WWE Releases Aleister Black, Lana, Braun Strowman, And More

WWE has announced the release of some of its biggest stars of the past five years in a surprising sweep. Originally revealed by Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful and then officially confirmed by WWE, the names on the release sheet come as a shock: Aleister Black, Brawn Strowman, Ruby Riott, Lana, Buddy Murphy, and Santana Garrett.

Black and Strowman are considered the biggest surprises to have been released, given the fact that Strowman was Universal Champion just last year and found himself back in the title picture in recent weeks. Black was just repackaged on Smackdown coming back from injury as the “Darkfather.”

Lana might be more of a given due to her husband, current AEW TNT Champion Miro, making waves down in Florida, and the two work well together. Murphy had been sort of shuffling along and Ruby Riott was just getting started again.

This is the second release wave of the year. Following Wrestlemania in April, Samoa Joe, the IIconics, and Mickie James were released, but this wave here is still really surprising.

It’s unclear if more releases are coming, but with the company going back on the road after more than a year, company expenses might rise and cost-cutting efforts could go into effect.

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No Man’s Sky Prisms Update Out Now, Adds Flying Pets And DLSS Support

Hello Games has just released the latest update for No Man’s Sky, called Prisms, and it’s a big one. In addition to support for Deep Learning Super Sampling and improved graphical fidelity, the update also includes flying pets, better weather patterns, and other changes.

Prisms, which is technically No Man’s Sky Update 3.5, is largely centered around improvements to the visual quality and aesthetic of the game. For example, planetary creatures can now sport fur; in the past, the aliens you’d encounter would largely look reptilian, dinosaur-like, or insect-like. A lot of environments have been given a fresh coat of paint, too; caves are richer and more full of life, while skyboxes will show off more stars. Prisms also includes some substantial improvements to lighting and textures, such as better torch visuals, light refractions, and parallax occlusion mapping.

The developer has also incorporated some additional graphics technology into the game, such as support for DLSS. This tech basically uses a fancy upscaling algorithm to reduce the tradeoff between resolution, graphics quality, and frame rate, allowing more PCs to run the game at high resolutions and retain strong performance. In addition, No Man’s Sky now has screen space reflections (SSRs) in certain locations, which allows for more realistic lighting and reflections, primarily indoors.

It’s not all graphical changes, though. Hello Games states that you can now make “virtually every lifeform you encounter” into a companion, including flying creatures. In addition, lightning and meteor storms have been made more visually complex and now can award resources: If you trace a lightning or meteor strike to its location, you may be able to get storm crystals or harvestable minerals.

There’s a lot more to this patch, and you can read about the whole suite of changes in the patch notes below. Hello Games has been consistently iterating on the game basically since it launched back in 2016, and it appears that the studio isn’t done yet. Recently, Hello Games teased some surprises in store for No Man’s Sky’s fifth anniversary.

No Man’s Sky Prisms Patch Notes

Deep Learning Super Sampling

  • Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) is an NVIDIA RTX technology which incorporates anti-aliasing and super sampling techniques to improve image detail at higher resolutions, without compromising framerate.
  • DLSS can be enabled for all compatible NVIDIA RTX graphics cards, and offers significant performance and visual quality improvements.

Screen Space Reflections

  • Screen space reflections (SSR) have been enabled for PC (coming soon to PCVR), next-generation consoles, and Xbox One X.
  • SSR creates high-quality reflective materials and improves lighting quality.
  • Bespoke SSR visuals have been authored and enabled on the Space Anomaly, the Space Station, freighter interiors, derelict freighters and Atlas Stations.

Volumetrics

  • The existing volumetric lighting system has been significantly optimized.
  • Volumetric lighting has been enabled in VR.
  • Added support for colored volumetric lights.
  • Added support for directional volumetric lights.
  • Added volumetric lighting to caves.
  • Added volumetric lighting to starship and exocraft headlights.
  • Added volumetric lighting to Sentinel drones, quads and walkers.
  • Added volumetric lighting to more props in derelict freighters.

Parallax Occlusion Mapping

  • Parallax occlusion mapping has been added for all platforms.
  • Parallax occlusion mapping adds additional detail and definition to textures and materials used on the Space Anomaly and large planetary buildings.

Refractions

  • Light refraction rendering has been enabled for all platforms except VR on base PS4.
  • Glass basebuilding parts will now refract light.
  • Refractive materials have been added to appropriate glass or liquid decorative items, such as glass containers or transparent screens.
  • Refractive materials have been added to appropriate planetary effects, such as floating bubbles.
  • Refractive materials have been added to the Space Anomaly.
  • Starship and Exocraft cockpits now refract the light.

Rain and Weather

  • The visual quality and density of rain effects have been significantly improved.
  • Raindrops now refract the light.
  • Planetary surfaces, plants, minerals, creatures, starships and players now become wet when they are rained upon.
  • Lightning storms now have a chance to create storm crystals at the impact point of lightning.
  • Meteor showers now have a chance to leave valuable harvestable rocks at their impact site.

Visual and Audio Quality

  • Light shaft / crepuscular ray rendering has been improved for a more atmospheric planetary experience.
  • Many foliage props have been reworked for increased detail.
  • Additional planetary details have been added, and draw distances on existing objects have been increased, for next-generation consoles and PC using Ultra settings.
  • Caves have been overhauled, creating a rich, more detailed, more atmospheric environment to explore.
  • Warping and teleportation visuals and audio have been completely reworked.
  • The Space Station hangar bay now features an automated Space Station Controller to monitor traffic and ensure smooth station operations.
  • Starship engine audio has been remixed and improved.
  • Particle effects, such as drone, ship and asteroid explosions, have been significantly improved.
  • The visual effects for the player torch have been improved.
  • Fixed a number of issues that caused the player torch to be too bright for the current location.
  • Fixed a number of issues that caused the player torch to intersect the player while running.
  • Debanding has been improved, fixing several visual artifacts in high-noise areas.
  • Fixed an issue that caused the galaxy map to be less colorful than intended.
  • Fixed an aliasing issue affecting chairs and other seating in the Space Station.
  • Fixed an issue that could cause incorrect shadows on freighter bridges.
  • Fixed an issue that caused ship takeoff audio to trigger as the game loaded.
  • Fixed several visual issues with the alien pods aboard derelict freighters.

Photo Mode

  • The depth of field effect has been rewritten, based on physical circle-of-confusion simulation.
  • The quality of the DoF field has been significantly improved.
  • In Photo Mode, DoF controls have been adjusted to reflect these settings. Auto-Far mode has been removed. A Macro mode has been added, giving fine control over focus close to the camera.
  • Bloom control has been added to the available Photo Mode options.
  • The buttons to adjust Photo Mode settings have been made instant click.
  • Fixed an issue that caused audio spam while adjusting Photo Mode settings.

Creatures and Companions

  • Fur rendering technology has been added for all platforms except Xbox One S and PSVR.
  • Fur has been added to a number of creatures. These creatures have been selected appropriately from existing species.
  • Virtually all low-flying and land-based creatures can now be tamed and adopted as companions.
  • Low-flying companions can be mounted and flown through the sky.
  • Fixed an issue that caused crablike creatures to always be labelled as extinct.
  • Fixed a number of coloration and marking issues with specific creatures.

Bytebeat

  • The quality of the ByteBeat drum synthesizer has been significantly improved.
  • A ByteBeat library and music player has been added to the Quick Menu, under Utilities.
  • The library can be used to play saved tracks wherever you are, allowing you to create your own personal soundtrack.
  • When within a base (your own or another player’s) with active ByteBeat Devices, you can save the devices’ output as a track to your Library.
  • The ByteBeat Library can be used to send tracks to nearby players. Sent tracks are saved to their Library.

UI and Quality of Life

  • Fixed an issue that caused the galaxy map to show duplicate freighter markers if your active mission involved your capital ship.
  • Planetary Charts that fail to locate a building are no longer consumed.
  • Planetary Charts that fail to locate a building will give an error message with guidance as to why.
  • When purchasing a freighter, your previous freighter base will now be automatically transferred and reassembled aboard the new freighter.
  • A new option has been added to the freighter upgrade terminal that allows players to reset their freighter base back to the default layout.
  • A new component recipe research station has been added to the Space Anomaly. This terminal allows the research of component recipes in exchange for nanites. Planetary factories and harvesters will still offer component recipes as exploration rewards.
  • Pinning instructions will now advise players to visit the Space Anomaly to unlock recipes they do not have access to.
  • Pinning instructions will now advise players to purchase components from the Space Station if the player does not know the recipe and components are easy to purchase.
  • Fixed a rare instance of an untranslated ERROR string in the popups for the research trees.
  • Added an error message when attempting to research a recipe before its parent is unlocked.
  • The UI for the Appearance Modifier and other customization interactions has been overhauled and visually refreshed.
  • Inventory tabs and sub-tabs now feature a small icon to show that a new item has been placed in that inventory.
  • The UI displayed when receiving blueprints for several components at the same time has been improved and now shows all parts in the bundle.
  • On PC, keybinds can now be cleared by re-assigning the same key to the same action.
  • Significantly increased the freedom of the third person ship camera, so that players can rotate around the ship while in flight.
  • Introduced an alternative and varying camera angle while using the pulse engine in third person.
  • Introduced a fuel gauge to the notifications area while using the pulse engine in third person.
  • The ship cockpit 3D map now correctly displays Atlas Stations and Black Holes.
  • Fixed an issue that could cause the ship cockpit 3D map to feature a space station in systems where no station was present.
  • Improved the clarity of the messaging in the Quicksilver Synthesis Companion shop.
  • Improved the clarity of the messaging when unable to redeem particular rewards during an Expedition.
  • Added a warning message if attempting to undertake an expedition without an online-enabled account (Expeditions do not require paid online accounts, but a connection needs to be made to the NMS Discovery Server to initially download the relevant data before beginning the expedition).
  • Fixed an issue that caused some non-extreme planets to be labelled as extreme.
  • Fixed a number of instances where icons were missing from the mission notification.
  • Fixed an issue that caused several minor UI elements to be incorrectly offset at 3200×1800 resolution.
  • Fixed an issue that caused a thin white line to be drawn around an inventory slot as it expands.
  • Fixed an issue that overlaid two markers if a building has been visited but also has an active mission marker.

Other Bug Fixes and Optimizations

  • Fixed a crash related to downloaded bases from other players.
  • Introduced a minor optimization related to instanced props on planets.
  • Introduced a lighting optimization on Xbox One X.
  • Introduced a significant number of shader optimizations.
  • Fixed a PC-specific issue that could cause slow streaming.
  • Fixed an issue that could cause hitching on PC and next-gen consoles.
  • Fixed a rare issue that could cause NPCs to offer the same interaction repeatedly.
  • Fixed an issue that reversed the intended order of a specific interaction with a Korvax found at a planetary debris site.
  • The rewards given by NPCs while practicing language skills or repairing their damaged starships have been rebalanced to be more generous.
  • The construction cost of Ion Batteries has been reduced.
  • The construction cost of several Quicksilver reward items have been reduced.
  • Fixed an issue that caused incorrect and unbuildable duplicate foundation and door pieces to appear in the blueprint research tree and catalogue.
  • Fixed a number of snapping issues with large rooms.
  • Fixed a number of desynchronization issues with Nexus mission destination markers.
  • Fixed a number of desynchronization issues with Nexus pirate missions.
  • Increased the number of potential corrupted Sentinel encounters during some Nexus missions.
  • Fixed an issue that could prevent the SSV Normandy SR1 frigate reward from being redeemed if it was first redeemed before acquiring a capital ship.
  • Fixed an issue that could cause Expedition One save games to be reactivated as expeditions after the expedition had finished.
  • Fixed a crash that could occur during the transition from an expedition save to a normal mode save at the end of an expedition.
  • Fixed an issue that caused black holes to always take players to the expedition start system during an expedition.
  • Fixed an issue that could cause NPC ships to land on top of each other at outposts.
  • Adjusted the landing pads at Planetary Archives so that ships do not take off and crash into the building.
  • Farmable crops planted in your base no longer collide with players, for ease of navigation.
  • Fixed an issue that caused an untranslated string to appear for a short time while joining a Nexus mission.
  • Fixed a number of text formatting issues.
  • Fixed an issue that could cause the tracking audio to be played repeatedly after a mission target was discovered using a Target Sweep.
  • Bespoke UI audio has been added to the companion customization page.
  • Fixed a rendering issue that could cause dark spots to appear on the terrain.
  • Fixed an issue that could cause a seam to be visible in the planetary atmosphere.
  • Fixed an issue that caused the cursor to appear during dialogue choices while using VR with a pad.
  • Target sweeping and hotspot detection in VR now uses the Multi-Tool as the pointer.
  • Fixed an issue that could block other players from using some interactions after repairing a cargo pod salvaged from a planetary crashed freighter.
  • Fixed an issue that could cause some players to have zero charge on a technology upgrade but no way to recharge it.
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Square Enix at E3 2021: When It Is and What to Expect

E3 2021 has always been a big show for Square Enix. It’s the time of year when we can look forward to hearing exciting updates from the video game developer, whether it’s a glimpse of an upcoming title or a look at a new engine. Based on what Square Enix Presents showed not too long ago, we should see a bunch of new gameplay from a handful of games.

When is Square Enix Presents at E3 2021?

Square Enix was one of the very first developers confirmed to be a part of E3 2021. Unfortunately, that announcement didn’t come with any set time or date of when the company will be making its announcements. We’ll be keeping a close eye on any developments and update this section once there’s news.

How to watch Square Enix Presents at E3 2021?

Like the rest of E3 2021, you’ll be able to watch Square Enix’s keynote right here on IGN whether it be our website or various apps and social media platforms. E3’s own online portal and smartphone app will also be carrying the livestream showcase

What to Expect From Square Enix at E3 2021

Square Enix should have quite a few games to show us based on what we saw from the developer’s last Presents event. These are just a few of the games we expect to see in the coming weeks but expect more as it may also present new, unannounced games and smaller ones not mentioned here.

Final Fantasy XVI

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Final Fantasy XVI

This one is a bit of a no-brainer but we’re long overdue for an update on Final Fantasy XVI. We already have plenty of details on the characters and world, and we know the game is already well into development. All we need now is a big gameplay reveal, especially after Final Fantasy XVI was a no-show at the last Square Enix Presents event. The only tricky thing is this is already confirmed to be a PS5 exclusive, which means Sony might be saving it up for their own presentation.

Final Fantasy Origin

Square Enix might not just have one, but two Final Fantasy games in store for us. Final Fantasy Origin is so far rumored to be an action-RPG spin-off by Nioh developer Team Ninja, which makes it sound pretty exciting already. An alpha demo of the game is purportedly set to release this summer, so seeing the game on stage could be the perfect time for a reveal trailer.

Life is Strange: True Colors

Life is Strange: True Colors already got plenty of limelight with reveal trailers and developer commentary during the last Square Enix Presents Spring event, but we’re hoping to see even more footage of the game. The game is due to release in September, so we’re expecting to see at least a new trailer for it.

Forspoken

Forspoken (aka the game formerly known as Project Athia) is one of the games we’re most excited to see more of at E3 2021. This adventure game is basically Warframe with magic thanks to its clifftop running, magic shooting action. We’ve got a teaser trailer and an extended trailer, and we’re hoping to see an extended gameplay clip of Forspoken in just a few weeks.

Tomb Raider Anime Series

We expect Tomb Raider will definitely make an appearance of some kind at E3 2021 to celebrate its 25 anniversary. We don’t expect to see an announcement of a new game, since the developer of the reboot trilogy said it won’t make a “major game announcement in the near future.” What is definitely confirmed is a new Tomb Raider anime series in development at Netflix, and we expect to see a trailer for it at the very least.

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Battlefield Appoints Ex-Call of Duty Exec to Help Grow the Series

EA has appointed a new general manager for the Battlefield franchise to help grow the series – and he’s previously served the same role for Call of Duty and Destiny.

EA announced today that Byron Beede has joined Battlefield as SVP and GM, and “signals a strategic, long-term commitment to the growth of the franchise”. Beede previously worked as GM on both the Call of Duty and Destiny franchises and, with CoD, was a part of launching the series’ live-service aspects, including Call of Duty: Warzone and Call of Duty Mobile.

Byron Beede (Source: EA)

With 2021’s mainline Battlefield game, as well as a mobile spin-off, now being developed by five studios, it appears that EA is putting huge resources behind the franchise, presumably to counteract Call of Duty’s recent huge success. Beede’s appointment, direct from the Call of Duty series’ leadership, seems to signal another step in that direction.

IGN understands that, while Beede will be a part of getting this year’s game and next year’s mobile game over the line, his focus is on the future of Battlefield beyond them. Beede will report directly to Respawn founder Vince Zampella, who took over as head of DICE LA last year. DICE Stockholm GM, Oskar Gabrielson and EA European studios GGM David Rutter will see no changes to their positions.

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While it’s unclear what Beede and EA’s vision is for Battlefield beyond the next year or so, we’ll be getting our first look at its next step on June 9, when Battlefield 6 (or whatever it ends up being called) will be revealed.

Leaked footage of the game emerged last week, but EA moved to explain that it came from an internal video of the game, and wouldn’t represent the upcoming reveal. We’ve rounded up all the seeming leaks from the game so far.

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Joe Skrebels is IGN’s Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Doctor Strange 2 Will Bring Back Scarlet Witch’s Accent

Actor Elizabeth Olson has revealed that Wanda Maximoff’s accent will return in the character’s next appearance, 2022’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. This revelation came out in the course of a broader Rolling Stone oral history about how the wildly creative limited series WandaVision came together.

Maximoff/Scarlet Witch hails from the fictional country of Sokovia, and a joke in WandaVision acknowledges how her accent has slowly been fading across the character’s appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies. In the oral history, Olsen explains that it began to fade with 2016’s Captain America: Civil War.

Said Olsen, “The Russos [directors Anthony and Joseph Russo] said, ‘Can she just have a softer accent, because she’s been in America, and has to have been speaking English more.’ So I was like, sure… Now that I feel a little bit more ownership of the character, I feel like she does retreat back to having this more honest expression. The sitcom part [in WandaVision] was totally different, because she’s trying to hold on to an American sitcom world and play the part the best she can.”

But, after the events of WandaVision and everything the character had been through, says Olsen, “she goes back to an accent that’s more true to her.”

Disney’s WandaVision was not intended to be the first entry in Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it has wound up excitingly setting the stage for what’s ahead. Check out our list of every upcoming Phase 4 release.

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These Marvel VS Figurines Bring Epic Superhero Battles to Life

Hero Collector is gearing up for a new line of collectible figurines called Marvel VS. As the name suggests, this series immortalizes some of the greatest rivalries in the Marvel Universe, from Spider-Man’s eternal feud with Green Goblin to Captain America’s dysfunctional relationship with Iron Man.

IGN can exclusively debut new images of all six figurines in the Marvel VS line. Check them out in the slideshow gallery below:

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Each of these figurines is designed at 1:16 scale, meaning they clock in between six and eight inches tall. Each of the six characters is inspired by Marvel’s comic book universe as opposed to the MCU, though the line looks to feature a mix of classic costumes (Spider-Man, Green Goblin, Captain America) and more modern looks (Thor, Loki, Iron Man).

The Marvel VS figurines are priced at $39.95 each and are expected to go on sale in September 2021. The Marvel VS series is part of a larger effort by Hero Collector and parent company Eaglemoss to pivot to mainstream retailers, so you can expect to find these figurines in a wide variety of stores rather than just comic book shops and specialty retailers.

Hero Collector also recently kicked off its Marvel Museum Collection line, which features scale-model replicas of various MCU weapons like Iron Man’s helmet and Thor’s hammer Mjolnir. The first wave recently hit WalMart shelves, and a wider release will follow later in the year.

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Hero Collector also recently teased the Star Trek Universe Starship Collection, which features replicas of various starships from Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek: Discovery and the upcoming Captain Pike series.

Conan O’Brien Has Some Thoughts On Phantasy Star Online 2 New Genesis

Comedian and late night TV host Conan O’Brien has shared his thoughts on Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis. In a new segment with his podcast co-hosts Sonia Movsesian and Matt Gurley, along with members of the off-shot Good Game Nice Try podcast, O’Brien ripped into the Sega game with his trademark humor and wit.

His first observation? “First of all, the title is waaaaay too long,” O’Brien says, further joking that no game should have the word “colon” in it.

Upon seeing footage of Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis itself, O’Brien remarks that the world is a fantastical place where “birds and robots and Pokemons live together.”

O’Brien described the animation style as “groovy,” which is something Sega probably did not expect. The comedian also enjoyed how you can create and customize your own character. “I want tiny hands and just massive sausagey thighs,” he said.

For what it’s worth, Sega paid for this segment to promote New Genesis, which releases June 9 on PC and Xbox in the US. O’Brien also hosts the Clueless Gamer segment in which he plays games and makes fun of them. His latest Clueless Gamer video focused on Biomutant, which he said was way too long and had no point.

The Clueless Gamer segment has been running for years, and it has covered numerous big games like The Witcher 3, Fallout 4, and numerous others. It was reported in 2017 that the Clueless Gamer show would be spun off into its own series, but that never happened.

O’Brien is ending his late night show in June before moving to HBO Max for something new, and fans are hoping to see Clueless Gamer also make the jump and continue in some way.

Watch live streams, videos, and more from GameSpot’s summer event. Check it out

Amazon Prime Day’s Best Deal is Here: Buy a $40 Gift Card, Get $10 Free Amazon Credit

Amazon Prime Day’s best deal is already available. This “free money” deal usually happens once a year right before either Amazon Prime Day or Black Friday. It’s not much, but free is free! Of course you’ll need an Amazon Prime membership to take advantage of this deal as well as many more on Prime Day.

Buy a $40 Amazon Gift Card, Get Free $10 Amazon Credit

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If you buy a $40 Amazon gift card (for yourself, let’s say), you’ll get $10 of free Amazon credit deposited into your account. If you shop regularly at Amazon, that basically amounts to free money. Really, if you have $40 lying around, there’s no reason not to do it. The only catch is that the credit expires if you don’t use it by August 7. I’d recommend you spend it on Prime Day. Note that you can select an eGift Card delivered instantly instead of a physical gift card.

Amazon Prime Day Confirmed for June 21-22

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Amazon Prime Day has been officially announced; it will run from June 21 to June 22 this year. That’s a little earlier than expected (Prime Day has traditionally happened in July), but we aren’t complaining over here. Historically, Prime Day is Amazon’s biggest sale day of the year outside of Black Friday and covers everything from electronics to sports and fitness. Make sure you’ve signed up for an Amazon Prime membership to take advantage of all the best deals Prime Day has to offer.

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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 the IGN Deals articles and subscribe to the IGN Deals Twitter page.

PS3 Gets A New Update, But The Store Is Still Up

PS3 owners will have to do something they haven’t done in a while the next time they boot up the console: Update it. And before you get worried, no, this update doesn’t take down the console’s PlayStation Store.

According to the extremely short list of patch notes posted on PlayStation’s website, update 4.88 for the PS3 simply “improves system performance.” It’s not clear how the PS3’s performance could be improved after all this time, but it’s nice that Sony clearly intends to continue supporting the console.

Today’s update for the PS3 comes after Sony reversed course on its plans for the console. According to the company’s original plan, today would have marked the start of the last month that the PS3’s online store would be up. However, Sony decided to leave the PS3 PlayStation Store up following outcries from PlayStation fans.

“Upon further reflection, however, it’s clear that we made the wrong decision here,” wrote Sony Interactive Entertainment president and CEO Jim Ryan on the PlayStation Blog. “So today I’m happy to say that we will be keeping the PlayStation Store operational on PS3 and PS Vita devices.”

While the PS3 store lives on, not all members of the PlayStation family were so lucky. The online store for the PSP will still be shutting down on July 2 as planned.

With the PS3 and PS Vita stores staying online, players have a wealth of games to check out before they eventually are made unavailable. If you’re looking for suggestions, we wrote up a list of games you should check out on both platforms as soon as you can.

Watch live streams, videos, and more from GameSpot’s summer event. Check it out

Nintendo Switch Hits 20 Million Sales In Japan

Business is booming for Nintendo around the globe, but in its home territory of Japan, the console has reached an impressive milestone of 20 million sales since it was first launched in March 2017.

As reported by Famitsu and translated by Nintendo Life, the official sales number were recorded on June 2 and the list of the top five best-selling Switch games in Japan was also updated. Unsurprisingly, Animal Crossing: New Horizons continues to be the top-selling game on the system.

Business is boomin'
Business is boomin’
  • Animal Crossing: New Horizons – 6.78 million units sold
  • Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – 4.29 million units sold
  • Pokémon Sword and Shield – 4.05 million units sold
  • Splatoon 2 – 3.87 million units sold
  • Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – 3.84 million units sold

Nintendo recorded 84.59 million Switch console sales in its global figures that were released last month, and by now that number will have climbed even higher. That almost a quarter of all Switch sales originated from Japan shows the strength of the brand in that country, while current international sales forecasts predict that the Switch will soon overtake the Wii’s lifetime sales.

Upcoming high-profile releases such as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2, Pokemon Diamond and Pearl remakes, and Splatoon 3 will likely see sales continue to steadily increase as the console has entered the midway point of its life-cycle.

More details on what to expect for the Switch will be revealed in a 40-minute E3 2021 Nintendo Direct on Tuesday, June 15. Just don’t ask about the rumored Switch Pro, because the company isn’t ready to confirm the existence of that device just yet.

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