retail partners order these Marvel products to change, and Diamond will communicate that information to our customers well in advance of any adjustments. While there are still details of this new arrangement to work through, my leadership team and I are committed to making this supply change as operationally seamless as possible for our retail partners and we look forward to our continued distribution of Marvel products.”

Whatever long-term impact Marvel’s move may have on the industry, one thing is clear. Diamond is far from the only game in town in 2021.

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Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

Of all the games that could benefit from a next-generation patch, From Software’s Bloodborne might be one of the most frequently requested. The 2015 PS4 exclusive might not be getting that from its developers, but it seems someone has managed to get it working on a PS5 with improved performance.

According to Digital Foundry, an undisclosed party has managed to take existing work done to Bloodborne on PS4 and managed to get the game running at an (almost) flawless 60fps on PS5 at 1080p. The version was verified by Digital Foundry and is presumably running off a development kit for the console, although the publication was unable to play the build personally.

This new iteration branches off work done by Lance McDonald. He previously managed to inject performance improvements From Software added to Dark Souls 3 into Bloodborne, enhancing the game’s locked frame rate to 60 FPS while getting a stable framerate at 720p. The mod only ran on PS4 consoles that could accept unsigned code, making it difficult to play even after the patch was released publicly.

Digital Foundry went a step further with the PS5 footage it was offered, using AI upscaling to predict what a potential PS5 patch might look like. The upscaling sharpens a lot of Bloodborne’s aging visuals without damaging the striking art direction of the game. Unfortunately, this might be our only look at such a change, as From Software has offered no indication that it plans to release a PS5 update.

Given Bloodborne’s age it might be too far already for a patch to make a difference without significant work, especially since From Software has already patched its more recent releases or allowed them to run with unlocked frame rates (such as Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice). From Software’s upcoming title is Elden Ring, which is set to launch on Xbox Series X|S, PS5, and PC.

Fortnite Season 6 kicked off with the game’s first-ever single-player event, the Zero Crisis Finale. If you missed it when it debuted last week, the solo nature of the event meant it could be accessed at any time after its debut on March 16, but that window is soon closing. The Fortnite Zero Crisis Finale playlist will leave the game next week during the game’s regularly scheduled downtime.

Epic hasn’t given a precise date and time yet, but the team has assured fans that despite this week’s challenges mostly going live on Tuesday, the normal Thursday schedule will resume for the rest of the season. That suggests your last chance to play the Zero Crisis Finale will be sometime late Wednesday or early Thursday depending on your time zone. Of course, you could also just watch it in the video below.

If you’d rather play it yourself, we won’t spoil it all. The story mission’s total runtime is less than 15 minutes, including a cinematic directed by the Russo Brothers, and features a playable section that lets you try and fix the Zero Point which floated ominously at the center of the Season 5 map. During the Zero Crisis Finale, you’ll also come face to face with The Foundation, a mystery character whom fans believe is secretly portrayed by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. On top of all that, you’ll see some fun crossovers, like Ellen Ripley and Sarah Conner teaming up to take on a xenomorph and a T-800, or Kratos struggling to take down an anthropomorphized stack of pancakes. Yeah, Fortnite gets pretty weird.

Note that you can use any of your favorite cosmetics in the mission, so be sure to set your favorite hero as active before you jump into the playlist if you want to see them helping Agent Jones, The Foundation, and other characters in their quest to save the Fortnite multiverse.

As for what’s new since the Zero Crisis Finale, the Season 6 map changes come as a direct result of your mission’s fallout.

As the DC movie universe (or the DCEU as fans have come to call it) prepares to unleash its next wave on fans with The Suicide Squad, The Batman and The Flash, what better time to catch up on the state of the DC Extended Universe?

Unlike Marvel though, DC’s plans don’t include synergy across all mediums. Their movies, while containing many of the same characters, don’t generally cross over with the CW TV-verse that includes The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, and Superman and Lois, or DC Universe streaming shows like Titans and Doom Patrol. Yes, DC’s betting big and doubling up on their heroes, but the TV realm is another story entirely. However, some HBO Max exclusives will be direct tie-ins to the DCEU, such as Gotham PD and Peacemaker. And DC Universe has become a subscription comics service only, meaning the original shows on that platform will either migrate fully to HBO Max… or go away completely (RIP Swamp Thing). Just FYI!

So let’s take a look at the road ahead for the DCEU. From Black Adam to Shazam! Fury of the Gods to Aquaman 2 and beyond, sift through the following slideshow of all of DC’s planned movies and companion HBO Max series (or just read on for a quick list of the biggest titles). Some of these are definitely happening, some are in development, and some have big question marks surrounding them, but all could wind up on the big screen sooner or later…

Note: In December, 2020, Warner Bros. announced that in 2021 it will make all 17 of its theatrically-released movies that year available for a one-month exclusive window on HBO Max in addition to their theatrical release. The movies will require no extra cost to HBO Max subscribers.

And of course, all release dates remain subject to change due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The Batman and Every Other Upcoming DC Movie

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For those keeping track, here’s the full lineup of upcoming DC movies and adjacent HBO Max shows, along with a handful that appear to be dead in the water:

• The Suicide Squad (August 6, 2021)
• Peacemaker TV Series (In Development)
• The Batman (March 4, 2022)
• Gotham PD TV Series (In Development)
• The Flash (November 4, 2022)
• Aquaman 2 (December 16, 2022)
• Shazam! Fury of the Gods (June 2, 2023)
• Black Adam (TBA)
• Wonder Woman 3 (In Development)
• The Trench (In Development)
• Green Lantern Corps TV Series (In Development)
• Justice League Dark TV Series (In Development)
• Constantine TV Series (In Development)
• Zatanna (In Development)
• Hourman (In Development)
• Superman Reboot (Status Unknown)
• Supergirl (Status Unknown)
• Static Shock (In Development)
• HBO Max DC Movies (In Development)
• The New Gods (Status Unknown)
• Batgirl (Status Unknown)
• Nightwing (Status Unknown)
• Lobo (Status Unknown)
• Cyborg (Status Unknown)
• Justice League: Part 2 (Status Unknown)
• Joker 2 (Status Unknown)
• Gotham City Sirens (Reportedly Dead)
• Man of Steel 2 (Reportedly Dead) 
• Jared Leto Joker Movie (Reportedly Dead)
• Harley Quinn/Joker Movie (Reportedly Dead)
• Suicide Squad: The Ayer Cut (Debunked)

Here are the most definite projects that are currently in the works:

THE SUICIDE SQUAD (August 6, 2021)

Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn is hopping over to the DCEU to helm this Suicide Squad sequel. Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller, Joel Kinnaman’s Rick Flag and Jai Courtney’s Captain Boomerang are returning, but the rest of the ensemble cast is getting a big shake-up. Newcomers include Idris Elba as Bloodshot, John Cena as Peacemaker, Peter Capaldi as The Thinker and Nathan Fillion as TDK.

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PEACEMAKER TV SERIES (In Development)

John Cena’s The Suicide Squad character will feature in a spinoff prequel series on HBO Max. The Suicide Squad director James Gunn is executive producing the series alongside The Suicide Squad producer Peter Safran. Cena will also co-executive produce. Chris Conrad has been cast as Adrian Chase/Vigilante. No release window has been given, though presumably the series won’t debut before The Suicide Squad’s August 2021 release date.

THE BATMAN (March 4, 2022)

Director Matt Reeves (War for the Planet of the Apes) is helming the next Batman solo film, which at one time was expected to star Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne. Indeed, Affleck was originally going to co-write (with DC guru Geoff Johns) and direct the film as well. But now Reeves has crafted his own script and started from scratch with a story set in the second year of Batman’s career. Robert Pattinson will instead take over the Batman role, with other casting including Jeffrey Wright as Commissioner Gordon, Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Paul Dano as Riddler, Andy Serkis as Alfred, and Colin Farrell as Penguin. The film is expected to be the first part of a trilogy. The Batman was originally scheduled for release on June 25, 2021, but will now debut on March 4, 2022, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

GOTHAM PD TV SERIES (In Development)

HBO Max will play host to Gotham PD, a police procedural that serves as a prequel to 2022’s The Batman. The series is specifically set in the first year of Batman’s costumed career (setting it one year before the movie), delving deeper into the corruption and conspiracies plaguing the city. It’s unclear if Robert Pattinson’s Batman or Jeffrey Wright’s Jim Gordon will appear in the series. The Batman director Matt Reeves is producing the series. Boardwalk Empire creator Terence Winter was also set to produce and write Gotham PD, but he later dropped out due to creative differences.

THE FLASH (November 4, 2022)

The Flash has gone through a variety of directors and writers over the past few years, including helmers Seth Grahame-Smith and Rick Famuyiwa and writers Phil Lord and Chris Miller. More recently, John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, the team that worked on the Spider-Man: Homecoming script, were involved as directors, but they too left the project. In July 2019, Andy Muschietti (Stephen King’s It) and Christina Hodson came on as director and screenwriter, respectively. Ezra Miller is still expected to star, while Maribel Verdú has been cast as Barry’s mother, Nora. Billy Crudup originally signed on to play Barry Allen’s dad, Henry, but has since dropped out due to scheduling conflicts. At one point it was rumored that Cyborg could appear in the film in some capacity, though the character has reportedly been written out of the movie. However, both Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton are reportedly reprising their respective Batman roles, and it’s believed the movie will deal heavily with the concept of the DC multiverse.

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AQUAMAN 2 (December 16, 2022)

The first Aquaman made over a billion dollars worldwide, becoming the highest grossing DC film of all-time for Warner Bros. So yeah, a sequel is happening. Director James Wan is expected to return to produce and possibly helm Aquaman 2, while David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, who co-wrote the first film, is scripting. Also expect stars Jason Momoa, Amber Heard and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II to return.

SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS (June 2, 2023)

It wasn’t long after Shazam!’s April 2019 release that rumors surfaced about a sequel. Given how much the franchise depends on younger actors, it’s not as if DC has much time to waste. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Zachary Levi will be back as Shazam and director David F. Sandberg and writer Henry Gayden are also returning. We’re expecting most of the cast from the first movie to return as well, with the plot possibly centering around an alliance between Doctor Sivana and Mr. Mind. Sorry, it sounds like Shazam still won’t be battling Black Adam.

BLACK ADAM (TBA)

Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam movie is finally confirmed, after years of talk about the project. Johnson himself has stated that Black Adam will debut in the DCEU prior to the character’s solo film, but he didn’t say which movie it would be in and it’s possible that plan has changed post-Shazam!. Surely the success of Shazam! gave the Black Adam movie a momentum boost. Jaume Collet-Serra will direct, having previously helmed Johnson in Jungle Cruise. Johnson himself has revealed that the Justice Society will appear in the film: Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher, Aldis Hodge as Hawkman, Pierce Brosnan as Doctor Fate, and Quintessa Swindell as Cyclone.

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WONDER WOMAN 3 (In Development)

With the long-delayed Wonder Woman 1984 finally out in theaters and HBO Max, Warner Bros wasted little time before confirming a sequel. Both director Patty Jenkins and star Gal Gadot are slated to return, and Jenkins previously indicated Wonder Woman 3 will be set in the present rather than being a period piece like its predecessors.

THE TRENCH (In Development)

An Aquaman spinoff film centered on the Trench, that area of the sea where a mass of ravenous amphibious creatures attack Aquaman and Mera in the original movie, is reportedly in early development. The “horror-tinged” film is not expected to involve any of the main cast from Aquaman, and it’s said to have newcomers Noah Gardner and Aidan Fitzgerald on scripting duties. Aquaman director James Wan will produce the project. Warners is reportedly seeking a director with an eye toward beginning production in early 2021.

GREEN LANTERN CORPS TV SERIES (In Development)

A Green Lantern Corps movie was announced by DC and Warner Bros. in 2014. Subsequently, reports indicated that the film would introduce us to a new cinematic version of Hal Jordan (previously played by Ryan Reynolds in the 2011 movie) while also focusing on the John Stewart character, team up-style. Described as “Lethal Weapon in space,” Batman v Superman scribe David Goyer was hired to pen the script along with Justin Rhodes (Grassroots, Contract Killers). Most recently, DC Comics writer and executive Geoff Johns was reported to be rewriting the script, with Variety noting that Johns was expected to turn in a draft before the end of 2019. However, since then a Greg Berlanti-produced Green Lantern TV series was announced for HBO Max. It seems that is now the priority GL project, though maybe a movie will follow as well.

SUPERMAN REBOOT (In Development)

While Man of Steel 2’s future is looking grim, and Henry Cavill’s continuation as Superman is unclear, reports emerged a couple of years ago that Creed star Michael B. Jordan met with Warners to pitch his idea for a Superman reboot (before becoming attached to produce the Static Shock movie). It’s unknown whether the studio is actually moving forward with that particular pitch, but Warners is indeed developing a reboot, one the trade papers have described as “a Black Superman story.” Ta-Nehisi Coates is writing the screenplay, and J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot is producing.

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DC’s movie plans continue to evolve. Joker became the most profitable comic book movie of all time, so it’s not surprising that reports indicate that DC will pursue more R-rated superhero movies. Of course, Zack Snyder’s Justice League finally debuted on HBO Max in March of 2021, and that cut of the film was R-rated.

Which DC films or shows are you most looking forward to? And which characters or titles do you want to see DC tackle in live-action next? Let’s discuss in the comments!

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During the month of March you can save on two of the best gaming chair brands on the market. Both DXRacer and Secretlab are having sitewide sales on their most popular models from now until March 31. These deals come around only a handful of times during the year. If your daily routine is anything like mine and you sit in your chair in front of your computer for several hours a day, then you owe it to your body’s health to get a good chair that feels comfortable for hours on end. In other deal news, there’s an RTX 3080 gaming PC on Amazon for $2400. Considering the next best price of an in-stock model is well over $3000, that’s a very impressive deal that won’t last very long.

DXRacer Tax Refund Sale: Save up to $100 Off Select Gaming Chairs

DXRacer is one of the first brands that pioneered the gaming chair craze. They started off making racing seats for high-end cards and they essentially created the racing-style gaming chair market back in 2006. Today the landscape has changed and there is plenty of serious competition from the likes of Secretlab, Vertagear, and more. That said, DXRacer still makes some of the best gaming chairs, and today you can get it at a very rare discount. If you want to go with a genuine leather chair, we’d recommend the G-series, which starts at $349, and if you want a more breathable mesh material, then the Formula Series chair is the way to go, and that starts at $279.

• Save up to $100 Off DXRacer Gaming Chairs

Secretlab Stay at Home Sale: Save up to $100 Off Select Gaming Chairs

We consistently rate Secretlab as the best chair in our gaming chair roundups. Secretlab chairs offer premium materials and construction, an abundance of ergonomic and quality-of-life features, endless customization options, and great customer service for a very reasonable price (especially when it’s on sale). The current sale takes $25 off 2020 series PRIME 2.0 PU Leather and SoftWeave Fabric models and $100 off 2020 series NAPA models. These include the very popular Secretlab OMEGA and TITAN chairs. Prices start as low as $334 and as always includes free shipping.

• Save up to $100 Off Secretlab Gaming Chairs

The Best Daily Deals for March 25

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More Video Game Deals

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Eric Song is IGN’s deal curator and spends roughly 1/4 of his income on stuff he posts. Check out his latest Daily Deals Article and subscribe to his IGN Deals Newsletter.

The latest trailer for the PvP heist game Hood: Outlaws & Legends details the fourth and final character class, the Mystic. The class seems tuned to support, though it’s not without its share of combat abilities as well.

The Mystic is an ex-inquisitor who uses a flail as his primary weapon. He can regenerate his stamina faster than other characters, so he can win battles of attrition. He also has a poison ability that saps opponents’ stamina. His Ultimate ability is Instinct, which allows him to see through walls for a short time and heal himself and nearby allies. Altogether, the trailer explains, he’s well-suited for healing and crowd control.

Within that context, though, the Mystic can be customized to suit your needs with different loadouts. Your perks could make your grenades heal allies instead of poison enemies, convert damage to health to withstand a battle even longer, or increase everyone’s movement speed if you sprint alongside them.

This follows similar character trailers surrounding the other three classes: Ranger, Hunter, and Brawler.

Hood: Outlaws & Legends is a reimagining of the classic Robin Hood story. Teams take part in PvPvE challenges to steal precious treasure and do battle with each other to make off with the goods. It’s coming to PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S on May 10. Players who preorder will get early access on May 7.