New Buffy The Vampire Slayer Young Adult Novel Arrives In January

A YA novel series based on Buffy the Vampire Slayer is on the way. The first novel in the new Buffy trilogy is set to arrive in January 2022, to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the classic TV show.

As reported by Polygon, the first Buffy novel will be titled In Every Generation and written by Kendare Blake, who is best known for the popular Three Dark Crowns series. It will be published by Disney Hyperion on January 4. Buffy is one of many former Fox properties acquired by Disney in 2019.

In a statement, Blake said, “I have been a Buffy fan since the womb, or at least that’s what it feels like. Being a fan of Buffy was the whole reason for taking on In Every Generation. I had no choice. You don’t say no to Buffy. If you want to visualize the writing of this book, just imagine the iconic scene from Singin’ in the Rain. Except instead of Gene Kelly, it’s me, and instead of that wet street with the lamp post, it’s Sunnydale Cemetery full of vampires.”

A synopsis for In Every Generation has also been released. It reads, “Frankie Rosenberg is passionate about the environment, a sophomore at New Sunnydale High School, and the daughter of the most powerful witch in Sunnydale history. Her mom, Willow, is slowly teaching her magic on the condition that she use it to better the world. But Frankie’s happily quiet life is upended when new girl Hailey shows up with news that the annual Slayer convention has been the target of an attack, and all the Slayers–including Buffy, Faith, and Hailey’s older sister Vi–might be dead.

“That means it’s time for this generation’s Slayer to be born. But being the first-ever Slayer-Witch means learning how to wield a stake while trying to control her budding powers. With the help of Hailey, a werewolf named Jake, and a hot but nerdy sage demon, Frankie must become the Slayer, prevent the Hellmouth from opening again, and find out what happened to her Aunt Buffy, before she’s next.”

Buffy the Vampire Slayer was created Joss Whedon and starred Sarah Michelle Gellar, Alyson Hannigan, and Charisma Carpenter. The show ran for seven seasons, from 1997 until 2003. In February, Carpenter accused Whedon of harassment on the Buffy set, while co-star Amber Benson described it as a “toxic environment.”

Clifford The Big Red Dog Indefinitely Delayed Amid Delta Variant Concerns

Paramount Pictures has indefinitely delayed Clifford the Big Red Dog from its planned September 17 release due to concerns about the delta variant of the coronavirus. According to Deadline, while the film is finished and early reactions point it to being potentially profitable with families, Paramount doesn’t want to put children at risk as delta variant cases continue to increase.

Directed by Walt Becker, Clifford the Big Red Dog stars Darby Camp as Emily Elizabeth, alongside Jack Whitehall, John Cleese, and Tony Hale as they have to deal with a dog that magically goes from tiny puppy to a 25-foot tall titan. A new release date or a Godzilla versus crossover has yet to be announced.

Let them fight
Let them fight

Based on the classic Norman Bridwell books that were adapted into a long-running PBS animated series, Clifford’s last trailer managed to clock 130 million views in its first week.

The film industry has been hit hard during the current pandemic era and is still far from seeing a return to the box office numbers that blockbusters were capable of generating before 2020.

Disney’s Jungle Cruise movie starring The Rock and Emily Blunt made $34.2 million in the US over the weekend and another $65 million globally before Disney+ numbers were factored into its performance.

Other films such as The Green Knight and Snake Eyes have had to settle for much less, as movies rarely crack more than $10 million in their opening week at multiplexes in the US.

Bungie And Ubisoft File Lawsuit Against Cheat Distributor

With cheating in games seemingly getting worse, two major developers are pushing back against one of the companies providing cheating tools to players. Ubisoft and Bungie have filed a joint lawsuit against Ring-1, which advertises bundles of various cheats and hacks on its site.

In the lawsuit, Ubisoft and Bungie allege that the cheats sold by Ring-1 “impair and destroy not only the game experience but also the Plaintiffs’ overall businesses and their reputation among their respective player communities.”

Specifically, the companies are filing because of cheat bundles being sold for Destiny 2 and Rainbow Six Siege. However, Ring-1 sells hacks packages, which include aim-bots and weapon modifiers, in most popular multiplayer games. Along with the previously mentioned games, subscription packages of hacks for Rust, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, PUBG, and Dead By Daylight are also available for up to €75 or $89.

Along with “seeking damages, injunctive relief, and other equitable relief” for distributing hacks for their games, Ubisoft and Bungie are also accusing Ring-1 of copyright infringement. Looking at Ring-1’s site, you can find key art for both Destiny 2 and Rainbow Six Siege, all of which are copyrighted.

While there isn’t a dollar amount for Ring-1 to pay anywhere throughout the lawsuit, Ubisoft and Bungie have estimated that “such damage may amount to millions of dollars.”

This isn’t the first time a company has taken action against the people or companies that make and distribute hacks. Recently, Call of Duty: Warzone publisher Activision was able to get a cheat maker to stop the development of an aimbot by request. However, not all actions against the groups providing cheats are so amicable. This past March, Chinese media conglomerate Tencent and the Chinese police shut down a $76 million cheat distributing operation in a collaborative operation.

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Sony Reportedly Stopped McDonald’s From Bringing Out a PS5 Controller

McDonald’s Australia announced last week that it would give away a limited number of special edition PS5 controllers, each customised to include illustrations of burgers and fries along with an asymmetric white, red, and yellow colour scheme. It kicked off an internet-wide discussion of whether they were cool or not – all of which turned out to be academic when Sony reportedly stepped in to block the controllers from being released at all.

As reported by Press Start, the stream week set to include the controller giveaways was suddenly postponed, and McDonald’s confirmed that, when it does happen, fast food-themed DualSense controllers will not be a part of the celebrations anymore.

“Sony PlayStation has not authorised the use of its controller in promotional materials related to the proposed Stream Week event and we apologise for any inconvenience caused,” wrote a spokesperson. “McDonald’s stream week has been postponed and Sony PlayStation controllers will not be included in the giveaway.”

The McDonald's-themed PS5 controller, now blocked from release.

Sony has released very few official versions of the DualSense controllers since PS5’s launch, which might account for why it stepped in here. Famously, the company has even had a part in forcing custom PS5 parts makers to cancel all their pre-order sales.

The closest you’re going to get to the McDonald’s design is painting your own white controller and, unless you’re one of these people, we don’t suggest you try that. If you do want something a little different, we do at least now have the choice of black and red controller options.

The one outstanding question, of course, is whether the controllers were merely a concept, or if McDonald’s had already had some made. If it’s the latter, you can probably bet on one of these becoming a hugely valuable video game collector’s item in the years to come.

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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].

LEGO Marvel Infinity Gauntlet Set Is Now Available

LEGO is always cooking up new sets based on Marvel superheroes, but one of the cooler ones we’ve seen in a while has just released. It’s a 590-piece set that has you build Thanos’ Infinity Gauntlet, complete with a full set of colorful stones, and it looks like it’s just waiting to snap.

It retails for $69.99 and is available now at a number of retailers (see it at Amazon).

LEGO Marvel Infinity Gauntlet

The Infinity Gauntlet is an iconic piece of Marvel history, one you may remember it from the movies Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. This LEGO version (76191) features a full set of colorful Infinity Stones, and features movable fingers. You can even put them into a snap formation if you’re feeling reckless.

The set is recommended for adults 18 and up, and is intended primarily for display purposes. To that end, it comes with a sturdy buildable stand and a descriptive placard. When built, it stands 12.5 inches tall.

This LEGO Infinity Gauntlet set is the latest in the line of display sets for adults. Others include Batman, Venom, Darth Vader, and More.

Other LEGO Display Sets

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Chris Reed is a commerce editor for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @_chrislreed.

Get 30 Games For The Price Of One With This Game Bundle

It’s summertime, and for a lot of us, that means a lot more time on our hands. For gamers, it means beating the heat by staying inside and playing our favorite video games–so much so that we may even begin to get tired of playing the same games. There are thousands of games out there, meaning it should be easy to find the one you want to play next. However, having such an abundance of choices can be overwhelming.

With a three-month subscription to the GameThrill Big Game Box: 30 Game Bundle , you can nix the idea of spending money on a single game and simply get 30 of them. Valued at $50, this subscription is only $10 for a limited time.

With games like Goat Simulator, Dragon Hunter, Cybercube, Creepy Vision, and many more, odds are you’ll find a fair few games within this package that suit your fancy. With a hundred dollars worth of games at just a fraction of that price, you can play to your heart’s content and truly make the most out of your gaming experience. And if you keep your subscription beyond your first three months, you’ll get another 10 games each month into the future.

If you’ve been having some trouble deciding what to play and don’t want to spend all of your money buying games until you find one you like, this package is perfect for you. At just $10, or just 33 cents a game, you won’t find a better deal on entertaining games anywhere else. Rated 4/5 stars by verified purchasers, The GameThrill Big Game Box is going to save you from the paralysis of too many choices and help you make the most of your summer vacation.

Price subject to change

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Halo Infinite Files Include a Battle Royale Reference

While hardly a confirmation, an audio clip within Halo Infinite’s Tech Preview files has been discovered that has Halo’s iconic announcer saying “Battle Royale.”

As reported by VGC, this datamined audio clip was originally shared on ResertEra and includes nothing more than the words Battle and Royale, but could give hope to those looking to be the last Spartan standing.

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It’s important to remember that 343 has previously gone on record to say that, “the only BR we’re interested in is the Battle Rifle,” but that comment was from 2018 and things can obviously change.

Expectations should definitely be tempered, however, as this could be from a canceled battle royale mode that the team was testing out or could be from some other part of Halo Infinite or from a ton of other possible places.

Still, it’s a treat to hear Halo’s announcer shouting out a mode many have been asking for following the success of Fortnite, PUBG, Apex Legends, and Call of Duty: Warzone.

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Halo Infinite’s Tech Preview ran this past weekend and finally gave fans a chance to try out the newest Halo’s multiplayer for themselves. While players were mostly limited to playing against bots, 343 did turn on online multiplayer for a short time on Sunday, August 1.

For more on Halo Infinite’s Tech Preview, check out our hands-on impressions that made us shout to the world that “Halo looks ready to reclaim its place as one of the best multiplayer shooters ever made.”

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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.

Astro Bot Developer Team Asobi Currently Working On “Most Ambitious Game Yet”

When Sony and PlayStation shut down Japan Studio earlier this year, one of the groups in the organization, Team Asobi, became its own standalone studio. The developer is best known for the Astro Bot series, which has so far spawned Astro Bot Rescue Mission for PlayStation VR, The Playroom for PlayStation 4, and Astro’s Playroom for PlayStation 5.

Asobi recently launched a new website and the About Us section states, “We’re currently hard at work on our most ambitious game yet!” No further details about the game have been mentioned. The studio is also looking to hire for several new roles. The Jobs section lists openings for a gameplay programmer, game designer, and audio designer.

Additionally, the engine and art departments there are looking to greatly expand. The engine team is looking for VFX, graphics, and animation programmers, while the art team is looking for environment, concept, 3D character, UI, and FX artists as well as an animator and technical artist.

Back in June, studio director Nicolas Doucet said that Team Asobi was “growing bigger”. He also teased that the developer’s next project will take advantage of the PlayStation 5 DualSense controller’s unique and innovative features. Astro’s Playroom was already a showcase for the PS5’s features so it makes sense that the studio’s next project will lean further in that direction.

Hopefully, we see something soon from Team Asobi. In the meantime, PlayStation fans will have the God of War sequel and reportedly Horizon Forbidden West to look forward to in 2022.

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Pokemon Unite: Master Rank Player Shares Move And Gear Loadouts

Pokemon Unite has been out for two weeks, which is enough time for high-level players to get a feel for the game and try out its various mechanics and build types. One player has caught the attention of the community by openly sharing their Move builds and Gear loadouts.

The player, known as Bocky GA in the leaderboards, has shared their builds on social media (via the Pokemon Unite subreddit). While placements are constantly shifting among the top players, Bocky is ranked #14 worldwide as of the time of writing, and has achieved the Master rank.

Now Playing: Pokémon Unite Video Review

A lot of this comes down to personal preference and team composition, so if you have better luck with a different build, stick with what works. Some recommendations also come with situational context, like recommending a slightly different build for whether you’re going to the top or bottom lane, playing on Switch or mobile, etc. And Gardevoir, as the newest Pokemon to be added, has a move build recommendation but no gear loadout recommendation yet.

Of course, even with these moves and gear equipped, you’ll need to remember the MOBA fundamentals: stick to your lane, support your teammates, don’t get caught up against two opponents, and so on. These won’t make your Eldegoss into a single-monster wrecking crew, but they will help you get the most out of their abilities and unique talents. As always, these builds are bound to change as more Pokemon get added and the meta shifts.

It’s also worth noting which gear gets no love: Leftovers, Aeos Cookie, Attack Weight, and Rocky Helmet. Those aren’t recommended in any builds, and so the wisdom of at least one pro player would suggest they’re less useful than a lot of the other items. Since gear can be powered up with the very limited currency of Aeos Tickets–a point that has prompted pay-to-win criticisms–you don’t want to waste them on gear you won’t use.

Check below for the recommended builds, and for more, read our Pokemon Unite review and our full suite of Pokemon Unite guides.

Pokemon Move Builds Gear Loadouts
Lucario Power-up Punch (level 5)
Bone Rush (level 7)		 Muscle Band
Scope Lens
Float Stone
Machamp Submission (level 5)
Cross Chop (level 7)		 Muscle Band
Scope Lens
Float Stone / Focus Band
Charizard Top: Flamethrower / Bottom: Fire Punch (level 5)
Top: Fire Blast / Bottom: Flare Blitz (level 7)		 Muscle Band
Float Stone
Energy Amplifier
Snorlax

Heavy Slam (level 6)
Block (level 8)

 Focus Band
Buddy Barrier
Top: Assault Vest / Bottom: EXP Share
Cinderace Blaze Kick (level 7)
Feint (level 8)		 Muscle Band
Float Stone
Scope Lens / Buddy Barrier
Gengar Sludge Bomb (level 5)
Hex (level 7)		 Shell Bell
Wise Glasses
Sp. Atk Specs
Slowbro Surf (level 4)
Telekinesis (level 6)		 Focus Band
Buddy Barrier
Top: Assault Vest / Bottom: EXP Share
Cramorant Hurricane (level 4)
Surf (level 6)		 Shell Bell
Wise Glasses
Buddy Barrier / Energy Amplifier
Alolan Ninetails Dazzling Gleam (level 4)
Blizzard (level 6)		 Shell Bell
Wise Glasses
Buddy Barrier
Mr. Mime Confusion (level 4)
Barrier (level 6)		 Wise Glasses
Buddy Barrier
Shell Bell / Focus Band
Garchomp Dragon Rush (level 6)
Dragon Claw (level 8)		 Muscle Band
Float Stone
Scope Lens / Focus Band / Assault Vest
Pikachu Electro Ball (level 4)
Switch: Volt Tackle / Mobile: Thunderbolt (level 6)		 Shell Bell
Wise Glasses
Buddy Barrier
Greninja Smokescreen (level 5)
Water Shuriken (level 7)		 Muscle Band
Float Stone
Scope Lens / Focus Band / Buddy Barrier
Crustle

Shell Smash (level 4)
X-Scissor (level 6)

 Focus Band
Buddy Barrier
Score Shield / Assault Vest
Zeraora Spark (level 6)
Discharge (level 8)

Muscle Band
Float Stone
Energy Amplifier
Eldegoss Leaf Tornado (level 4)
Cotton Guard (level 6)		 EXP Share
Focus Band
Buddy Barrier
Venusaur Giga Drain / Sludge Bomb if teamed with Gengar (level 5)
Solar Beam (level 7)		 Shell Bell
Wise Glasses
Sp. Atk Specs / Focus Band
Talonflame Flame Charge (level 5)
Fly (level 7)		 Muscle Band
Float Stone
Energy Amplifier
Absol Night Slash (level 5)
Psycho Cut (level 7)		 Muscle Band
Float Stone
Scope Lens
Wigglytuff Rollout or Sing as preferred (level 4)
Double Slap (level 6)		 Shell Bell
Wise Glasses
Buddy Barrier
Gardevoir Psyshock or Future Sight as preferred (level 6)
Moonblast (level 8)		 N/A

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Sony Blocks McDonalds Australia From Giving Away Horrifying PS5 Controllers

Sony’s impressive PS5 controller is officially available in three different color schemes, and fortunately, none of them happen to be McDonald’s-themed. A DualSense controller featuring McDonald’s colors was set to be a prize over in Australia as part of the company opening its first restaurant on that continent 50 years ago, but it looks like the fast-food chain’s promotion didn’t receive the blessing of Sony.

In a statement to Press Start, McDonald’s Australia explained that its plans to give away McDualSense controllers for its upcoming anniversary week event were not authorized by Sony and that fans can instead look forward to birthday hoodies and channel subscriptions for Twitch streamers to give away.

Now Playing: PS5’s DualSense Controller Is Great… If Developers Use It

“Sony PlayStation has not authorized the use of its controller in promotional materials related to the proposed Stream Week event and we apologies for any inconvenience caused,” McDonald’s Australia said. “McDonald’s stream week has been postponed and Sony PlayStation controllers will not be included in the giveaway.”

McBullet dodged.
McBullet dodged.

The original design certainly looked unique. A white DualSense controller featured fries on the left side, a burger wrapped around the right, and a splash of yellow that hopefully wasn’t leftover grease to give the D-pad and face buttons a stylish finish. A McDonald’s logo in the center of the touchpad completed the deep-fried look.

On the other side of the food spectrum promotion, Krispy Kreme’s Xbox promotion in the UK has begun, although the end result does slightly differ from what was promised.