The new series American Horror Stories–a spinoff of American Horror Story–is airing its final episode of its first season on August 19 on FX on Hulu. Ahead of the season finale, FX announced it has ordered a second installment of the anthology series.
Returning in 2022, American Horror Stories had the most successful to date of any FX on Hulu series, according to a press release. FX did not reveal what exactly “most successful” actually means–as far as viewership goes. The series is executive produced by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, Alexis Martin Woodall, John J. Gray, and Manny Coto.
The season finale airs Thursday, August 19 on Hulu, and the episode is titled “Game Over.” It follows a couple who spend the night in a haunted house. The episode is written by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk and directed by Liz Friedlander.
American Horror Stories’ first season certainly covered a variety of topics within its first season. From a two-episode debut diving deeper into Murder House to feral humans to a movie that makes you kill people, the show definitely made its mark with Season 1.
And while American Horror Stories is winding down, the next season of American Horror Story is coming soon. Titled Double Feature, the latest season will debut on August 25 at 10 PM on FX, and streaming the next day via FX on Hulu.
Hasbro and Hero Collector are joining forces to launch their first-ever Kickstarter campaign for an all-new Transformers Chess Set that is modeled after the classic 1980s Generation One (G1) Transformers animated cartoon.
The Kickstarter launches today, August 13, and has a planned delivery date of Q4 2022. There are a ton of different backer gifts to choose from if you wish to help support the project, including a Transformers pin badge, Transformers profile book, and more exclusive Gen-1 chess pieces.
This Transformers chess set features 32 unique game pieces – 16 for the heroic Autobots and 16 for the villainous Deceptions in robot form – and each model is digitally sculpted, casted in metallic resin, and then painted by hand.
Each model stands 4-6” tall on a base that is marked with their respective emblem, and the board itself is Cybertron-themed and features color-coded symbols in Autobot red or Decepticon purple.
Some of the iconic Transformers already revealed as chess pieces are as follows;
Autobot King: Optimus Prime – The beloved commander of the Autobots, Optimus Prime championed freedom in countless clashes across Cybertron – and Earth, where he adopted his famous truck alternate mode.
Autobot Knight: Hot Rod – A young and brash Autobot with a race car alt-mode, Hot Rod eventually grew to lead the Autobots – as Rodimus Prime!
Autobot Pawn: Bumblebee – The heart of the Autobots, Bumblebee was quick to befriend their human allies in his iconic yellow beetle alt-mode.
Autobot Pawn: Prowl – The surly strategist of the Autobots, Prowl’s police car alt-mode suited his no-nonsense personality.
Decepticon King: Megatron – The feared leader and founder of the Decepticons, and the eternal nemesis of Optimus Prime, Megatron sought nothing less than complete iron-fisted domination of Cybertron!
Decepticon Queen: Starscream – The scheming second-in-command of the Decepticons, Starscream constantly plotted to overthrow Megatron.
Decepticon Knight: Soundwave – The loyal comms officer of the Decepticons, Soundwave gathered intelligence using his trio of cassette-minions.
Decepticon Knight: Shockwave – The ops commander of the Decepticons, Shockwave’s cold logic and laser-turret mode made him a deadly threat.
There will be much more information shared as the Kickstarter campaign progresses, including the full roster of chess pieces and details of potential stretch goals.
Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchcuk’s horror anthology series, American Horror Stories, has been renewed for a second season. Additionally, two new American Story spin-offs have also been greenlit.
The first season of American Horror Stories is currently ongoing, and will conclude on August 19. Unlike its parent show’s season-long plots told in a serialised format, American Horror Stories is a weekly anthology with episodic, stand alone horror tales each week.
Meanwhile, American Horror Story will air the first episode of its tenth season – named Double Feature – on August 25 on FX.
In addition to a new season of American Horror Stories, FX also announced that Murphy and Falchuk will be creating two new ‘American Story’ shows with collaborators Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson. American Sports Story and American Love Story. ASS will be based on the rise and fall of NFL player Aaron Hernandez, while ALS will focus on the romance between John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD was the best-selling game of July 2021 in the United States, according to NDP Group. Additionally, PS5 led the console pack in terms of console sales last month.
The sales figures mean The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword has become the first Nintendo game to top the US spending chart since Super Mario 3D World in February 2021. Meanwhile, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War finished in second place, and Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin featured in third. The second instalment of the Monster Hunter Stories series has reportedly more than tripled the lifetime sales of its predecessor, Monster Hunter Stories, which was released on Nintendo DS to the US in September 2017.
Whilst Nintendo led the pack for full-game software spending in July, hardware sales across the month were a little more complicated. The Nintendo Switch led the pack for unit sales in the US, whilst the PlayStation 5 positioned itself in pole position for dollar sales in the month.
According to NPD’s report, video game hardware dollar sales in July grew by 98% when compared to the same period in 2020. At $323 million USD, that positions July 2021 as the highest total achieved in a month of July spending since 2008 ($447 million USD) when the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Nintendo Wii were coming into their own. In terms of overall hardware sales for 2021 (which stand at $2.7 billion USD), the current year-to-date figure suggests that sales are up 50% compared to the same period last year.
In light of the game’s recent sales success, make sure to check out our review of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD, in which we described the game as a masterpiece and awarded it a 10/10. Alternatively, if you’re currently in need of a few extra tips and hints during your playthrough of Skyward Sword then take a look at our complete strategy guide and walkthrough.
Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.
With the final season of AMC’s long-running The Walking Dead upon us — which premieres Sunday, August 22 (and a week earlier, August 15, on AMC+) — we’re opening the floor up to you, the IGN audience, to find out which Walking Dead zompocalypse character is the most badass zombie killer on the show!
Season 11, which will contain 24 episodes overall, split into eight-episode batches, will bring us into the harsh realm of a crumbling Alexandria. In the wake of the Whisperer War, our heroes’ communities are in ruin. With supplies at an all-time low and morale suffering greatly, Daryl, Carol, Maggie, and the others must make a desperate play to protect their people. But with Negan along for the ride will Maggie be able to contain her rage and not sabotage best-laid plans because of vengeance? Meanwhile, now in a contained interrogation environment thanks to the armored, paranoid citizenry of the Commonwealth, Ezekiel, Eugene, Yumiko, and Princess must figure out if their new captors are friend or foe.
And with all that, there’s still an ample amount of walker wasting to be done! So who’s the best at slaying the undead? Is it Daryl and his trusty crossbow? Aaron and his spiked-mace hand? Negan doesn’t have Lucille anymore but he’s still one of the best ghoul gankers out there. And you don’t just get to vote for characters who are still alive. Eeeeeveryone is here: From early faces like Merle and T-Dog to gone-too-soon greats like Glenn, Tyreese, Shane, and more! The choice is yours…
Like the name suggests, a Face-Off pits two things against one another and you decide which one is the superior of the two. In this case, you are voting to determine who the best Walking Dead character is. It’s possible to see certain characters multiple times so you can keep voting for your favorites to ensure they get ranked higher than the rest. IGN’s resident team of The Walking Dead experts pre-selected 101 amazing characters for you to choose from. These get randomly paired up and each time you pick a winner, it’s tracked.
How Do You Determine a Winner?
When voting ends on August 22, we tally up the total number of “wins” and “losses” each Walking Dead character has, and create a ranked list based on your choices that will go live on August 23. The character that won the most matchups will be crowned the “winner,” and in the event of a tied number of “wins,” the party member with the least “losses” will take the top spot. If you continue to keep voting for your favorite character, they’ll have a better chance of ranking high on the list. You can vote as many times as you want until the Face-Off closes.
How Do I Know When I’ve Clicked Through Everything?
It’s difficult to know when you’ve seen every Walking Dead character included because they are matched randomly and there are so many possible match-ups. Playing until you vote for all your favorite characters or ensuring that certain characters don’t get in the winner’s circle are different options you can take with a Face-Off. By deciding the winner throughout all these matchups, you’re ensuring that your picks for the best Walking Dead character will have a fighting chance to reach the top of the list.
Which Walking Dead Characters Have You Included?
The list of Walking Dead characters has been decided by IGN staff, with the characters coming from the main The Walking Dead show on AMC. This list includes characters who are no longer with us but still deserve a chance to be crowned the best.
For more on The Walking Dead, check out the latest trailer for the 11th and final season, which will be split into three parts and is set to premiere on August 22, 2021. If you have a subscription to AMC+, you will be able to stream all episodes one week early.
Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.
This free-to-play early access shooter has actually been around for over 2 years now but recently it has taken the internet by storm going from a peak player count of less than 1,000 back in June to over 67,000 at the time of this video and growing, thanks to it’s recent release on PlayStation and Xbox. In an age where the competitive shooter space is highly crowded, and indie shooters don’t really make much of an impression, this is impressive to say the least. It begs two questions, what makes Splitgate so damn appealing and should you play it?
The Epos H3 doesn’t have a lot going on. It’s a wired gaming headset with a 3.5mm connection, no special features to speak of, and it costs $119. But if you take a closer look, it has some little touches that show a closer attention to detail, like a two-hinge system that keeps the ear cups flush. And if you listen close, you can hear that there’s detail and clarity to its sound that you might not find in a lesser headset. The Epos H3 isn’t perfect, but it’d be a mistake to take a quick glance and not consider its finer qualities.
Epos H3 – Design & Features
The Epos H3 is a straightforward wired gaming headset with a few subtle tweaks to maximize comfort and ease of use. The top band is made of black plastic with an adjustable steel core, which is marked with numbered notches to help you set your head size symmetrically. The top band features memory foam padding coated with a healthy coating of leatherette all the way around the band, which gives it a refined look.
The top band attaches to the ear cups horizontally, sitting in front of the cans rather than directly above. Meaning the top band sits forward on your head a bit more than most headsets. Though it is a distinct change, the visual difference is more subtle than you might think. When you look at the headset before you put it on, it almost looks backwards. If you look at yourself in the mirror with the headset on, you don’t notice a thing. Most importantly, at 279 grams, it sits light on your head. You won’t forget you’re wearing a headset – the ear cups fit a little too well for that – but it’s easy to wear all day.
The most notable elements of H3’s material design are its dual-hinged plastic forks. The two hinges, one vertical and one horizontal allow for the ear cups to get a flush fit on the sides of your head. It also allows you to easily adjust them if the seal starts to feel more tight than snug.
The ear cups themselves are long half-moons, padded with thick memory foam. According to Epos, the shape is designed to make the headset more comfortable and keep the cans from hanging on your ears. This works swimmingly, so long as you make sure the headset is well-adjusted. If you don’t take a moment to find the size that works for you and make sure it’s symmetrical, the narrow shape will box your ears and get uncomfortable quickly. That isn’t a problem, but it’s worth knowing that tailoring your experience is a requirement, not just a perk.
The H3 has only one on-set control, an inset volume wheel, which I rarely used. The headset comes in slightly soft at the default, full volume: The moment I started playing with the wheel, the volume was too low.
The Epos H3 comes with two cables; a 1.5 meter 3.5mm jack and a 3.5-meter Y-shaped audio cable for PC. I was peeved to find that, while the cable is detachable, the smaller audio jack and unique housing means you cannot swap them out for non-Epos cables. The default 1.5-meter cable is on the short side, so it would be nice to swap it out for a longer cable in some situations.
Lastly, the H3 features a comparatively large bidirectional mic on a thick but flexible plastic boom arm. Unlike most headsets in recent years, the mic is not detachable: It’s built into the housing of the left ear cup. When you flip it up the off position, the mic auto-mutes: In a nice touch, there’s an audible click when the headset moves in or out of mute position.
Epos H3 – Gaming
The Epos H3 looks refined, and it puts out a crisp, clear sound to match. Though Epos describes the headset’s soundscape as bassy, I’d say it’s quite even-keeled: Yes, it brings some bass, but its mids and highs sing as well across games like Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Dead by Daylight, Days Gone, and Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, among others.
In Call of Duty, I could tell the difference between close and too close bullets based on how they sound whizzing by. Sailing the rivers of England in AC Valhalla, you can hear the smooth timbre of your vikings’ songs. In Dead by Daylight, still my competitive go-to, I was able to locate detailed sounds like footsteps, trash fires, and crows by sound alone. Though there are headsets that offer more robust experiences with deeper, more nuanced sound, you can hear a good amount of detail in most in-game situations.
One noticeable, not so great trait: The headset’s volume, by default, is somewhat soft. As I mentioned, the volume wheel isn’t particularly useful unless you turn the system volume on your device very loud. I could always hear when playing on my PS5 or Xbox Series X but found myself frequently looking to make the volume just a smidge louder.
The microphone is generally very clear and easier to position than I expected, given its size. Although Epos described it as a noise-canceling mic, I found it picks up ambient noise just a little more fully than other headsets that feature microphones with active noise cancellation. It’s a small difference that, in my testing, didn’t impact gameplay at all but might make you think twice before using it for streaming or other, more demanding audio work.
With the launch of Call of Duty Season 5, a number of new weapons have been added to the game for use in both Warzone and Black Ops Cold War. The EM2 assault rifle, TEC-9 submachine gun, and cane melee weapon can all be yours for free, but you’ll need to put in some time in order to unlock them. Here’s how to get your hands on them.
How to unlock EM2
EM2
Unlocking the EM2 is exceedingly simple: You just need to reach tier 15 of this season’s battle pass. This is a free reward, so you don’t need to actually purchase the battle pass to gain access to this reward once you hit level 15, though purchasing the battle pass (and gaining the benefit of 10% bonus XP) will help you to reach that milestone more quickly.
The EM2 is a full-auto assault rifle, and although its fire rate isn’t especially high, it comes equipped with a low-zoom optic by default, meaning you won’t need to rely on iron sights when you first start using it.
How to unlock TEC-9
TEC-9
The TEC-9 submachine gun is unlocked in a similar fashion. Simply reach tier 31 from the battle pass to start using it. Once again, you don’t need to purchase the battle pass to actually receive this reward; it’s available for free to everyone by simply ranking up enough. (In Zombies, you can unlock it by using a melee weapon to kill 20+ enemies in a row without getting hit 50 times.)
The TEC-9 is a semi-auto SMG with fairly high speed and accuracy stats compared to most other SMGs. If you don’t like the semi-auto style, attachments will let you change that to either a three-round burst or fully automatic.
How to unlock the cane
Season 5’s cane weapon
Unlike the guns above, the cane is unlocked by completing an associated challenge. This will require you to be equipped with another melee weapon, as the challenge calls for you to get a kill with a melee weapon on an enemy who has been affected by your stun grenade or flashbang. You’ll need to do this in 15 different completed matches.
The cane is just that–a walking cane that turns lethal in the hands of Call of Duty combatants. It features identical stats to the mace, but it’s a bit classier looking when you’re not smacking people over the head with it. You can customize the look (and get some other goodies) with the Stolen Goods bundle on the store.
New weapon blueprints
Alongside the actual new weapons, the Season 5 battle pass introduces a number of weapon blueprints. You can get a look at those below along with the tier at which you unlock them. Unlike the base weapons, you will need to purchase the battle pass to gain access to most of these blueprints (a few can be unlocked for free and are marked as such below). Most notable among these is likely the Geomatik assault rifle unlocked at tier 95; this has a glowing effect that increases in intensity as you earn kills during a match.
Here’s some good news for anyone in the market for a smart watch, fitness tracker, or wrist-mounted internet machine: Apple Watch Series 6 is on sale for $100 off at Amazon right now. It almost never drops that low, so now is a good time to buy if you’ve been on the fence. The deal only applies to the (Product)Red color scheme, but it’s a great color.
Apple Watch Series 6 is the latest version of the company’s smartwatch. The 40mm GPS model normally retails for $399, but right now you can get one for $299 at Amazon.
Apple Watch Series 6: Save $100
The Apple Watch Series 6 brings all the high-tech features of previous models forward and adds a handful of new hardware and software features of its own. So it still offers all kinds of internet connectivity, like letting you place and receive phone calls and send and read text messages. The always-on screen, inherited from Series 5, is 2.5-times brighter than the previous model as well.
Apple Watches are full-featured fitness trackers. They count your steps, track a range of exercises from swimming to yoga, and can periodically remind you to stand up and move around.
As for what’s new in Series 6, the headline new features are all about health. You can monitor your blood oxygen level now, thanks to a new sensor. You can take an ECG anytime, if you’re interested in that kind of thing. It also has a new sleep app that helps you set a nighttime routine and can monitor your rest. You can even set sleep goals for yourself, and it will track them for you.
Beyond all that, you can swap out watch bands to match your outfit or mood. They play nicely with other Apple products, like Airpods, the company’s wireless earbuds. It’s a good watch, and this is one of the best deals we’ve seen on it. Grab it before it’s gone.
Apple AirPod Deals
Chris Reed is a commerce editor and deals expert at IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @_chrislreed.
The Fortnite Minty Legends Pack is set to chill out in the Item Shop this fall, giving players three new skins and 10 total new items bundled together. The Minty Legends Pack releases on November 2 and will also include V-Bucks in the bundle, which has yet to be given a price.
The Minty Legends Pack focuses on three in-game skins, and all of them are original characters in the Fortnite universe. One of them is even an alternate look for a popular fan-made skin. Aura, Oro, and Bright Bomber have been reimagined as Fresh Aura, Skellemint Oro, and Minty Bomber respectively. Each character features a new color palette of cool colors such as blue, purple, and glowing green eyes like they just dropped onto the island out of a chewing gum-sponsored Battle Bus.
Though the full reveals of the remaining seven items weren’t shown off just yet, the accessories were detailed. Along with the three characters come three back blings, three pickaxes, and one wrap. You can see these unnamed accessories in the promo image below. All of this, plus 1,000 V-Bucks will be sold in the Item Shop for a dollar amount–not V-Bucks–starting on November 2.
The Minty Legends bring chilly new styles to Fortnite this November.
Epic tends to release these bundled character packs every few months and always seems to have one ready for the holiday season. Last year, it was the DC Comics-centric Last Laugh Bundle that got the holiday spotlight. It included the Fortnite debuts of DC villains Joker and Poison Ivy alongside a new alternate skin for Fortnite original Midas, clad in a suit of golden armor.
If the Minty Legends Pack is promoted just as past packs have been, you should be able to find physical cards with redemption codes in stores, but you’ll also be able to unlock the set in the digital store. It’s also safe to assume these characters will never be sold separately, as bundles like this never have been before–just ask Captain Marvel or Black Panther.
If you’ve got V-Bucks burning a hole through your e-pockets in the meantime, you can still find the Ariana Grande skin in the store for a few more days, or the new Free Guy skin too.
