If you have ever cheated in Call of Duty: Warzone and were subsequently banned as a result, it looks like you won’t be able to play the next Call of Duty game, Vanguard.
Spotted first by Eurogamer, severalimages have appeared online, including cheating Discord servers and forums, showing players who received either an account or hardware ban in Call of Duty: Warzone also being barred from playing the upcoming open beta for Vanguard. Call of Duty website, CharlieIntel confirmed those with an account or hardware ban in Warzone are banned from Vanguard.
If you are currently banned in Call of Duty: Warzone – including hardware or account banned – you are banned from playing Call of Duty: Vanguard.
For those in the cheats Discords/forums etc. asking why, I think it’s pretty obvious why. But thought I’d let you know.
Unlike account bans, which impact an individual account, hardware bans are for serial cheaters, preventing these repeat offenders from creating a new account each time their previous account is banned. Activision confirmed in April that it issues these hardware bans to address the ongoing issue of cheating in Call of Duty: Warzone, which is one of many games that has a problem with players cutting corners to gain unfair advantages in-game.
Activision has also been cracking down on the influx of cheaters invading Warzone. Most notably, its subsidiary, Raven Software, confirmed in August that it had banned a substantial amount of Warzone accounts, with the studio banning more than 100,000 in a single day.
Taylor is the Associate Tech Editor at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.
THQ Nordic’s showcase today wrapped up with a bubble-bombshell announcement for a new SpongeBob game. Titled SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake, the game will bring players through the cartoon’s iconic scenes, including the cast’s iconic performance of Sweet Victory at the Super Bowl.
The game starts with SpongeBob and Patrick casting a flurry of wishes using a vial of Mermaid Tears. However, in their rush the duo tears open a portal in space and time (not like that other 2000s cartoon, though), leaving them to travel across different worlds to save Bikini Bottom.
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake, in contrast to the previous SpongeBob game from Purple Lamp, is a wholly original title, but it will still hinge on the same mechanics. According to the game’s Steam page, The Cosmic Shake will include platforming and seven distinct worlds for players to explore. The game will also be voiced by the cartoon’s original actors and feature over 100 of its songs.
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake is being developed by Purple Lamp Studios, the same developer behind last year’s SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated. In GameSpot’s review of that title, Funké Joseph criticized its lack of changes from the original’s 2003 release and its dull moment-to-moment gameplay, saying, “It’s a game so focused on emulating and embellishing the original that it doesn’t know the parts of itself that are fun and the parts that aren’t.”
Currently, The Cosmic Shake doesn’t have a release date. The game is set to launch on PC, Switch, PS4, and Xbox One.
Here’s a great deal for anyone without a current HBO Max subscription. If you sign up now for the monthly ad-free plan, you’ll save 50% off for the first six months. That will get you through the year, giving you day-one streaming access to the rest of Warner Bros. slate of theatrical releases, including Dune, The Matrix Resurrections, and more. This is a tremendous deal that anyone eligible should seriously consider. It’s only available between now and September 26, so don’t wait too long.
Get HBO Max Half Off for 6 Months
The normal monthly rate for a month of HBO Max’s ad-free plan costs $14.99, but this deal cranks it down to $7.49 per month for the first six months. After that the price goes back up, but you can cancel any time.
Personally, if I could only keep one streaming service, I would choose HBO Max without question. From the vast selection of movies the service offers at any given time to the deep bench of iconic TV shows, it has something for everyone. It even has comedy specials, documentaries, and tons of programming for kids.
Here’s a list of this year’s same-day releases in theaters and on HBO Max. Each of these movies streams on HBO Max for 31 days and is available to all ad-free HBO Max subscribers at no additional cost (unlike Disney+’s Premier Access program).
Warner Bros. Same Day Premiers on HBO Max
Reminiscence (streaming now through 9/19)
Malignant (streaming now through 10/10)
Cry Macho (streaming now through 10/17)
The Many Saints of Newark – October 1
Dune – October 22
King Richard – November 19
The Matrix Resurrections – December 22
Loads of other movies are on the service in addition to those. It has the Matrix trilogy. It has the majority of the DC cinematic universe films. It has Studio Ghibli animated features. There’s a whole TCM collection that has many of the best movies ever made. It has Crunchyroll, Adult Swim, and Cartoon Network content as well.
And that’s not even touching on the deep bench of HBO shows. The Sopranos. The Wire. Sex and the City. Curb Your Enthusiasm. True Blood. Game of Thrones. The Leftovers. Watchmen. Succession. White Lotus. Many of the best shows of the past few decades have been on HBO, and are available to stream right now on HBO Max.
If that sounds good, make sure you grab this deal before it goes away on September 26.
Chris Reed is a deals expert and commerce editor for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @_chrislreed.
THQ Nordic celebrated its 10th anniversary today with a livestream event with tons of new game announcements. THQ Nordic revealed eight new games currently in development at its many, many game development studios.
During the 30-minute show, THQ Nordic revealed multiple games ranging from remasters to surprise sequels. Some games, like Destroy All Humans! 2 Reprobed were leaked ahead of schedule, but there were still plenty of surprises left.
Check out all the games THQ Nordic announced below.
Destroy All Humans 2! Reprobed
A remake of the original Destroy All Humans 2 was leaked a bit early by accident, but THQ Nordic had a full reveal planned for its 10th anniversary. The developers are calling Destroy All Humans 2 Reprobed a full remake, building the entire game back from scratch, though the title will retain the old voiceovers.
There’s also some new tech underneath the hood with a brand new destruction physics engine. So destroying buildings in a space shuttle will be even more dynamic. Developer Black Forest Games also announced split-screen co-op will be available in the sequel remake.
Outcast was one of the first true open-world games in the modern era and its sense of scale and exploration was ahead of anything else in its time. Outcast 2 will once again put players in a massive, alien open world for them to explore. Though there are certainly more open-world games today than there were in 1999.
To help retain the feeling of the original, the developers of Outcast 2 include 10 members from the original development team. Outcast 2 is also being developed exclusively for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and PC.
Jagged Alliance 3
Jagged Alliance 3 is the first true sequel to the Jagged Alliance tactical RPG series since 1999’s Jagged Alliance 2. Developed by the Surviving Mars team at Haemimont Games, Jagged Alliance modernizes the turn-based tactics of the original.
Build a team of mercenaries and use the environment to tactically fight your way through the enemy camp and ultimately save the world from annihilation in this true, tactical sequel.
Expeditions Rome
Expeditions Rome is a tactical, turn-based RPG set in the ancient Roman Republic in the time of Julius Ceasar. Players will play a young Roman Legion commander who must win victories on the battlefield and work up the ranks to command the Roman armies against the Barbarian hordes.
As a true role-playing game, players will have to make choices throughout the game which will affect how the story unfolds. The developers say that even small decisions will have major impacts on the story.
MX vs ATV Legends
Race motocross bikes or ATVs in the next game in Rainbow’s off-road series. The next MX vs ATV game will let players compete in extreme racing tournaments, challenges, as well as some non-racing side activities.
SuperPower 3
Electioneer your way to political victory in the next game in the SuperPower series. Become the head of state and develop your country’s global standing while fighting political battles on your home turf.
In the past, players could lead any of the 193 nations recognized by the United Nations. You may build up your country and attempt to find world peace or world domination.
ELEX 2
2017’s ELEX was an ambitious, sci-fi RPG that was released at the height of Europe’s RPG gold rush. And while the story was clever and often engrossing, it was plagued with bugs and poor balance.
But the sequel is looking to build upon the first game and hopefully fix some of the core mechanical issues along the way with ELEX 2. THQ Nordic only released a cinematic trailer so time will tell how the gameplay shakes out, but we won’t say no to second chances if it means a continuation of ELEX’s main storyline.
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake is a brand-new game for everyone’s favorite undersea sponge. No gameplay footage was revealed, but the trailer for The Cosmic Shake was like a greatest hits of some of SpongeBob’s best moments from the show, set to his famous “Sweet Victory” performance from The Bubble Bowl.
Matt T.M. Kim is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.
1999’s Outcast was a beloved adventure game that won praise from critics and fans–we named it out 1999 adventure game of the year. Developer Infogrames tried to make a sequel, but the studio went bankrupt and nothing ever came from it. THQ Nordic later acquired the rights and today at the company’s 10th anniversary event, announced Outcast 2: A New Beginning.
The original game was praised for its open-world, non-linear structure, and the sequel takes these elements and expands on them for a modern audience. For those new to the series, the original Outcast put you into the boots of an ex-Marine tough guy Cutter Slade who was sent to a planet, Adelpha, in a parallel dimension to stop a black hole from destroying the world.
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Now Playing: Outcast 2: A New Beginning – Official Gameplay Trailer
The sequel picks up right where the first game left off. Something goes wrong on Cutter’s trip back to his home planet and so he gets stuck for 20 years. He wakes up not back home on Earth, but still on Adelpha, instead. The people of Adelpha have been enslaved, and Cutter must save them. The game aims to separate itself from the pack with a “self-ironic, wholesome” take on sci-fi stories. There are so many dark and gritty sci-fi games on the market, the studio said, so it wanted to go in a different direction and make a game that was both more colorful in terms of its art and its tone. The developers want to make a world where players feel at home.
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Outcast 2 is in development at Belgian outfit Appeal Studios, and the original Outcast’s game director, art director, and composer have returned. In total, about 10 people who worked on the original game are coming back for the sequel, which aims to be bigger, better, and more realized in every way for the new century compared to the first game
It’s still early days and a lot of the features and systems remain under wraps, but THQ said players can use a new jetpack ability and take advantage of a modular weapon system. In addition to shooting mechanics, the game will use magic in some fashion, too.
Outcast 2 does not have a release date yet, but THQ confirmed it’s coming to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, noting that development began in late 2018. The game, which is single-player only, runs on the Unreal Engine 4. It is almost in an alpha state, the studio said.
Following middling reception for the series’ latest releases, THQ Nordic has announced a new Jagged Alliance game with a different developer. Tropico and Surviving Mars developer Haemimont Games is working on Jagged Alliance 3, but it’s early days for the project.
Revealed during the THQ Nordic 10th Anniversary showcase, Jagged Alliance 3 aims to improve upon the tepidly received latest entries by attempting to refocus and refine what made the earlier games so memorable and popular. A representative for THQ Nordic said the team is trying to take the “best swing possible” at making Jagged Alliance 3 a game fans appreciate.
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Now Playing: Jagged Alliance 3 – Official Announcement Trailer
The game takes place in a fictional world rich with resources and also complicated political situations (which is well-trodden territory for Haemimont Games from the Tropico series). The president has been captured and you have been brought in to find out what happened.
Jagged Alliance 3 aims to give players more freedom to explore and learn about the world than previous games, and the action they take and decisions they make will leave a “lasting impact” on the game world, THQ said. The game makes a number of changes from earlier games, including how the traditional quest log is replaced with a notebook that chronicles the story missions and lets you complete objectives on your own time instead of being led from one piece of quest to the next until it is finished. Who you meet and what you do will inform how missions play out, the developers said.
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During a preview event, THQ Nordic showed off a brief look at the environments, and these include city streets, swamps, and cities, among other locations. Jagged Alliance 3 also has a dynamic weather system and a day/night cycle that actually affects gameplay.
In terms of gameplay, Jagged Alliance 3 doesn’t stray from its roots and is once again a turn-based tactical combat game featuring modern weapons and equipment. THQ said it did a lot of research to make sure the sound design and feel of the weapons was right.
As for the cast of characters in the game, Jagged Alliance 3 brings back familiar favorites like Ivan and Tex, but there are new faces, too. There is no final character count yet–and the game overall remains in development so a lot could change–but each character will have their own unique personality and distinct voice over. These characters can be leveled up with new perks, and some have their own specific perks.
Finally, Jagged Alliance 3 has full drop-in, drop-out co-op support for both local and online. No release date for Jagged Alliance 3 was announced.
Leaked by PlayStation earlier this week, THQ Nordic has now officially announced Destroy All Humans 2: Reprobed, a remake of the 2006 game in which you play as an alien trying to kill every human in sight, again. Reprobed is in development at Black Forest Games, the German studio behind the 2020 remake of the original Destroy All Humans.
Reprobed is set in the same time period and city–1960s in a fictional San Francisco called Bay City–along with other locations inspired by places like London, the Soviet Union, and Tokyo. You will even travel to the Moon because this is Destroy All Humans and it’s wacky like that.
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Now Playing: Destroy All Humans 2: Reprobed – Official Cinematic Announcement Trailer
For the remake, the developers at Black Forest said during a presentation that, in addition to better-looking graphics and performance–the destruction system is improved upon. Specifically, damaged buildings will now catch fire and go up in flames before they come crashing down.
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There are also new weapons in the remake–but don’t worry, the probe gun from the original game is indeed making a comeback. One of the new weapons shoots discs, and another, the burrow beast, summons a worm from underground in a nod toward the Kevin Bacon movie Tremors. The Dislocator weapon from the original game is improved, too, and should now be easier to wield and more powerful.
An ability that puts people into a zen-like hippy trance is coming back too, and it’s less overpowered than in the original game, the developers said. Cutscenes are improved in the remake, as well, now featuring more lifelike motion-capture.
Reprobed is playable solo or in split-screen co-op, though Black Forest wasn’t ready to show off the split-screen mode at this stage.
Reprobed is in development a new-gen console exclusive and it will also come to PC. The game is targeted for release in 2022. For more, check out the announcement trailer above.
The first trailer for Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin has been released. The seventh movie in the hugely successful found-footage horror series will be released on Paramount+ on October 29.
The plot for Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin has been shrouded in secrecy, and this teaser doesn’t exactly give much away. It starts with what seems to be a family gathering around the dinner table in an old house where the father welcomes home “our sister Margot.”
The trailer then shows the discovery of a dark, spooky tunnel leading deep underground, followed by lots of quickly-cut scary stuff, including a woman being dragged away by something unseen and the family acting very weird. The trailer also suggests that not all the movie will be in the found-footage style of the previous installments–but we’ll have to wait until next month to find out exactly what it’s all about. Check the trailer out below:
Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin is directed by Will Eubank, who previously made 2020’s aquatic monster movie Underwater. It’s written by Christopher Landon, who wrote parts 3, 4, and 5, and served as director on both Happy Death Day movies (and writer on the second). As with the other films in the Paranormal Activity franchise, it’s produced by Jason Blum for Blumhouse Productions.
The movie was originally set for a theatrical release in March 2022 but has been brought forward for a Halloween premiere on Paramount+. Paramount is developing a number of other movies directly for its streaming platform, including a prequel to the 2017 Stephen King adaptation Pet Sematary.
The Nintendo Wii took the world by storm and became a genuine phenomenon with its mass market appeal. It ended up selling more than 100 million units worldwide to become one of the most successful platforms in the history of video games. No console succeeds without great games, and the Wii had plenty of them. To celebrate the iconic console and its games, we’re rounding up the top 10 best Wii games of all time, from Nintendo and other developers.
More than 1,000 games were released for the Wii, so there are a lot to choose from, but here we present what we believe are the very best. We’ve listed our picks in alphabetical order below, and yes Zelda and Super Mario make multiple appearances each.
2010’s Donkey Kong Country Returns for the Wii was developed by Retro Studios, which was a big change since the series had been developed by Rare before that. Reviving the series, Donkey Kong Country Returns did in fact return the series to its glory days with its challenging gameplay, varied locations, dynamically changing environments to keep players guessing, and whimsical characters. We also praised the game for its fantastic visual design and its earworm of a soundtrack. “Donkey Kong Country Returns is another great game for Nintendo’s furry mascot, and it’s a must-play for anyone craving an old-school platformer,” we said in our review at the time. Donkey Kong Country Returns is also playable on Nintendo 3DS.
HAL’s 2010 platformer Kirby’s Epic Yarn is a joy. This is an adorable game that will surely put a smile on your face, we said in our review at the time. Praised for its incredible visual design, intelligently designed levels, and numerous mini-games to unlock and enjoy, Kirby’s Epic Yarn is a fantastic platformer that was one of the Wii’s very best games. “Every moment you spend in this world is an utter delight,” we said in our review at the time. “Kirby’s Epic Yarn is a great platformer that goes far beyond its eye-catching visuals to deliver an irresistible adventure that’s difficult to put down.” An expanded port dubbed Kirby’s Extra Epic Yarn is available on 3DS.
2011’s Skyward Sword was the first mainline Zelda game developed specifically for the Wii, following the GameCube title Twilight Princess, which also came to Wii as a launch title. Skyward Sword, as its name suggests, takes Link to the skies of Skyloft. Overall, we said Skyward Sword was an “engrossing experience in this venerable franchise.” The game was praised by GameSpot and others for its impressive visual design, its excellent soundtrack, use of the Wii Motion Plus accessory, its compelling puzzles, combat, and its open-ended structure. Skyward Sword was yet another exciting adventure for Link, and an enhanced port with updated features recently released on Nintendo Switch.
A launch title for the Wii (which was also released on the GameCube), The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is one of the best Zelda games of all time. The gameplay and story focused on a dark, parallel universe known as the Twilight Realm. Link could transform into a wolf when the twilight took over, which opened up new possibilities for gameplay and exploration. Twilight Princess is also remembered for its fantastic puzzles and memorable characters. In total, it stays true to the origins and spirit of the Zelda series while leaving its own stamp as well. Twilight Princess was also ported to Wii U in HD.
One of the easiest games to recommend for Wii was Metroid Prime Trilogy. Released in 2009. The game bundles together three Metroid games: Metroid Prime, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, and Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. Critics enjoyed the newly added motion controls for Prime and Echoes. The three Metroid games are brilliant, and putting them together into one package created a must-have bundle for Wii owners looking for the definitive Metroid experience, now with motion controls and other new quality-of-life features like a reworked menu and UI. Now, if we could just get Nintendo to give us some info on Metroid Prime 4. The Metroid Prime Trilogy is available to download on Wii U for cheap.
While many of the best, most memorable Wii games were developed by Nintendo, Capcom’s 2006 action adventure game Okami came to Wii in 2008 and it was a stunner. Directed by Hideki Kamiya, who went on to join Platinum Games and create the Bayonetta series, Okami’s Wii version added motion controls for its celestial brush mechanic and took players to a beautiful, big world for a long and enjoyable adventure. We said in our review at the time, “At a time when the majority of action games are more focused on destruction than renewal, this is an elegant and poignant reminder that some of the most meaningful experiences in games are the ones that enrich and rejuvenate us.” Okami has been ported to a bunch of modern platforms, including the Nintendo Switch.
2007’s Super Mario Galaxy for Wii ranks at the top of our list for being one of the best Mario games of all time–one that offers incredible level design, tight controls, and a brilliant presentation package. In short, it was a game that could be recommended to anyone, and one that many fondly remember as a high point in Mario’s platforming career. Mario goes to outer space in Super Mario Galaxy, and this opens up all manner of exciting and compelling new opportunities for the plumber, like gravity-based puzzles and physics that had never been seen before in the long-running series. Here at GameSpot, we praised Super Mario Galaxy and gave it a score of 9.5/10 for its excellent level design, beautiful graphics, stellar controls, and wonderful soundtrack. Super Mario Galaxy is available to play in Super Mario 3D All-Stars for Switch. Though the compilation was technically discounted earlier this year, you can still find it for retail price.
The 2010 sequel to the acclaimed original Mario Galaxy, Super Mario Galaxy 2 once again took Mario to the heavens where he bounced between galaxies in a bid to save Princess Peach. The game is fondly remembered for taking the best parts of Super Mario Galaxy and adding on to them with even more of what people love. There were new power-ups and the ability to ride Yoshi that opened up completely new and exciting opportunities for players. Here at GameSpot, we scored the sequel a 10/10 and said it would be hard to imagine a Mario game getting any better.
Nintendo’s beloved mascot fight game series came to Wii in 2008 with Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and it was great. Released to both critical acclaim and massive sales, Brawl elevated the series to new heights with its expanded single-player mode, Subspace Emissary, and the addition of third-party characters on its roster, including Sonic and Snake, which would pave the way for Nintendo to further embrace crossover DLC with future games. The game also allowed players to revert to classic GameCube controls instead of being forced to use the Wii Remote–this was a widely praised move from the fighting game community and players at large who wanted a more precise control setup for the button-mashing game. Here at GameSpot, we adored Brawl, calling it a must-have game thanks to its simple yet deep control setup, excellent online play, and for its new features like the ability to create custom levels and watch replays.
Wii Sports was much more than one of the best-selling for any system of all time thanks to how it was bundled with the Wii. It represented the “eureka” moment for many people as they first tried the system. Connecting with a tennis serve and smacking a well-placed backhand with force, or lining up a bowling ball just right, or nailing the timing with the baseball bat to crush a home run to center field–it felt so new and fresh with the Wii’s innovative motion controls. It felt magical, with motion controls being a relatively new gameplay control style at the time. Wii Sports was a fantastic introduction to the system, and it was a great game on its own with fun, simple gameplay that pretty much anyone could enjoy. Wii Sports also introduced the world to Miis, or digital avatars that players could create and tailor to their liking. Wii Sports was so successful that Nintendo released another game, Wii Sports Resort, in 2009 as a standalone title (before getting bundled again later).
LeVar Burton is no longer interested in taking over as the host of Jeopardy! During an appearance on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah on Thursday, the actor and Reading Rainbow host explained why he’s stopped pursuing the job he campaigned for earlier this year.
“I made it public that I wanted it for myself, that it made sense to me. And [my fans] were all about it,” Burton said. “The crazy thing is that when you set your sights on something… they say be careful of what you wish for, because what I found out is that it wasn’t the thing that I wanted after all. What I wanted was to compete. I mean, I wanted the job, right? But then, when I didn’t get it, it was like ‘Well, okay, what’s next?’”
“The opportunities that have come my way as a result of not getting that gig, I couldn’t have dreamt it up,” Burton continued. “If you had given me a pen and paper and said, ‘Well, so what do you want this to really look like?’ If it doesn’t include ‘Jeopardy,’ I wouldn’t have been this generous to myself.”
While Burton won’t be taking over on Jeopardy!, he teased a return to television hosting in the future. “We’re trying to figure out what the right game show for LeVar Burton would be.”
After the death of longtime Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek last year, the iconic game show introduced a series of guests hosts to anchor the production while a new permanent host was being decided on. A Change.org petition urging Jeopardy! to give Burton the job garnered over 287,000 signatures. The online movement became so popular that Burton was booked by the show as a guest host from July 26 to July 30.
The game show has entered a tumultuous production period in recent weeks. Former Jeopardy! executive producer Mike Richards was selected as the new permanent host in August before being abruptly fired from the show just nine days after taking the helm. Jeopardy! legend Ken Jennings and actress Mayim Bialik will take over hosting duties for the remainder of the year while the search for a permanent replacement continues.
J. Kim Murphy is a freelance entertainment writer.
