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Call of Duty: Vanguard‘s second multiplayer beta weekend is now live, bringing PlayStation, Xbox, and PC users together for a weekend of crossplay. In today’s blog post, developer Sledgehammer Games revealed some changes made with this second multiplayer beta test.

Fixes For Weekend 2

Last weekend’s Vanguard beta let players get a taste of some of the guns, maps, and modes set to be featured in Call of Duty’s return to World War II, but there were some concerns of visibility and audio issues. Today, Sledgehammer Games announced one of the visibility issues has been temporarily addressed, which is the distortion that affects the line of sight when players fire their weapons.

Sledgehammer explains, “Distortion has been turned off globally to improve visibility when Aiming Down Sights. Since we’ve disabled distortion globally, this will also affect the appearance of fire and explosions throughout the Beta and reduce overall visual fidelity. This change is a temporary solve to mitigate visibility issues so players can focus on gameplay.”

In terms of audio issues, Sledgehammer says the audio team is aware of volume and mixing issues and bugs thanks to player feedback. It is working to have everything balanced for launch.

A change was also made to the Armor Field Upgrade to keep it from being such an overpowered option. The recharge rate was increased from a fast to slow recharge. The armor health was drastically reduced from 150HP to 50HP.

New Map And Mode

Players can also expect the same weapons, maps, and modes from the first weekend, but the cross-play beta also adds Call of Duty’s classic Search and Destroy mode.

There’s also one new map added to the rotation. Eagle’s Nest is a 6v6 map that feels smaller than the other beta maps. This is a mountainside military post with plenty of interior space and exterior sightlines. However, watch your step when flanking around the sides of the building. The outskirts of this map just drop off in certain areas, making it very easy to fall off the map.

Beta Rewards

Players who reach Level 20 in the beta will receive the “Rat-a-Tat” assault rifle blueprint. This weapon blueprint will be available in Vanguard at launch and on the new Warzone map, which is set to arrive later this year. In addition to the “Rat-a-Tat” blueprint, all players who play the beta will earn a calling card and emblem.

In other Vanguard news, Sledgehammer Games teased a New York Comic Con appearance by tweeting an image of a comic book cover titled Call of Duty: Vanguard.

Call of Duty: Vanguard will arrive on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, and PC on November 5. The release remains on schedule as Activision Blizzard faces a lawsuit from the state of California over alleged harassment and discrimination against women.

New details on Overwatch 2 are on the horizon, with the game set to make a special appearance during the Overwatch League Grand Finals on September 25. There will be looks at reworked heroes as well as a special Overwatch 2 exhibition match.

As part of the Overwatch League Grand Finals preshow and halftime event, Blizzard will put a spotlight on hero reworks for Bastion and Sombra, while also breaking down Bastion’s new look and how it fits into the developer’s philosophy behind designing the sequel.

The first-ever Overwatch 2 exhibition match will feature various pro Overwatch League players taking the game for a spin, and should give fans their best look yet at the game in action. The finals and exhibition match will be livestreamed via YouTube.

Blizzard’s most recent Overwatch 2 update came back in May, when a “What’s Next” livestream revealed new maps like New York City and Rome alongside the new Push game mode and visual and gameplay changes to heroes like Winston, Mei, and Torbjörn. It was also revealed that Overwatch 2 would be moving to a 5v5 format, away from the original’s 6v6 matches. An early build of Overwatch 2 will be played for the Overwatch League’s 2022 season, which starts in April.

The Overwatch League Grand Finals, and its spotlight on Overwatch 2, comes as Blizzard continues to deal with the fallout from a state of California lawsuit alleging widespread harassment and discrimination against women employees at Activision Blizzard.

Following the lawsuit’s allegations, a number of major sponsors vanished from the official Overwatch League website, while others, like Coca-Cola, publicly said it would be taking a step back to revisit future plans and programs. Those same allegations also led to the departure of numerous veteran Blizzard employees implicated in activities named in the lawsuit, including former lead level designer Jesse McCree. The Overwatch hero sharing McCree’s name will be undergoing a name change as a result. Overwatch 2 does not currently have a release date.

God of War: Ragnarok is the second and final entry in Sony Santa Monica’s Norse saga, and now series veteran Cory Barlog has shed some light on why the studio is planning to wrap things up with Ragnarok. Speaking to Kaptain Kuba, Barlog said there are “several reasons” for this, the first of which is that games of this size and scale simply take a very long time to make, and Barlog doesn’t want the saga to drag out too long. Also in the interview, Barlog compared the God of War Norse saga to the extended edition box set of The Lord of the Rings.

“I think one of the most important reasons is the first game took five years. The second game, I don’t know how long it’s going to take, but I’m just going to throw out that it’s going to take close to a similar time to do this. And then you think, ‘Wow, a third one…’ we’re talking a span of close to 15 years of a single story. And I feel like that’s just too stretched out. I feel like we’re asking too much to say the actual completion of that story, taking that long, just feels too long,” Barlog said.

“And given where the team is at and where [director Eric Williams] is at with what he wanted to do, I was like, I think we can actually do this in the second story.”

From the beginning, Barlog wanted to tell a story about Kratos and Atreus–they are the “core of the story’s engine,” as he put it. The complexities that stem from that relationship have plenty of room to grow, but Barlog didn’t want to stretch things too far.

“The complexity radiates out, like ripples in a pond. We could make it an ocean, and have those ripples just go for thousands of miles. But is that necessary and is that beneficial, or are we feeling like you know what, it’s just spreading it too far apart?” Barlog said. “The ripples get too far apart and you sort of lose the plot a little bit.”

Being able to condense the God of War Norse saga story into two games is similar to how you could sit down and watch all the Lord of the Rings films and feel like you were told a complete story that had a strict beginning and end.

“Being able to condense it and feel like that experience I had when I got the extended edition box set of The Lord of the Rings, and I was able to say, I can sit down and have like 13.5 hours of this experience playing them one after another back to back, and I just thought that was fantastic. Amazing,” he said. “So to be able to say, you could start God of War 2018 and then play God of War Ragnarok and feel like you’re getting the entirety of the story. And I kind of want that to happen before my kid is in college.”

Barlog also said a two-game arc for the God of War Norse saga felt right for what Eric Williams, the new director, had in mind for the game.

While Ragnarok is the final entry in the Norse saga, Barlog said he plans to make a “big splash” with a different project as his next game, though he didn’t share any details.

Ragnarok launches in 2022 for PS4 and PS5. For more, check out GameSpot’s roundup of everything we know about God of War Ragnarok.

Microsoft is scaling back its support for Halo: The Master Chief Collection, announcing that the upcoming Season 8 launch will be the final new season of 2021 as 343 shifts its focus to Halo Infinite. That being said, 343 still has lots of new content planned for MCC in the future, including potentially new content for Halo 2.

In a blog post, 343 said the remainder of 2021 will be a “wild one” for 343 with the launch of Halo Infinite coming up on December 8. There are separate teams working on Infinite and MCC, but there are some shared areas like services, support, and community management. As such, 343 is understandably focusing more of its attention on Infinite.

“It’s important to us that we position MCC’s eighth season for success but also help alleviate any conflicts that could take away from the studio’s focus on Halo Infinite’s launch. To that end, Season 8’s release later this Fall will be our last official MCC update of this calendar year. Suffice it to say that we’re going to finish the year on a high note with a jam-packed season that’s actually swelled in some regards as pieces once ear-marked for later this year were pulled in to clear the landing zone for Halo Infinite.”

343 said it has already had “a lot of conversations” about the best way to continue to support MCC when Halo Infinite launches. Releasing seasonal updates for two games, at the same time, doesn’t make sense for the studio. “One, we have more MCC work to do and support will continue; and two, as a studio it’s not ideal to run and continue shipping seasonal updates for two different multiplayer titles concurrently. So, while we very much have more updates coming–including more content, fixes, and features–the manner in which they are delivered is expected to shift.”

Beginning in 2022, MCC will move away from the seasonal model and shift to a focus on “smaller” updates. “These updates will continue to be free and will include the unreleased features and content from this year–as well as a continued effort to improve stability and tackle legacy fixes where possible. We still have a lot of goodness to deliver in 2022,” 343 said.

“This likely brings up a lot of questions–namely what this might mean for challenges, season points, the Exchange, and all the other specific aspects that have come to make up a typical MCC season. We’re working through more detailed plans for the future of MCC and look forward to sharing more info early next year. In the meantime, we’re focused on finalizing Season 8 to ensure we give you an amazing release to cap off the year for MCC,” 343 added.

MCC could get even more DLC maps in 2022, it seems. The developers said in the blog post that there are more maps they would like to evaluate and consider for release in the game, for Halo 3 or other titles. The recent DLC maps for Halo 3 in MCC came from Halo Online, the canceled free-to-play Halo game for Russia. The latest one is Icebox, a remake of Halo 2’s Turf, which is scheduled to release in Season 8.

“We are always thinking about what to add to Halo: MCC and the list never seems to end. The team loves these games and we hear your requests and feedback. The question is, if we wanted to add new content, which game do we add it to? We hear some players out there are looking for more Halo 2 content, for example…” design director Max Szlagor teased.

343 recently wrapped up a beta test for MCC Season 8, so an official release date might be announced soon. As for Infinite, after a year-long delay, it is scheduled for release on December 8. The multiplayer is a free standalone game, while the campaign is included with Xbox Game Pass.

Titan Comics has unveiled six variant covers for the first issue of its Cowboy Bebop comic series, which is based on the new Netflix live-action adaptation of the iconic anime.

The upcoming miniseries, written by Dan Watters with art by Lamar Mathurin, aims to expand the Cowboy Bebop universe with an original story set in the world of the Netflix show. The first issue hits shelves on December 8 and there are six variant covers to choose from. Have a browse through our slideshow below and let us know which one you would pick:

Stanley ‘Artgerm’ Lau is the artist behind the primary cover to Titan Comics’ Cowboy Bebop #1, which means his cover for the issue is also available in black and white. The rest of the covers feature different takes and various styles having been drawn by a range of artists, including Claudia Ianniciello, Afu Chan, and Yishan Li.

The Cowboy Bebop comic series will transport readers into the future with a story set in the year 2171, where a bounty hunter crew of the spaceship Bebop are being chased down by an ex-gang member who holds a vest that gives the wearer “unlimited luck,” so the Bebop bunch will need to have more than just luck on their side.

The four-issue series is based on Netflix’s live-action Cowboy Bebop series, which is set to arrive on the streamer on November 19. The show seems to be faithfully recreating the look and feel of the popular anime, with an all-star cast line-up that features John Cho, Mustafa Shakir, and Daniela Pinada, amongst others.

The comic is part of a broader push for Cowboy Bebop, with the live-action adaptation also getting a supporting prequel novel written by Sean Cummings, and an official companion book for the Netflix series showcasing concept art and behind-the-scenes photography across its pages, with a foreward by showrunner André Nemec.

The prequel novel, titled Cowboy Bebop: A Syndicate Story: Red Planet Requiem, will be releasing just a few days after the show on November 23, and the companion book will be launching on January 11. The first installment in the four-issue comic series will be out December 8, with a trade paperback to follow in May 2022.

Adele Ankers is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Sony recently announced a brand new entry into the PS5 accessories family, the Midnight Black Pulse 3D Headset, to go alongside the standard white PS5 Headset. It will release on October 29, 2021, and costs £89.99 in the UK. Preorders are now live at Amazon.

Pulse 3D Headset in Midnight Black Now Available to Preorder

The new colour for the Pulse 3D Headset directly follows up from the release of DualSense Controllers in Midnight Black and Cosmic Red. Which now begs the question, what colours will we see next, and will Sony ever release alternate faceplate covers for the console?

Robert Anderson is a deals expert and Commerce Editor for IGN. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter.

343 Industries has once again stated that Halo 5 won’t be heading to PC anytime soon, despite a recent datamine leak suggesting otherwise.

343’s stance on the matter comes after the recent Nvidia GeForce Now leak which seemed to point to a number of potential PC announcements for various games including Sony’s God of War, Gears of War 6, and Halo 5: Guardians.

As fans once again built up hope for a PC port of the 2015 Halo game, Community Director at 343 Industries, Brian Jarrard, was quick to clarify the 343i’s stance. He addressed fans on Twitter, explaining that while the studio will never say never, it currently has no plans to bring the game over to PC.

“Maybe this was for H5:Forge,” Jarrard said. “But I can confirm there are no plans to bring H5 to PC. We know there’s some demand for it, but as we’ve stated before, not in the cards as the studio is fully focused on Infinite and MCC. Will never say never, but nothing [is] underway currently.”

Maybe this was for “H5:Forge” but I can confirm there are no plans to bring H5 to PC. We know there’s some demand for it, but as we’ve stated before, not in the cards as the studio is fully focused on Infinite and MCC. Will never say never, but nothing underway currently

— Brian Jarrard (@ske7ch) September 13, 2021

As noted in the response, 343 Industries’ current focus is largely directed toward the upcoming release of Halo Infinite. Following the conclusion of the game’s recent technical preview, the studio has been working on a number of tweaks and changes brought about by the feedback it received from the event. One such change comes to Infinite’s combat sensor, which the developer says it has updated to feel more like the ‘motion tracker’ of old Halo games.

In a bid to receive further feedback on Halo Infinite, 343 has announced that further previews of the game will roll out before it launches later this year. The next multiplayer preview for Halo Infinite is set to go live on September 24. All players with a fully registered Halo Insider profile (created before September 13) are eligible for the preview.

Halo Infinite is set to be released for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on December 8. For more on the game, make sure to check out this article detailing why some fans are feeling worried about 343’s approach to Halo Infinite’s multiplayer progression.

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

After releasing Yakuza: Like a Dragon last year, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios is back with another trip to Yokohama in the form of Lost Judgment. A sequel to 2018’s Judgment, the legal suspense game stars detective Takayuki Yagami once again as he finds himself caught up in the middle of a murder mystery.

Ahead of its release on September 24, reviews have gone live for the game from several outlets, with most writers praising Lost Judgment’s lengthy story, gameplay improvements, and brutally effective combat.

While the sequel is an improvement when compared to the original, it has been noted that it doesn’t venture far enough into the elements that make it stand apart from the regular Yakuza series of games.

“It’s hard not to feel disappointed that you still feel like a passenger when it breaks away from the Yakuza mould,” critic Richard Wakeling wrote in GameSpot’s Lost Judgment review. “If this is indeed our last time with Yagami and co., then it’s one to cherish. There will just always be a nagging feeling that this was a missed opportunity to do something truly special.”

We’ve compiled some more reviews from around the industry below, and for an even more detailed look, check out GameSpot sister site Metacritic.

• Game: Lost Judgment
• Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S
• Developer: Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios
• Release Date: September 24
• Price: $60

GameSpot – 7/10

“Lost Judgment improves on its predecessor by cutting down on some of the more tedious elements of its design rather than outright changing the mechanics to make the investigative side of the equation more engaging. In this sense, it’s disappointing that it doesn’t lean into what makes Judgment unique compared to the Yakuza series and instead remains at its best when sticking close to those origins.” — Richard Wakeling [Full review]

RPG Site – 9/10

“If you’re looking for 2021’s most-improved sequel, Lost Judgment might be it. It offers many new and cool things to do while striking a fine balance between a goofy Yakuza spin-off and a spectacular crime drama that tackles difficult themes not seen often enough in games.” — Josh Torres [Full review]

SiliconEra – 9/10

“Lost Judgment once again puts players in the sneakers of lawyer turned street-fighting detective Takayuki Yagami. Joined by his partner, ex-yazuka Masaharu Kaito, the crime-fighting duo is called on to investigate a seemingly perfect crime whose lead suspect has an airtight alibi. PlayStation 5 version reviewed.” — Graham Russell [Full review]

VGC – 4/5

“Lively combat and engrossing social clubs keep you busy, but it’s the much-improved detective story that elevates Lost Judgment above the original.” — Matthew Castle [Full review]

Destructoid – 8/10

“Judgment may have been an acquired taste in many ways, but the sequel makes some of the bitterness go down easier. Given that you can basically dive in here and feel sufficiently caught up with a new case as the focus, it’s for the best. I really hope we haven’t seen the last of this subseries, because the creators seem to really care about it.” — Chris Carter [Full review]

Game Informer – 73/100

“When Lost Judgment stumbles, it never recovers. While there’s a lot to love in the story and gameplay, at the end of the day, its issues become too much to ignore – especially when those issues are messy and irresponsible.” — Blake Hester [

Shacknews – 7/10

“Sega is clearly capable of making a compelling mystery game that could stand in league with the work we see out of studios like Naughty Dog, but that will require a more focused, better-paced approach that Lost Judgement seems eager to avoid.” — Chris Jarrard [Full review]

For more on Lost Judgment, you can check out the gameplay trailer that shows off the many mini-games you can try out and the opening cinematic that turns the dramatic brooding up to 11. If you’re wondering if you should grab a version for PS4 or Xbox One, the good news is that the game comes with a free PS5/Xbox Series X|S upgrade option.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star Florian Munteanu has detailed some deleted scenes featuring his character Razor Fist.

Speaking with ComicBookMovie.com, Munteanu discussed his role in Marvel’s Shang-Chi and revealed that his character, Razor Fist, will appear in a couple of deleted scenes on the film’s upcoming Blu-ray release. The actor said the team had shot an extended battle scene with him but unfortunately it ended up being cut from the theatrical release.

“We had that big end battle, and you [originally] would have seen a bit more there from Razor Fist,” Munteanu explained. “I’m looking forward to people seeing that because there was a reason why he replaced his blade with the dragon sword and fights with two swords, but I don’t want to spoil too much and I don’t want to give away too much.”

Munteanu also revealed that, at one time, there had been plans to show more of his character’s backstory and origins. One scene would have shown more of Razor Fist’s recruitment into the Ten Rings organization and his relationship with Wenwu, including how he gave him “a new life and purpose and a home.”

“[Wenwu] trained him and took him away from the streets. That’s also something you will see in the bonus material,” the actor teased about the extras included with Shang-Chi’s home release. “[Xialing’s] his daughter, so there’s more meaning to that than just following a new leader, but we’ll have to see what happens.”

There’s no release date for the home release of Shang-Chi yet but the movie has managed to stay atop the box office charts in its second weekend at theaters, with a U.S. haul of $35.8 million. It has also officially crossed the $250 million mark at the global box office and has a worldwide total of $257.6 million.

Shang-Chi’s success has reportedly prompted Disney to make a decision to release Marvel’s Eternals exclusively in theaters when it arrives on November 5, though there hasn’t been any official announcement in regards to whether it will play exclusively in theaters before moving to streaming platforms or whether it will replicate Black Widow’s day-and-date release.

Adele Ankers is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.