Halo Infinite Designer Leaves To Join Darksiders Studio

Halo Infinite developer Kolbe Payne has officially left the studio. January 7 was his last day working for 343 Industries, and he’s now taken a position at Darksiders studio Gunfire Games.

Payne was a campaign level/gameplay designer on Halo Infinite from April 2019 to January 2021. His LinkedIn page says he worked for 343 on a contract basis.

Payne is now working at Austin, Texas-based developer Gunfire Games as a junior level designer, though it’s not immediately clear what project he’s contributing to.

Payne snapped a nice photo of himself leaving the 343 office, complete with Master Chief standing in the background and a Halo-branded cushion on a chair.

“I’ll see you later this year Chief,” Payne said in his farewell tweet, referencing Halo Infinite’s planned release in Fall 2021.

Halo Infinite has gone through a fair amount of staff turnover in recent years, but Xbox boss Phil Spencer says that is nothing out of the ordinary.

Halo Infinite was originally slated to release as a launch title for the Xbox Series X|S in November, but Microsoft elected to push the game to 2021 due in part to complications related to COVID-19 and working from home. Recently, 343 boss Bonnie Ross said the wait will be worth it.

The game is shaking things up for the franchise, as it runs on a completely new engine and the multiplayer element of Halo Infinite will be free-to-play with microtransactions.

When Halo Infinite is released, it will be free for Xbox Game Pass subscribers and available on Xbox One, PC, and Xbox Series X|S.

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Witcher 3 Mod Finally Gives Geralt A Snowboard

Have you ever looked at The Witcher’s Geralt of Rivia and just thought “This guy is just not extreme enough?” Well, now you can have him shred the Continent’s powder with this Witcher 3 mod that gives our favorite monster hunter a snowboard.

The mod is called Geralt VGX Snowboarder, and it adds a snowboard that Geralt can find on an altar in Skellige that overlooks the bay of Kaer Trolde. As noted by the mod’s designer Feregorn, this area is home to some great items and is also “a solid spot for avid virtual instagrammers.” The mod also provides Geralt with some snazzy snowboarding goggles to protect his cat eyes from the cold.

The accompanying snowboard can be equipped in either a weapon or boot slot, so Geralt can use it to hit either the slopes, or his enemies. Just don’t pay too much attention to the usual sword sounds and animations that still accompany Geralt’s attacks.

This isn’t the first time Geralt has found himself carving mountains around the Continent. While designing the Witcher’s skidding mechanic on slopes, the dev team at CD Projekt Red decided to alter Geralt’s textures so that he looked like a snowboarder while skidding down mountains. They kitted him out in all the necessary snowboarding gear and filmed clips of the White Wolf tearing up slopes across the Continent.

The creator of the Geralt VGX Snowboarder mod, Feregorn, referenced this video in the description of their mod, citing it as an inspiration. The mod is a more fleshed out version of this early idea, allowing players to slide down pretty much any slope in the game and gain some significant speed.

The Witcher series is no stranger to mods in general. Last year, someone created one that put Henry Cavill’s face over Geralt’s in Wild Hunt, and even the series’ previous entry was modded to add an epilogue, so who knows what else modders have in store for Geralt?

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The Borderlands Movie With Cate Blanchett And Kevin Hart Will Film In Budapest, And Maybe Soon

The movie based on the video game Borderlands is in development, and from the sound of it, production may begin very soon. The movie will film at least partially in Budapest, Hungary, according to Adam Goodman of MidAtlantic Films, a Hungary-based production company.

Goodman told The Hollywood Reporter that MidAtlantic has created space in its studios for the Borderlands movie, while other big-name projects will also film there. The Borderlands movie is directed by Eli Roth (Hostel, Inglourious Basterds), with Cate Blanchett and Kevin Hart set to play main roles.

Goodman said his studios are “basically fully booked” until summer 2021, which suggests that the Borderlands movie will film before then, in the first half of the year.

“We’re [sic] opened up space for a Lionsgate film, Borderlands [starring Cate Blanchett and Kevin Hart], we’re doing season three of Jack Ryan for Paramount TV, and we’re doing a Marvel project, which, for the usual security reasons, I can’t talk about,” Goodman said of MidAtlantic’s upcoming shoots (via Game Informer). “We’re basically fully booked for the coming cycle, until the summer, which, hopefully, will be the last cycle of shows we have to do under COVID-19 protocols.”

Borderlands is not the only video game moving filming at MidAtlantic in Budapest. The Halo TV series with Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief is filming there as well, and production remains ongoing, according to THR.

The Borderlands movie is being written by Craig Mazin, who wrote the Hangover and Scary Movie sequels before getting more acclaim for writing HBO’s Chernobyl. Mazin is also attached to write the Last of Us TV show with Neil Druckmann.

A Gilmore Girls Themed Fire Emblem Mod Is Available To Play

Fire Emblem–your favorite RPG franchise that combines chess and dating–and Gilmore Girls got a fan-made crossover. The creator, Marlowe Dobb, borrowed the power of both cult classics to create an hour-long Fire Emblem Sacred Stones mod with characters and plotlines from Gilmore Girls.

According to Fire Emblem: Gilmore Girls’ itch.io page, the mod contains four custom maps, multiple playable characters, fun dialogue, and “depictions of a normal mother-daughter relationship.” Playing the mod requires a ROM version of FE Sacred Stones and a .ups patch applying software.

Fire Emblem has received a lot of great fan-made mods over the years. Fire Emblem Girls, a standout mod that also uses FE Sacred Stones as its base, impressively upgrades the difficulty of the original game and includes a ton of other custom content. Like the name implies, all the characters in Fire Emblem Girls are female characters from different Fire Emblem games.

Fire Emblem Midori is another FE Sacred Stones mod, but one with a tongue-in-cheek cast. All units are green-haired characters from across the franchise. Like FE Girls, FE Midori upgrades the game’s difficulty and throws in new skills and mechanics from other FE titles.

The latest FE installment, Fire Emblem Three Houses, was a smash hit. It was released in 2019 and became the best-selling FE title as of November 2020.

Now Playing: Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & The Blade Of Light – Official Switch Localization Trailer

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9 Things We Want In Zelda: Breath Of The Wild 2

We don’t know much about the sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild–we still don’t even have a name for it yet. After releasing an announcement trailer for the game during E3 2019, Nintendo went radio silent. We’ll hear more about the game once Nintendo is ready, but there’s no indication of how soon that might be.

In the meantime, it’s always fun to speculate and talk about what we hope to see in the new game. In the video above, Max Blumenthal details nine dreams for the Breath of the Wild sequel, ranging from who we want to play as to where we hope the game is ultimately set. It would be pretty cool to see the return of notable Legend of Zelda enemies and allies as well.

If you haven’t yet seen the announcement trailer for Breath of the Wild’s sequel, it’s worth checking out. The trailer seems to imply that at least part of the game will take place in an underground-looking setting or perhaps a more traditional Legend of Zelda dungeon environment. You can also see Link and Zelda working side by side as opposed to Link soloing the adventure and Zelda tagging along as a disembodied voice. The withered husk of what looks like Ganon is present as well, as is imagery and sounds that may suggest a connection to the events and characters of Twilight Princess–one of the many Legend of Zelda games referenced in Breath of the Wild. But, admittedly, that’s all conjecture.

Like we said before, we don’t really know anything about this game other than that it exists. So what are your hopes and dreams for Breath of the Wild’s sequel? Leave your answers in the comments section below.

Rust Developer Made More Than $1 Million In A Day Twice This Week

Despite having released all the way back in 2013 through Early Access, the PC survival game Rust is enjoying a new lease on life recently after numerous streamers started playing it again. This uptick in attention has led to a huge spike in sales and revenue, according to Garry Newman of developer Facepunch.

Newman revealed on Twitter that Facepunch made more than $1 million in gross revenue on two different occasions this week on Steam. You can see the sales graphic below. Now, some of this revenue might be related to Facepunch’s other game, Garry’s Mod, but you’d have to imagine the bulk is coming from Rust.

Newman also shared that Rust recently doubled its record for player count, a record that was set just days prior. Steam’s public data shows that Rust had more than 200,000 peak concurrent players on January 8, which makes it among the most popular games on Steam overall.

While Rust was initially released in Early Access back in 2013, the full release happened in 2018. Many are saying Rust is enjoying an Among Us-style resurgence, as both games grew significantly in popularity after streamers began to play more and more.

A console edition of Rust is in development for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. It was recently delayed to 2021, but there is reason to believe it might be releasing sooner rather than later.

In other news, a new update for Rust is out now on PC–check out the patch notes.

Now Playing: Rust – A Typical Outing Gameplay

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Games, Xbox Series X Controllers, And Monitors Discounted In New Best Buy 3-Day Sale

While January tends to be a slower period for game deals as things calm down post-Black Friday, there are still a few solid sales running this month, and one of them can be found at Best Buy. The retailer just kicked off its first three-day sale of 2021, offering some nice discounts on games for Switch, PS5, and Xbox Series X; gaming monitors; Xbox controllers; and more. The sale ends Sunday, so be sure to check out everything on offer before then. Fortunately, we’ve highlighted some of the best gaming deals for you here.

Best Buy currently has some game deals that are left over from Black Friday, like Final Fantasy VII Remake and The Last of Us Part 2 for $30 each, and both games are still excellent pickups at that price. You’ll also find some nice Switch game deals, like Ring Fit Adventure on sale for $70 (instead of $80), just in time for your New Year’s fitness resolutions. The newly released Fitness Boxing 2 is also down to $40 and is a nice complement to Ring Fit if you’re looking for more at-home workout options. Other great deals include Yakuza: Like a Dragon for $35, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla for $40, and Super Mario 3D All-Stars for $50. For the latter game, there’s also a bundle that comes with the collectible three-piece Mario coin set.

Check out the best gaming and tech deals from Best Buy’s weekend sale below, including some solid discounts on 4K TVs, gaming monitors, smart devices, and gaming laptops. For some products, we’ve included links to Amazon when that store is price-matching. Plus, check out other sales happening this weekend, like Ubisoft’s bargain bin sale on PC games, the Xbox Last Chance Sale, and the PlayStation Store Holiday Sale, which just added more games.

White/Black: $50 (was $60) | Blue: $55 (was $65)

The new Xbox wireless controllers that launched alongside the Xbox Series X|S will work just fine with Xbox One as well, so even if you haven’t gotten your hands on the next-gen console, you can take advantage of this deal that slashes $10 off the price of each color. The latest Xbox controller model adds a new hybrid D-pad, a Share button, a textured grip, and more.

$61 (was $80)

Less than three months remain to buy Super Mario 3D All-Stars, which will only be available to purchase physically or digitally until March 31. Because of that time restriction, you’ll probably want to own a physical copy, and while this bundle doesn’t offer a discount–the game itself costs $60–you’ll get the collectible 3-piece Mario coin set basically for free. (Last year, Nintendo was giving these coin sets away to those who completed a series of Mario-related activities.) Super Mario 3D All-Stars combines three of the best 3D Mario platformers: Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Galaxy.

$330 (was $400)

Best Buy’s sale features a few nice deals on gaming monitors, and one of the best we’ve seen is on this Samsung CRG5 Series monitor, which is $70 off. This 27-inch LED gaming monitor features a 240Hz refresh rate, Nvidia G-Sync technology, and a high contrast ratio.

$380 (was $450)

Another solid monitor option, this Alienware 27-inch full HD FreeSync monitor features a 240Hz refresh rate, an ultra-fast response time, low input lag, and an IPS panel.

$40 (was $50)

Logitech’s G502 Hero gaming mouse has been a longstanding favorite among PC gamers, featuring optical technology that allows for precise movements to give you an edge in competitive gameplay. The G502 Hero also has 11 programmable buttons, customizable RGB lighting, and five different weights so you can tune the mouse to your preference.

$70 (was $100) | My Best Buy members

We recently called the Corsair HS70 the best wired gaming headset with Bluetooth, and it’s on sale for $70 this weekend, though you’ll need to log into your My Best Buy account to claim the price (creating an account is free). The Corsair HS70 can connect to your Switch, PS5, Xbox, or PC with its wire while connecting via Bluetooth to your phone for music, podcasts, or Discord phone chat, offering a lot of flexibility in your gaming audio experience. It also features a noise-canceling microphone that’s fully detachable.

$45 (was $90)

The Echo Show is a handy little device to have in your home. It can quickly read you off the news and weather, give you traffic updates, play music, display recipes, and even allows for video calls. The Echo Show 5 features a compact 5.5″ smart display, and it’s down to just $45 this weekend.

$110 (was $180)

With game file sizes getting bigger all the time, nearly everyone will eventually need to purchase more storage space, whether you’re playing on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, or PC. This WD Easystore 5TB hard drive can instantly expand your storage for games, and its portable design makes it easy to take on the go if you’re using it with a laptop.

$1,150 (was $1,450)

If you’re looking to pick up a gaming laptop for the new year, the HP Omen 15 is a fantastic mid-range option. It comes with a 10th Gen Intel Core i7 processor, an RTX 2060 graphics card, and a 512 GB solid-state drive along with 16GB of RAM.

$500 (was $550)

As always, there are TV deals featured in Best Buy’s three-day sale, and though it’s not a huge discount, this LG 65-inch 4K TV is worth calling out. You’ll be able to watch 4K movies and TV shows at 2160p resolution, and it also includes active HDR for greater color contrast.

WandaVision Will Premiere With Two Episodes, Not One

Disney’s first big new TV show of 2021 is WandaVision, which features Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen reprising their Marvel roles, and it’s almost here. Ahead of its premiere on January 15, Disney has confirmed that not one but two episodes will debut on release day.

Previously it was expected that only one episode would be available for the debut. After that, new episodes of WandaVision will premiere on Disney+ on Fridays at 12 AM PT / 3 AM ET.

The new show follows Vision (Bettany) and Wanda (Olsen) as they live their lives, seemingly trapped in a sitcom which bounces around between time periods. The trailers so far have left us with more questions than answers. But with the show finally premiering soon, it won’t be long until we know what’s going on and if the show provides some answers about what happened to Vision and Wanda in the aftermath of Endgame.

WandaVision will stream exclusively on Disney+. The streaming service costs $7 a month (or $70 a year), and you can watch movies and TV shows from Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, National Geographic, and of course, Disney. Additionally, you can bundle Disney+ with Hulu and ESPN+ for $13 a month. Check out GameSpot’s how-to-watch guide for WandaVision to learn more.

Ahead of WandaVision’s debut, Disney has released a show titled Marvel Studios: Legends, which will allow viewers to catch up on the highlights of various Marvel heroes.

Now Playing: Scarlet Witch’s Comic Book History Explained | WandaVision

King of Fighters XV: First Gameplay, 6 Characters Revealed

SNK Corporation has formally revealed The King of Fighters XV by debuting gameplay and showing off six characters. The game will launch later this year.

The announcement was initially postponed on Wednesday and suffered a brief delay. Characters shown off in a new trailer (below) include K’, Kyo Kusanagi, Leona, Benimaru, Shun’ei and Mai Shiranui. Not much in the way of detail is added, but we get a good look at the game’s visual style, which looks to be a little more stylised than KOF 14.

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Following the reveal trailer, KOF XV Creative Director Eisuke Ogura and Producer Yasuyuki Oda revealed a little more about how the game will play when it launches in 2021.

“We’re focusing on keeping the series’ staple of being fast-paced while also adding elements to make it more exciting,” Ogura notes. The developers are currently “brushing up features and optimizing the game,” but plan to ship in 2021. Another trailer for The King of Fighters XV will land next week to supplement the reveal.

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Today’s trailer also included news on King of Fighters 14 Ultimate Edition – out now digitally – a new release for King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match on PS4, and then revealed Cham Cham and The Last Blade 2’s Hibiki Tanake as DLC characters for the Samurai Shodown Season 3 Pass. Samurai Shodown will also receive a game reblance in March.

KOF XV was announced during EVO 2019, and we got our first glimpse of the game back in December 2020, which revealed that in addition to the characters mentioned above, Benimaru would be playable. It’s not clear what platforms the game will be available on just yet.

Here’s our review of King of Fighters 14, which debuted in 2016. We scored it an 8, noting its “dated graphics and dodgy netcode”.

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Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

There Is No Microsoft/Duracell Deal Meaning Xbox Has to Use AA Batteries in Controllers

Amid new speculation caused by comments from a Duracell spokesperson, IGN understands that there is no deal forcing Xbox to use AA batteries in its controllers.

Speaking to Stealth Optional, Duracell UK marketing manager Luke Anderson sparked speculation by saying, “There’s always been this partnership with Duracell and Xbox… It’s a constant agreement that Duracell and Microsoft have in place […] [The deal is] for OEM to supply the battery product for the Xbox consoles and also the controllers’ battery. So that [deal is] going to go on for a while… it’s been going on for a while and I think it needs to go for a while [more].”

Many took this to mean that the deal mentioned was the sole reason that Xbox uses AA batteries in its controllers, and some speculated that it could change that fact once the deal finishes. However, sources tell IGN that this is inaccurate.

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Duracell batteries are included with Xbox controllers, and Xbox has indeed been a part of Duracell OEM, a partnership program run by the battery manufacturer, but that appears to be a byproduct of Microsoft’s decision to use AA batteries, rather than the cause of it. Contacted for comment, a Microsoft spokesperson said:

“We intentionally offer consumers choice in their battery solutions for our standard Xbox Wireless Controllers. This includes the use of AA batteries from any brand, the Xbox Rechargeable Battery, charging solutions from our partners, or a USB-C cable, which can power the controller when plugged in to the console or PC.”

That message echoes the words of, Xbox Series X designer Jason Ronald last year, when he explained why Xbox controllers still use AA batteries, saying that it was ultimately about flexibility for players.

Neither Anderson nor Duracell OEM replied to a request for comment from IGN by time of publish.

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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].