Category: Games

Niantic has announced another new event for Pokemon Go. The Animation Week event kicks off next Friday, November 6, and it features Pokemon and other content based on the current Pokemon anime series, Pokemon Journeys.

Throughout the Animation Week event, Pokemon that have featured prominently in the anime will appear in the wild. This includes World Cap Pikachu, which is making its debut in Pokemon Go, as well as Bulbasaur, Exeggcute, Cubone, Scyther, Dratini, and Cyndaquil. Players will also have a chance to encounter Shiny Cubone during the event.

On top of that, the Legendary Pokemon Lugia is returning to five-star Raids from November 5-16. This time around, it’ll know the powerful Flying-type move Aeroblast. Other Pokemon that will be appearing in Raids during the event include Ivysaur, Pinsir, Snorlax, and Golurk, while Pichu, Mantyke, Riolu, and Cubone will be hatching from 7 km eggs.

Finally, Niantic says there will be new Timed Research tasks “inspired by multiple episodes” of Pokemon Journeys. The studio is also adding new avatar items based on Goh, Ash’s new travel companion, to Pokemon Go’s style shop, and Goh may even appear when you take snapshots during the event. You can read more details on the Pokemon Go website.

In the meantime, Pokemon Go’s Halloween 2020 event is currently underway, and it’s brought out a ton of Ghost Pokemon, including costume-wearing versions of Gengar and Sableye. The Legendary Dark-type Darkrai is also back in five-star Raids until November 5.

Niantic has a number of other November events planned for Pokemon Go. These include two Community Days, as well as exclusive events for GrubHub and Verizon users. The Legendary trio Cobalion, Terrakion, and Virizion will also be returning to Raids next month, and November’s Research Breakthrough reward will be Togetic.

Annapurna Interactive, the publisher of Outer Wilds, Sayonara Wild Hearts, and many more acclaimed games, has announced the formation of an internal development studio.

There’s currently no word on the studio’s first project nor a name for the studio, but it is being formed in Los Angeles, California, with team members being sought for roles on the studio’s first project, including senior producer, game director, and more.

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“We’ve had the immense honor of working with some of the most talented independent game creators in the world,” Annapurna Interactive President Nathan Gary said. “Many of us came from an internal development background and are excited to make this a part of Annapurna Interactive moving forward. We can’t wait to share more about what’s to come—anything is possible.” 

Annapurna first published What Remains of Edith Finch and Gorogoa in 2017, and has continued to build up its game library since then, with published games this year including If Found, I Am Dead, and PS5 launch game The Pathless.

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For the latest on Annapurna’s portfolio, check out IGN’s review of I Am Dead, as well as our preview of The Pathless.

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Jonathon Dornbush is IGN’s Senior News Editor, host of Podcast Beyond!, and PlayStation lead. Talk to him on Twitter @jmdornbush.

Microsoft has revealed the next set of Xbox Games With Gold titles that will be free in November and it will be the first lineup to hit the Xbox Series X and Series S.

Despite these being the first Xbox Games With Gold for Xbox Series X and Series S, the lineup doesn’t include any next-gen titles, unlike Sony’s PlayStation Plus lineup for November. This month’s lineup on Xbox includes Xbox One titles Aragami: Shadow Edition and Swimsanity! There’s also Xbox 360 game LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures, and original Xbox title Full Spectrum Warrior.

Aragami will be available from November 1 to November 30 while Swimsanity will be available from November 16 to December 15. LEGO Indiana Jones will be free to download starting November 16 until November 30 and Full Spectrum Warrior will be free November 1 through November 15.

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These games represent $84.96 in value and 3000 in Gamerscore, according to Microsoft’s blog post, and will be the first games free to download with Xbox Gold on Microsoft’s next-generation consoles.

Aragami: Shadow Edition includes the original Aragami game and its prequel, Nightfall. You play as an undead assassin in both with the power to control shadows during the solo campaigns, or while teaming up with friends in cross-platform online multiplayer. Check out this trailer for a glimpse of what’s in store in Aragami: Shadow Edition.

In Swimsanity!, you and up to three other players will use a variety of weapons and powers to fight against each other to be the last Mooba standing. There’s over 150 challenges in the game’s eight modes and you can check out what awaits you by watching this Swimsanity! trailer.

On the LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures side of things, you can expect the stories of the first three Indiana Jones movies told through LEGO’s trademark brick-building style. Check out this trailer for the game and then read our LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures review to find out why we gave it an 8 out of 10.

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The final free game this month is original Xbox title Full Spectrum Warrior. In this game, you’ll experience what was originally used as a training aid for the U.S. army before it was turned into a realistic, infantry-level, urban-warfare simulator. We thought the game was great and you can find out why in our Full Spectrum Warrior review.

If you’ve got an Xbox Gold subscription active, it’s not too late to grab games from Xbox Games With Gold for October; still available are Slayaway Camp, Maid of Sker, and Costume Quest.

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Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes. 

According to Raven Software co-founder Brian Raffel, the original code name for Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast was, incredibly, “Rocky’s Pizza.”

IGN’s Ryan McCaffrey sat down with Raffel to discuss Raven Software’s broad history in the latest episode of IGN Unfiltered, along with discussions on Call of Duty Black Ops: Cold War, Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, Hexen, Heretic, Soldier of Fortune, and more.

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When asked for behind-the-scenes stories, Raffel recounted the sudden way the project was brought up to him. “There was really a weird way that this unfolded. We were with Activision, and we were working on Soldier of Fortune and stuff, and then I get a call from my boss, ‘Hey! Would you wanna work on Star Wars?’ and we were like, ‘What?!'”

Code names for secret projects are incredibly common, from consoles like the Xbox One’s “Durango,” to Star Wars: The Return of the Jedi’s “Blue Harvest.” These are usually vague phrases or words, but the code name for Jedi Outcast ranks high on our list of all-time bests. “We had to call it ‘Rocky’s Pizza’ as a code name until we could tell everybody in the company. We had to keep it on the down-low until it got solidified.”

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Raffel went on to discuss the team’s perception of their own work, as well as the first time Raven showed the game to LucasArts. “The id tech was very important to us… the Quake tech… We knew we had something special when we did our first prototype and everyone poured their heart and soul into it…”

“We had to show it to [LucasArts]… we had to impress them, of course. So… you landed in on a ship, an Empire ship, and there’s reflections with all of the Stormtroopers walking, and everything, and it just had the vibe of Star Wars. And they were just… we had them hooked…”

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It’s always an immense challenge for development teams to create something great. We certainly feel Jedi Outcast hits that mark, as our updated review awarded it a 9 with the “Editor’s Choice” distinction. The creation of Jedi Outcast is even more impressive, however, when one considers the relatively short amount of time the team had to make it. “We knew it was special… at the time, though, we only had 11 months to do it,” Raffel said, “We feel pretty good about the time we had, and what we got done.”

For more interviews with the best, brightest, most fascinating minds in the games industry, check out be sure to check out every episode of IGN Unfiltered, which includes talks with The Game Awards creator Geoff Keighley, Master Chief co-creator Marcus Lehto, 343’s Bonnie Ross, Valve’s Robin Walker & Chris Remo, Respawn’s Stig Asmussen, and so many more.

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Brian Barnett writes wiki guides, deals posts, features, and much more for IGN. You can get your fix of Brian’s antics on Twitter and Instagram (@Ribnax).

EA is appealing a potential €5 million fine in The Netherlands for its sale of FIFA Ultimate Team packs.

The Dutch government announced earlier in October that it would be enforcing a fine against EA for its implementation of paid-for loot boxes in its most recent FIFA games.

EA will have to change the way its loot box-like items work in FIFA 19, 20, and 21, or every week the company will be fined €250,000, up to a maximum of €5 million. That’s just in The Netherlands – the same fine is being levied against EA’s Swiss subsidiary, meaning it could double in practice.

EA Benelux issued a statement, noting its intent to appeal the fine. “We’re disappointed by today’s decision, and the possible impact of it on Dutch players. We do not agree that our products and services are in conflict with the local gambling laws,” the statement reads. “We do appeal against this decision and try to prevent a situation that impacts the full possibilities of Dutch players in FIFA Ultimate Team.”

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“Electronic Arts attaches great importance to a positive playing experience: we strive to give all players choice, honesty, value, and pleasure in our games. We’re still open to take part in talks with the Netherlands Gambling Authority and other stakeholders to solve and understand their concerns.”

Players of FIFA Ultimate Team will be familiar with the game’s player packs, which can be purchased with FIFA Points, a currency that can be acquired with real money. The contents of the packs are randomised, hence why many take umbrage with their inclusion and see the packs as a form of gambling.

The Netherlands banned loot boxes back in 2018, and the ripple effect of this decision is still being felt by many publishers in the games industry.

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Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

Listen up gamers, if you’re investing a whole $500 into your new Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5, then you’re becoming the proud owner of a 4K Blu-ray disc drive, and it’s time to take advantage of it. With the release window right around the corner, there couldn’t be a better time to check out a whole slew of 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray the early Black Friday sales.

As Black Friday deals on 4K Blu-rays go live, we’ll continue to add the latest and greatest offers available to this article. Don’t forget, we’ve also rounded up all the best deals for Black Friday in our comprehensive post, alongside every single video game deal already available at Best Buy.

Early Black Friday Deals: 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Ends Sunday)

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Robert Anderson is a deals expert for IGN, he’s both excited and terrified at the prospect of Black Friday. Be nice and ask him how his day is going @robertliam21

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