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Developer DICE and publisher Electronic Arts have announced a new Microsoft partnership to make Xbox the official console of Battlefield 2042. This doesn’t mean it’s exclusive to Xbox, however.

To be specific, the Xbox Series S and Series X are the “official consoles of Battlefield 2042,” according to a press release. All three said this was done to “ensure that the next entry in the Battlefield franchise is the best one yet.” It’s unclear exactly how DICE and EA will take advantage of Xbox Series X|S hardware or what this means for Battlefield 2042 players on other platforms.

DICE and EA announced four other partnerships in preparation for Battlefield 2042’s October release: Nvidia (for the “ultimate PC experience”), Logitech (to “ensure players have Logitech integration”), Polaris (to “bring players the opportunity to operate authentic Polaris vehicles in Battlefield 2042”), and WD_BLACK (to ensure “gamers have the best possible gaming experience”).

All five partnerships have been seemingly inked to bolster Battlefield 2042’s gaming performance across both PC and Xbox consoles. Neither DICE nor EA have outlined if these deals will impact the game on PlayStation consoles, though Battlefield 2042 is launching on PS4 and PS5 this October.

We’ll see more of Battlefield 2042 during EA Play Live, including a look at a brand-new game mode, on July 22 . Pro wrestler and G4 TV presenter Austin “Xavier Woods” Watson will host the event.

Battlefield 2042 is the latest entry in the long-running military shooter franchise. This time around, the focus is on larger-scale battles; Battlefield 2042 features a 128 players per match on current-get consoles and PC, though servers will be populated with bots if spots can’t be filled by real players.

Battlefield 2042 launches on October 22 for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. Hit up our Battlefield 2042 preorder guide to learn about the bonuses and editions available before release day.

Dark Souls: Nightfall, the upcoming ambitious mega-mod authored by a group of Souls modding luminaries, will release December 21. Described as a fan-made sequel to the original game, Dark Souls: Nightfall will be a mod for Dark Souls 1 that will feature a new world map and an entirely new story.

That group of modders includes Meowmaritus, who authored several Souls combat mods, and Grimrukh, the mind behind the popular Daughters of Ash mod. In the teaser trailer announcing the release date, we can see several big changes, including a large hole in what appears to be outside of the Northern Undead Asylum, as well as a massive cathedral in what looks like a changed Ash Lake.

Thanks to previous footage released by the modders, we know that that large hole leads to the Kiln of the First Flame, the final location in the original Dark Souls. According to pre-release materials, Nightfall will follow the alternate ending of the original Dark Souls, where the player character decides not to link the flame, thus leading into the age of dark. This is supposedly the age of man, but we’ll see how that plays out in Nightfall.

Nightfall’s planned release date of December 21 is just one month before January 21, the release date of Elden Ring, From Software’s highly-anticipated next game. As that game’s most recent trailer showed, while it might not have Dark Souls in the name, it certainly has a lot in common the franchise that made the developer into a household name. Even collaborator George RR Martin erroneously referred to the game as a sequel to Dark Souls in a recent interview.

After long delays thanks to an unprecedented viral pandemic, Marvel Studios’ latest movie, Black Widow, is finally here–well, at least the reviews are. The movie will hit theaters on July 9, and it will also arrive to Disney+ that day under Premier Access for an additional $30. Now that critics are talking about the movie, here’s what they had to say.

Over at GameSpot’s sister-site, Metacritic, Black Widow has scored a 69 so far, out of 28 reviews, one of which was negative, 6 of which were mixed, and 21 of which were positive. Over at Rotten Tomatoes, Black Widow sits at 86% fresh currently. This is still over a week from theatrical release for the movie, so these scores will likely change.

Below, you will find a selection of some of the many reviews for Black Widow, and you can check out some early social reactions as well. For more from Marvel, you can check out Disney+’s Loki, which airs on Wednesdays. Recently, the series revealed that Loki is bisexual and where TVA agents really come from. Additionally, a new trailer for the upcoming Shang-Chi movie got a new trailer, which has a giant dragon in it.

Black Widow

• Directed by: Cate Shortland
• Written by: Jac Schaeffer, Ned Benson, and Eric Pearson
• Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, Rachel Weisz, and David Harbour
• Release date: July 9 (US theatrical and Disney+ Premier Access)

GameSpot – 6/10

“Fans hungry for any MCU entry at all will find plenty to chew on in Black Widow, but ultimately the movie is unsatisfying. That may be partially down to real-world issues that are outside of anyone’s control, like the pandemic pushing release dates around. But despite strong performances from the leads and the addition of a couple of welcome new characters who may spice up the MCU’s future, this Natasha side story has plenty of inherent problems that drag it down regardless of any external factors.” -Michael Rougeau [Full review]

Deadline

“Johansson is again a great presence in the role, showing expert action and acting chops throughout, while Pugh is clearly ready to lead her own franchise after this MCU debut.” -Pete Hammond [Full review]

The Hollywood Reporter

“On the craftsmanship side, Black Widow is top-notch, with muscular camerawork from Gabriel Beristain and a wonderful score by Lorne Balfe that ranges from gentle piano to high-intensity suspense and almost into the operatic as it incorporates stormy choral elements. The editing of the fight scenes is perhaps a touch too unrelentingly fast, often blurring the choreography, but the physical side never feels overwhelmed by CG enhancement.” -David Rooney [Full review]

IGN

“Marvel’s long-awaited Black Widow film shakes up the classic superhero movie form. Styled like an espionage thriller, the film digs into Natasha Romanoff’s mysterious past as a trained assassin–opening up about her ‘family’ and introducing an inventive villain, Taskmaster. But while the film is plied with eye-catching action sequences, it struggles to strike a balance between action and family drama, and reinforces some of Marvel’s tired tropes of women superheroes. It ultimately captures Natasha as a formidable fighter with unshakeable morals, making her inadequate Endgame send-off all the more bittersweet.” -Nicole Clark [Full review]

ComicBook – 4.5/5

“Black Widow is well-paced and filled with exciting action sequences, led by director Cate Shortland. Making the movie a prequel to the last two Avengers films lowered the stakes by a large margin, but sometimes a fun little side quest is a preferable treat. The balance of action and comedy is an enjoyable return to Marvel’s simpler days and while the movie isn’t the franchise’s all-time best, it has some of Marvel’s best character dynamics to date. Black Widow never quite matches up to the perfection of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, but the film still marks the franchise’s strongest action-packed spy thriller since the Cap sequel was released back in 2014.” -Jamie Jirak [Full review]

Roger Ebert – 3/4

“As with a lot of the MCU, the third act here gets a little cluttered and repetitive but then the film recovers with a remarkable final action sequence that sends characters and debris hurtling through the sky (an MCU staple but Shortland’s choreography makes it feel urgent again). It’s ultimately a film that works on its own terms, a long-delayed enriching of the story of a beloved character that will make her ultimate sacrifice in Avengers: Endgame feel even more powerful in hindsight.” -Brian Tallerico [Full review]

Consequence – B-

“Black Widow is actually aided by its status as a posthumous ode to a dead character in the Marvel franchise. The audience already knows Nat’s fate, which means Shortland’s action adventure can turn into a kind of tragedy: We get to see how, before she died, she got to reconcile with both of her respective families. It’s absolutely mid-tier Marvel, alternatively harmed and aided by its late position in the slate. But as a reintroduction to the cinematic universe after a year off due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s definitely worth a look.” -Clint Worthington [Full review]

The premiere of the trailer for HBO Max’s upcoming Sopranos prequel movie, The Many Saints of Newark, gave us a look at some of our favorite characters from the long-running mobster series as “youts.” Not only do we meet a spry and fresh-faced Tony Soprano but also Paulie, Silvio, Uncle Junior, and Tony’s parents Johnny Boy and Livia.

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The Many Saints of Newark, from Sopranos creator David Chase and series writer Lawrence Konner, transports us back to 1970s Newark, New Jersey as young Anthony “Tony” Soprano comes of age right as rival gangsters begin to rise up and challenge the all-powerful DiMeo crime family’s hold over the increasingly race-torn city. Caught up in the changing times is the uncle he idolizes, Dickie Moltisanti, who struggles to manage both his professional and personal responsibilities.

Below you’ll find a Saints vs. Sopranos side-by-side cast comparison, pairing the original series stars with their new flashback counterparts. Plus, some of the other movie cast members as well…

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Tony Soprano

Michael Gandolfini (Ocean’s 8, The Deuce) plays future DiMeo crime family boss Tony Soprano, the role made famous by his late father, James Gandolfini.

Dickie Moltisanti

Only seen in a photo on the original series, Dickie Moltisanti is the father of Tony’s cousin Christopher and a driven mobster whose influence over his impressionable nephew Tony will help make the teenager into the all-powerful mob boss we’ll later come to know. Dickie is played by Alessandro Nivola (Face/Off, Jurassic Park III).

Livia Soprano

Bates Motel’s Vera Farmiga once again tackles the role of a famously crazed mom as she takes over the role of the villainous Livia Soprano – a role played by Nancy Marchand on The Sopranos.

Johnny Boy Soprano

The Punisher and The Walking Dead’s Jon Bernthal plays Tony’s dad, Giovanni “Johnny Boy” Soprano. Giovanni was only seen in flashbacks, or in dreams, on the series where he was played by Joseph Siravo.

Uncle Junior

Played by Dominic Chianese on the original series, the role of uncle Corrado John “Junior” Soprano Jr. is being filled by The Strain and Ant-Man’s Corey Stoll.

Paulie “Walnuts” Gualtieri

Played to violent, paranoid perfection on the HBO series by Tony Sirico, the role of Paulie Walnuts is now being played by Billy Magnussen (Game Night, No Time to Die).

Silvio Dante

Tony’s future right-hand man, Silvio, portrayed by E Street Band’s Steven Van Zandt on the series, is played by Orange is the New Black and The Umbrella Academy’s John Magaro.

Salvatore Bonpensiero

Though not prominently featured in the trailer, the part of Salvatore “Big P***y” Bonpensiero, played by Vincent Pastore on the HBO show, is now being filled by relative newcomer Samson Moeakiola.

Harold McBrayer

Hamilton and Person of Interest’s Leslie Odom Jr. plays a character named Harold McBrayer while, to his right, Germar Terrell Gardner stars as Cyril.

Michela De Rossi as ???

Though we don’t know her character name yet, Italian actress Michela De Rossi plays an “ambitious” Italian immigrant who comes to America to settle in New Jersey.

Ray Liotta as ???

Original Goodfella Ray Liotta is part of The Many Saints of Newark, playing what seems to be a higher up in the DiMeo crime family, at one point warning Dickie, from prison, to stay away from Tony.

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The Many Saints of Newark will be released in theaters in the US on October 1 and will be available on HBO Max 31 days from the theatrical release.

In a video that is now private, Square Enix has announced a July 2021 release window for some or all of the games featured in the Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster series alongside a new look at these updated versions of Final Fantasy 1 through 6.

Wario64 on Twitter captured images from the presentation that shows off new screenshots of these updated classics in action, as well as the July 2021 release window.

Final Fantasy V and VI pic.twitter.com/E1thrxj8rE

— Wario64 (@Wario64) June 29, 2021

The presentation was a 30-minute discussion featuring Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, composer Nobuo Uematsu, and Yoshinori Kitase, and they discussed more about these upcoming games that will all be released on PC and mobile devices.

The Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster series is not a collection of these games, and each one will be sold separately. The team made no mention as to whether all games would be released at the same time, or if only one or a few will kick it off.

The new versions of these titles were announced during E3 2021’s Square Enix Presents, and feature such upgrades as Final Fantasy 5 and 6 being presented in widescreen for the first time.

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While only time will tell if these games will make it to other platforms, or if they will fare better than the previous Steam release of Final Fantasy 6 that was criticized for it simply being a port of the mobile version, it’s always wonderful to have these classics available in a modern and easily accessible way.

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Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

One of the more surprising game announcements from earlier this year was that Machine Games is working on an Indiana Jones game with Todd Howard attached as producer. In a new interview, Howard says he’s been trying to get an Indiana Jones game off the ground for a little over 10 years.

Speaking with The Telegraph, Howard says he’s “super-excited” about the upcoming Indiana Jones game he’s working on. Howard pointed to a mini-replica of the Ark of the Covenant from Raiders of the Lost Ark from his office desk. An Indiana Jones memorabilia was actually the first hint Howard was involved in such a project.

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Howard, it turns out, is a big Indiana Jones fan. “I think I originally pitched [to George] Lucas in 2009 and I’ve been trying to find a way to make that [since],” Howard says. While attempts to get George Lucas himself to greenlight an Indy game didn’t get off the ground, Howard finally succeeded with Lucasfilm’s new parents, Disney.

12 years later, Howard is working with Machine Games who have spent the last couple of years making the new Wolfenstein games including New Order and New Colossus. “I think the work Machine Games have done, they’re just phenomenal developers and storytellers. And when I started talking to them about it, it was a good fit.”

Howard says they’ll have more to reveal about Indiana Jones in the future, but for now, says that Machine Games is “the best team in the world to pull this off and they’re doing a phenomenal job.”

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Howard and Machine Games are working in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games, a recently revived brand that will work with multiple developers “in the Star Wars galaxy and beyond,” which in this case also includes Indiana Jones.

Lucasfilm Games has recently tapped Ubisoft Massive to work on a new Star Wars game. And Disney’s video game efforts seem to only be strengthening after revealing Ubisoft’s Avatar game and announcing a Pirates of the Caribbean DLC for Sea of Thieves.

Meanwhile, filming is underway for a brand new Indiana Jones movie, though star Harrison Ford recently suffered an on-set injury.

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Matt T.M. Kim is IGN’s News Editor.

Former BioWare general manager, Casey Hudson, announced last December that he was leaving the EA-owned studio. Today, he announced his new independent company: Humanoid Studios.

Alongside the announcement that he has created a new video game development studio, Hudson announced that the team is working on an “all-new IP” designed to bring “innovation and artistry to players.” He also said Humanoid Studios has been created to “unleash the creative freedom of developers.”

We are Humanoid Studios. This is the first tiny step in our journey, and we hope you’ll come along with us on the adventure. https://t.co/b77Z2hbKFG

— Casey Hudson (@CaseyDHudson) June 29, 2021

As you can see in Hudson’s tweets above, he links to the website for Humanoid Studios. Right now, the site is a single static page with links to positions the studio is looking to fill.

“Founded by Casey Hudson and talented developers around the world, we combine excellence in the arts with advanced sciences to deliver the future of interactive entertainment,” the website reads. “We believe in hiring great people, empowering them with the best tools and a supportive environment, and providing them the creative freedom to do their best work.”

Humanoid Studios is a Canadian company with offices in B.C. and Alberta, although the website says the studio offers “a flexible work environment combining from-home, in-office, and remote work.”

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Clicking the links for the positions the studio is looking to fill reveals a tad more about what kind of game Humanoid Studios is working on, or at least what kind of experience they’re looking for. Positions like the Senior Gameplay Programmer and Senior Gameplay Designer specifically cite “experience in professional game development shipping multiple AAA titles, ideally with Unreal Engine” under qualifications.

Other positions mention broad design experience “in areas such as character and vehicle movement, content, systems, and progression.”

It makes sense that more detailed information about the new IP’s genre and gameplay systems are not discussed in the positions advertisements — the studio seemingly just opened, after all.

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Hudson says today’s announcement “is the first tiny step in our journey.” Hudson has a great track record in RPGs considering he worked on the Mass Effect series and the Dragon Age series. Only time will tell, though, what the first game that comes out of Humanoid Studios will be.

While waiting to hear more about Humanoid Studios and Hudson’s “all-new IP,” read about Hudson’s departure from BioWare last December and then check out this BioWare tease of a new Mass Effect project in the works from a “veteran team.” Check out this first-look trailer for Dragon Age 4 after that.

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Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

The Doom Eternal next-gen upgrade for Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 is now live and it brings ray tracing, higher frame rates, and more to the game.

Bethesda announced last year that Doom Eternal would be receiving a next-gen upgrade, but it kept details on what that would entail quite light. They said little more than the fact that it exists and is on the way.

ICYMI: DOOM Eternal’s next-gen upgrade is now available on both PS5 and Xbox Series X

Series X trailerhttps://t.co/k3hQ60XCMO pic.twitter.com/cuZuuGNAyi

— Nibel (@Nibellion) June 29, 2021

That upgrade is now available for Xbox Series X|S and PS5 and it brings multiple modes to these consoles to take advantage of how they can run Doom Eternal. The Xbox Series X version of the game will feature three modes: Performance Mode, Balanced Mode, and Ray Tracing Mode.

The Performance Mode runs the game at a 1800p resolution with a frame rate of 120fps. The Balanced Mode runs the game at a 2160p resolution with a frame rate of 60fps, and the Ray Tracing Mode runs the game at a 1600p resolution with a frame rate of 60fps.

On the Xbox Series S, the game will have two modes. The Performance Mode runs the game at a 1080p resolution with a frame rate of 120fps, while the Balanced Mode runs the game at a 1440p resolution with a frame rate of 60fps.

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Doom Eternal features three modes on the PS5 similar to the three found on Xbox Series X, but the numbers are a touch different, as noted in PushSquare’s report on the PS5 version. In the PS5’s Performance Mode, the game hits a resolution of 1584p with a frame rate of 120fps while the Balanced Mode runs at a 2160p resolution with a frame rate of 60fps, much like the Xbox Series X’s Balanced Mode.

The PS5’s Ray Tracing mode runs at a 1800p resolution with a frame rate of 60fps. As noted by Nibellion on Twitter, the “Next-Gen Graphics Mode” splash screen that plays with the trailer seen in their tweet says that “all modes feature dynamic resolution scaling” and that ray tracing is not available at all when using the game’s Balanced and Performance modes.

This upgrade is available for download as of today. Check out our thoughts on the game in IGN’s Doom Eternal review and then read out list of the best FPS campaigns of all time to see where IGN ranked Doom Eternal.

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Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

SpaceX is scheduled to launch a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral on Tuesday afternoon, and it is expected to generate a barrage of sonic booms.

Florida Today reports that the Falcon 9 rocket flight is scheduled to liftoff from the Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral’s Space Force Station in Florida on Tuesday sometime during a 58-minute launch window that opens at 2:56 p.m. (ET). After lifting off, the rocket’s booster will reportedly “separate from the payload-hauling second stage” and “flip around.”

Once it begins its descent towards the nearby Landing Zone 1, sonic booms may roar overhead as the rocket approaches the speed-of-sound barrier during its deacceleration towards the landing site. The pressure waves from the expanding and contracting air are likely to generate a shockwave that sounds like a thunderclap to anyone in the nearby area.

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“There is a possibility that residents of Brevard, Orange, Osceola, Indian River, Seminole, Volusia, Polk, St. Lucie, and Okeechobee counties may hear one or more sonic booms during the landing,” SpaceX said in a warning statement Monday. “But what residents experience will depend on weather and other conditions.”

The sharp release of pressure after the build-up of air molecules creates the rumbling noise people hear as the sonic boom, according to NASA. The Space Agency compared the ripple effect of the air reacting to the rocket to that of a boat traveling through water, creating small waves that can turn into a larger single wave if the boat moves through the water before the waves are swept away from the point of impact.

Falcon 9 is expected to generate three sonic booms during its descent, though spectators close to the landing pad are not likely to hear all three occurrences, as there will be a short time delay before the sound reaches their location. Plus, the intensity of the sonic boom is reduced by the distance that the shock wave travels.

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The Transporter 2 mission launching on Tuesday is expected to carry 88 small satellites into orbit following the launch of Transporter 1 in January, which deployed with 143 satellites in the rocket’s payload fairing. While there are fewer on board this time, the latest mission is actually launching more mass to orbit than before, per SpaceX.

Beyond this mission, Elon Musk has announced plans to launch a satellite to the moon next year that is funded by the cryptocurrency dogecoin, but not before SpaceX has raced remote-controlled cars on the lunar surface. There’s also a planned mission to return to the moon in 2024, and Musk’s company is building the lunar lander for that.

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

The Elder Scrolls 6 was first announced a little more than three years ago, but Bethesda has always been careful to moderate expectations about its release date. That continues to be the case, with series director Todd Howard telling The Telegraph that the next game in the series is still in the design phase.

“It’s good to think of The Elder Scrolls 6 as still being in a design [phase]… but we’re checking the tech: ‘Is this going to handle the things we want to do in that game?’ Every game will have some new suites of technology so Elder Scrolls 6 will have some additions to Creation Engine 2 that that game is going to require,” Howard said.

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Howard’s comments were part of a larger interview in which he talked about the Creation Engine, Starfield, and how he has been trying to make an Indiana Jones game since 2009 — something he’s been talking about since he was first revealed to the Executive Producer on MachineGames’ Indiana Jones game, which is still in production.

With Starfield recently being shown — albeit, briefly — at E3 2021, Bethesda has opened up a bit about its current status. But it has made no bones about the state of The Elder Scrolls 6, reiterating time and again that its focus is on its upcoming sci-fi RPG, which is due in 2022. Per usual, Bethesda’s intention is to wait until Starfield is almost ready before showing anything meaningful.

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Still, rampant speculation continues. Evidence continues to mount that The Elder Scrolls 6 will be set in Hammerfell, even if it definitely won’t be titled “Redfall.” Otherwise we still have very little to go on outside of that very brief teaser trailer that was first shown back in E3 2018. A decade after the release of Skyrim, the wait for a new Elder Scrolls game continues.

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Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN.