Minecraft and Minecraft Dungeons are both getting new DLC packs in the near future, and they couldn’t be more different. The Minecraft DLC is based on the How to Train Your Dragon film series, while the Dungeons pack takes players deep underwater.
The How to Train Your Dragon pack adds a new area, the Barbaric Archipelago, which is the main location in the films. As you would expect from such DLC, you’ll be able to tame and ride dragons, and the world will have a variety of activities to complete. In addition, the pack includes 24 new skins. It’s available now on the Minecraft Marketplace for 1340 coins, which is roughly $8-9.
Managing your oxygen levels, mastering clam launchers and keeping your eyes peeled for easily startled pufferfish; Hidden Depths certainly presents a new set of underwater challenges!
Well, no one said this was going to be a relaxing beach vacation! pic.twitter.com/RfrIxIDNNx
— Minecraft Dungeons (@dungeonsgame) May 11, 2021
The Dungeons DLC, meanwhile, is titled Hidden Depths and takes place in the deep ocean. You’ll have to manage oxygen levels while exploring and fighting against a corrupting influence. There’s a number of new hazards and enemies as well, such as pufferfish.
In addition to the paid DLC–which will probably be $6, if in line with past packs–Dungeons will also receive a free update. This’ll add several new levels as well as Raid Captains, which are challenging enemies hidden throughout the world. The DLC pack and free update will launch on May 26 across PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.
For at least the past decade, Ubisoft has been nearly synonymous with big-budget AAA titles that appear on store shelves for $60. But according to its latest earnings call, the publisher seems to be shifting its focus away from its traditional yearly cadence of big games and more toward free-to-play titles.
As reported by VGC, Ubisoft’s chief financial officer Frederick Duguet stated in the call that the company believes that its games lineup is “increasingly diverse” and that it no longer expects to put out 3-4 “premium” AAA releases each year. Rather, it expects to invest more heavily in free-to-play titles in order to push those toward the AAA level.
He caveated that this is “purely a financial communication” and that the company will continue to put out premium titles. However, his statements reflect a significant change in Ubisoft’s posture in the games industry, as players will likely no longer see the same consistent release schedule of $60 Assassin’s Creed, Division, Watch Dogs, and Far Cry titles.
Ubisoft’s announced projects already reflect this new strategy. Last week, the company revealed The Division: Heartland, which is a free-to-play project in the Division universe coming to PC, consoles, and cloud services. In addition, Ubisoft has continued to have success with iterating on Rainbow Six Siege, which has become one of the most popular competitive shooters over the past few years. Alongside these games, Ubisoft is also continuing to make premium titles, such as Far Cry 6 and Riders Republic. Far Cry 6 and Rainbow Six Quarantine are both still on pace to launch this year, while Skull and Bones has been delayed again until 2022-2023.
Netflix has finally announced that Lupin Part 2, the final five episodes that will complete Season 1 of the series that debuted back in January, will hit the streaming service on June 11. It was revealed back in March that these episodes will land sometime this summer, so it’s not nearly as long a wait as it could have been.
The official synopsis for this next batch of episodes reads: “Arsène quest for revenge against Hubert Pelligrini has torn his family to pieces. With his back to the wall, he now has to think of a new plan, even if it means putting himself in danger.” Check out a recently released trailer below.
The intriguing crime drama is only coincidentally similar to the massively popular anime series of the same name–only because it draws inspiration from the same source material: the fictional adventures of early 20th century gentleman thief and master of disguise, Arsène Lupin. In this new French imagining of those capers, Lupin is the only son of a Senegalese immigrant who came to France to seek a better life for his child. Rather than being the beneficiary of a better life, Lupin instead is orphaned as a teenager after his father is framed for a crime by his boss, Hubert Pellegrini.
These upcoming episodes are directed by Ludovic Bernard (Episodes 6 and 7) and Hugo Gélin (Episodes 8, 9, and 10). The show’s cast includes Omar Sy, Hervé Pierre, Nicole Garcia, Clotilde Hesme, Ludivine Sagnier, Antoine Gouy, Shirine Boutella, and Soufiane Guerrab. This Netflix adaptation is co-created by George Kay in collaboration with François Uzan.
Electronic Arts reported earnings for its latest fiscal year on Tuesday, and it was a lot of good news for the publisher. The company posted new records for revenue and net bookings dating back to the company’s founding 38 years ago in 1982.
Total revenue for the year that ended March 31 was $5.629 billion, which was up from $5.537 billion during the previous fiscal year. EA posted a profit of $837 million for the period, which compares to a profit of $3 billion last year–though that period benefitted from a one-off tax benefits program. For the fourth quarter alone, however, revenue dropped.
Net bookings, which EA defines as the total amount of products and services sold digitally or psychically by adding net revenue to the change in deferred net revenue for online games, reached $6.190 billion. That figure was up 15% year-over-year and it was more than $600 million more than EA originally expected. $4.06 billion of net bookings came from “live services,” which means microtransactions.
To illustrate the significance of live services, EA CFO Blake Jorgensen said $4.06 billion is equal to the sale of 130 million console games.
During the fiscal year, EA launched 13 new games and these collectively brought in more than 42 million new players.
FIFA 21 was a bright spot, reaching 25 million players across console and PC. And its Ultimate Team mode jumped by 16% year-over-year, though EA did not say if this was growth in users, revenue, or some other metric.
Another notable achievement for EA during the year was Apex Legends, which crossed 100 million players. Season 8 was strong, too, reaching more than 12 million weekly average players. The new Season 9 content is also doing gangbusters for Apex Legends.
The Madden NFL series performed well, reaching a “record number of new players” on console and PC. The Sims 4 was a top-performer as well, reaching nearly 36 million players. The game’s success has helped propel the Sims franchise overall to its sixth consecutive year of growth.
Another positive development for EA was that 62% of current-gen console games sold were digitally, compared to 49% during the same period last year. The statistics cover Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, and PS5 over the past 12 months.
In terms of EA’s upcoming games, the publisher re-affirmed that Battlefield 6 is on the way this year, but we’re still waiting on a release date. It will be announced in June. EA is conducting an earnings call to discuss these results and answer questions, so check back with GameSpot for more.
Zombies Ate My Neighbors and its sequel Ghoul Patrol are headed to modern consoles this summer, thanks to a collaboration between LucasArts, DotEmu, and Limited Run Games. The 16-bit cult classic isn’t the most well-known game of its era, but it’s considered an underappreciated game in some retro circles, and it hasn’t been easily available on current-day consoles in quite a while.
Zombies Ate My Neighbors is a top-down shooter that is sometimes compared to the bonus levels from fellow SNES game Contra 3. Both it and its sequel were developed by Konami. The original game features more than 50 levels.
According to a press release, the two games will come to Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and PC on June 29. They will both include a modern save system, archival interviews with the original creators, achievements, and a two-player local co-op mode. The two games will be sold as one package titled Zombies Ate My Neighbors and Ghoul Patrol, and it’ll cost $15. They are based on the Super Nintendo versions of these games.
GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.
Destiny 2’s Season of the Splicer kicked off today, adding a whole bunch of new content for players to experience. As with previous seasons, there’s a event, new gear, and a new storyline to follow as the season progresses. The initial launch today was a bit rocky, but Bungie appears to have fixed the issues that were plaguing the game earlier in the day.
Bungie’s approach to seasons is to roll out self-contained stories to progress the Destiny universe, and this one is no different. The previous season, called Season of the Chosen, focused on a confrontation between the remnants of the Cabal and Guardians. This time, in Season of the Splicer, you’re tasked with taking the fight back to the Vex. The Vex have approached the Last City and have cast the Earth into a simulation that has a never-ending night; Guardians team up with Mithrax, a Fallen Kell, who teaches new abilities to better resist the incursion.
The seasonal activity is called Override, which is a six-player cooperative mode that focuses on hacking a Vex simulation. As shown in the video embed above, the Override mode shows off the brand-new aesthetic for this season, which heavily emphasizes neon, cel-shaded objects, and cyberpunk-esque style. Although Destiny certainly has featured bright, techno-futuristic environments in the past, this is still quite a striking aesthetic to see in otherwise familiar in-game locales. In addition, there’s a weekly pinnacle mission called Expunge that’ll have players trying to collapse the Vex Network from the inside.
The highlight of this season, however, will be the return of the very first Destiny raid, Vault of Glass, that was originally released in Destiny 1 way back in September 2014. You’ll be able to experience Vault of Glass again on May 22.
Outside of new game modes and missions, Season of the Splicer also introduces a transmog system called Armor Synthesis. This system lets you turn pieces of armor into ornaments to apply to other pieces of armor, but it’s already sparked controversy because of the massive time investment it might take to convert armor to ornaments via the free path.
Finally, Season of the Splicer also adds new weapons and armor as well as a refreshed seasonal rewards track for you to work your way through. As in the past, everyone can earn rewards, but if you buy the season pass, you’ll get additional loot. There’s also a new slate of seasonal challenges in Season of the Splicer that’ll give you a bunch of opportunities to grab gear.
GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.
FXX has picked up the new series Little Demon, a half-hour animated comedy starring Danny DeVito, his daughter Lucy DeVito, and Aubrey Plaza. The show comes from Danny DeVito’s Jersey Films 2nd Avenue, ShadowMachine, and FX Productions, with Rick & Morty co-creator Dan Harmon executive producing. The series joins a growing animated comedy series lineup on FXX, which also includes Archer and Cake.
The official synopsis reads: “Thirteen years after being impregnated by the Devil (Danny DeVito), a reluctant mother (Aubrey Plaza) and her Antichrist daughter (Lucy DeVito) attempt to live an ordinary life in Delaware, but are constantly thwarted by monstrous forces, including Satan, who yearns for custody of his daughter’s soul.” The series will first broadcast episodes on FXX, which will subsequently be available to stream the following day on FX on Hulu–which is also the streaming service that the somewhat similar Marvel’s MODOK calls home.
“Little Demon is a hilarious new animated horror comedy,” said Nick Grad, president of original programming for FX Entertainment. In addition to Plaza, Danny and Lucy DeVito, Grad said the show will feature “a host of other great talent.”
The half-hour series is created and written by Darcy Fowler (Louie), Seth Kirschner (30 Rock), and Kieran Valla (Disturbia). No premiere date for the new series has yet been announced.
In the meantime, check out what’s coming to Hulu across the rest of this month.
From the alluring mutant fashion of the Hellfire Gala to the ominous “Trial of Magneto” to a brand new volume of Marvel’s flagship X-Men, here’s a rundown of all the major changes in the works and why June may be the perfect time to hop back aboard the X-Men train.
[ignvideo url=”https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/10/09/marvels-x-men-now-have-a-bold-new-status-quo-ign-now”]
Currently, Marvel’s X-Men line is exploring an overarching storyline dubbed “Reign of X.” If Dawn of X was devoted to building on the foundation of House of X and Powers of X, Reign of X shows the new mutant nation of Krakoa reveling in its recent victories. The mutant race is growing in size and power, and they’re using an event called the Hellfire Gala as both a celebration and a collective show of force.
All of Marvel’s ongoing X-books will take part in the Hellfire Gala storyline in June. Each issue (along with the one-shot special Planet-Size X-Men #1) will showcase a different story and a different group of characters set during that same evening. By the time the Gala is finished, many things will have changed for the mutants of Krakoa, for good and ill.
But the Gala is, ultimately, a big party, so it’s also a chance for your favorite X-Men to show off their biggest and boldest outfits. Check out the slideshow gallery below for a look at the many eclectic designs featured over the course of this glamorous evening.
[widget path=”global/article/imagegallery” parameters=”albumSlug=the-x-men-unveil-mutant-high-fashion-at-the-hellfire-gala&captions=true”]
The irony of the current X-Men era is that, for all that mutantkind is on the rise, we haven’t seen an actual, official squad of X-Men since the start of House of X. The very existence of the X-Men has been forbidden by Professor Xavier himself. To paraphrase the Flag-Smashers in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, mutantkind is focused solely on the idea of “one land, one people” now. The days of the X-Men as a superhero team fighting for human/mutant tolerance are a thing of the past.
Except that’s not quite true. Among the major developments in 2020’s X of Swords crossover, Cyclops and Jean Grey broke ranks in order to lead a team into Otherworld and save their comrades. Cyclops believes the world still needs the X-Men, even if that means cutting ties with the Quiet Council of Krakoa and venturing back out into the human world.
That the plot catalyst for Marvel’s upcoming relaunch of X-Men in July 2021. The first new series to launch after the Hellfire Gala, this volume of X-Men will be written by Gerry Duggan (Marauders) and drawn by Pepe Larraz (House of X). Whereas the current X-Men series features a wide ensemble cast, the new series will focus on a specific team lineup – Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Wolverine (Laura Kinney), Synch, Polaris, Rogue and Sunfire.
Whatever happens during the Hellfire Gala, it would seem Magneto is due for a bad night. Marvel is teasing a second new series spinning out of that crossover, one called The Trial of Magneto.
While details on the new series are scarce for the time being, we do know the series is written by Leah Williams (X-Factor) and drawn by Lucas Werneck (Empyre: X-Men). Launching in August 2021, the series will deal with a murder mystery that begins during the Hellfire Gala, though it’s unclear whether Magneto is the prime suspect or the man charged with finding the killer. Magneto’s “trial” in this case could be more of the metaphorical sort.
The title is clearly a throwback to 1985’s Uncanny X-Men #200, which is also called “The Trial of Magneto.” In that case, Magneto is tried for crimes against humanity, but winds up convincing the judge of his inner goodness and becomes the new leader of the X-Men. That story is an important watershed moment for a character who was once the X-Men’s greatest foe, and it stands to reason this new trial will be just as critical in shaping Magneto’s future place in the Marvel Universe.
Hickman has been the prime mover of the X-Men line since the start of House of X in 2019, overseeing all of the monthly X-books in addition to writing the core X-Men comic. So with Marvel relaunching X-Men under a new creative team, you might be wondering where that leaves Hickman himself. Is he stepping away from the franchise?
Not as far as we can tell. Marvel is teasing a new monthly series from Hickman to begin in September, though both the title and the artist are being kept under wraps. Whatever this new book is, it’s safe to assume it’ll have a major impact on the overall X-Men status quo. Is Hickman spearheading an Uncanny X-Men series to run alongside Duggan and Larraz’s X-Men? Is this the long-rumored series focused on Moira MacTaggert, that all-important mutant character who’s barely appeared since Powers of X #6? We’ll have to wait until Marvel reveals more about this mystery title.
Let us know in the comments below which of these mutant fashion reveals is your favorite. And for more on the future of the X-Men, find out how House of X could inspire the MCU’s X-Men and see how The Falcon and the Winter Soldier took early steps toward introducing mutants.
[poilib element=”accentDivider”]
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
In a slide presentation accompanying its earnings results today, EA lays out its plans for releases for the rest of its fiscal year, placing Battlefield in Q3. This is a fiscal calendar, so for EA, that means Battlefield 6 (or whatever it ends up being called) is headed this way between October and December.
[ignvideo url=”https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/05/04/battlefield-6-setting-potentially-revealed-in-leaked-screenshots-ign-daily-fix”]
The calendar also has the rest of EA’s known releases slotted in, with FIFA 22, F1 2021, and Madden NFL 22 all coming in the July through September window, NHL 22 coming around the same quarter as Battlefield, and EA Sports PGA Tour finishing off the year in the January through March 2022 window. This calendar does not include any unannounced titles, though it does note the already-announced next-gen upgrade for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.
Battlefield 6 hasn’t yet been formally revealed, and its formal announcement was only very recently teased by EA for a June first look. Notably, no Battlefield game was released in 2020, breaking what had previously been an annual cycle. However, when it ultimately launches, EA has said it will take “full” advantage of next-gen platforms.
[poilib element=”accentDivider”]
Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.