Immortals Fenyx Rising Preorders Are 17% Off on Console

Immortals Fenyx Rising is heading to PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Series X, Nintendo Switch, and PC on December 3. It’s up for preorder now at a variety of retailers. And notably, owners of the PS4 and Xbox One version will be able to get a free next-gen upgrade within the same console family.

The game, which is clearly inspired by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, is set in a colorful world filled with Greek mythology. Typhon, the villain, has just escaped Zeus’s prison and has vowed to make all the gods pay. Your job is make your way through the open-world environment and save the gods. You can check our Immortals Fenyx Rising hands-on preview for many more details.

Below are links to where you can preorder the game, but note that not all retailers have updated the title or cover art from the game’s original title, Gods & Monsters. Even so, you can rest assured you’ll get the correct game when it ships.

Preorder Immortals Fenyx Rising Standard Edition

immortalsPS4

PS5

Xbox One / Series X / Series S

Nintendo Switch

PC

The standard edition doesn’t have any extra bells or whistles, but preordering it gets you the preorder bonus described below.

Preorder Immortals Fenyx Rising Gold Edition

PS4

Xbox One / Series X / Series S

Nintendo Switch

PC

The Gold edition of Immortals Fenyx Rising gets you the following in-game extras:

  • Season Pass
  • Hades the Shadowmaster Character Pack
  • Orion’s Blessed Weapons Pack
  • Prism Wings

Preorder Bonus

preorder-bonusPreorder any version of Immortals Fenyx Rising, and you’ll receive a bonus quest called “A Tale of Fire and Lightning.” Completing this quest gets you the in-game item Blazing Wings.

Other Preorder Guides

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Chris Reed is IGN’s shopping and commerce editor. You can follow him on Twitter @_chrislreed.

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Xbox Series S Handles Backwards Compatibility Enhancements Differently Than Series X

This week has been a big one for Xbox news, and more details about the next-generation consoles continue to come to light. Microsoft will release Series X and Series S on November 10, both supporting backwards compatibility with previous generations. However, the exact way they handle enhancements for those games works a little differently from one another. The Series S is the cheaper option and is designed for 1440p resolution, rather than the Series X’s 4K.

As a result, Microsoft says Series S will not apply the exact enhancements seen on Xbox One X, although it will still offer improvements. A Microsoft spokesperson told GameSpot, “Xbox Series S was designed to be the most affordable next generation console and play next generation games at 1440P at 60fps. To deliver the highest quality backwards compatible experience consistent with the developer’s original intent, the Xbox Series S runs the Xbox One S version of backward compatible games while applying improved texture filtering, higher and more consistent frame rates, faster load times and Auto HDR.”

Xbox One X enhancements often revolve around running games at 4K, which isn’t the focus for Xbox Series S. But the system will still see visual improvements when playing backwards compatible games, including its impressive ability to introduce HDR to games that don’t natively support it.

To put it another way: You won’t get Xbox One X’s exact enhancements while playing backwards compatible games on Series S, but you’ll still get some sort of enhancements. For many consumers, this is probably not the feature that will make or break a decision to purchase the Series S.

For more information on both consoles, check out everything we know about Xbox Series S. We also put together a nifty article comparing Xbox Series S and X to help you make your decision between the two consoles.

Now Playing: Xbox Series X And Series S Prototype Impressions

Layers Of Fear Dev Wants To Be “The Blumhouse Of The Games Industry”

Bloober Team, the studio behind Layers of Fear and the upcoming Xbox console exclusive The Medium, wants to be known as the Blumhouse Productions of the video game industry.

“From the first day we talked about [making] horror games, we said we wanted to be the Blumhouse of the games industry,” Bloober Team founder Piotr Babieno said in an interview with GamesIndustry.Biz.

According to Babieno, prior to Layers of Fear, Bloober Team abandoned “the ambition to create huge [narrative] horror games” as investors wanted the studio to tackle projects “that would bring in money.” However, following the poor critical reception to 2014’s Basement Crawl, Bloober decided to forgo trying to make commercial hits to instead pursue the horror stories that the team wanted to tell, regardless of how much money they would ultimately make.

“Finally, we decided ‘no’,” Babieno said. “We would like to do projects which we are proud of, the stories that we want to tell. We went to our investors and said it was a turning point… Even if they fail from the financial point of view, we want to sign those projects with our names.”

Blumhouse is a film and television production company that’s made a name for itself by producing horror films that have gone on to be quite popular. This trend began with 2009’s Paranormal Activity and has gone on to include 2013’s The Purge, 2015’s Unfriended, 2017’s Split and Get Out, 2018’s Halloween, and 2020’s The Invisible Man.

Likewise, Bloober Team has found success in recent years by exclusively pursuing horror experiences, developing 2016’s Layers of Fear, 2017’s Observer, and 2019’s Layers of Fear 2 and Blair Witch. The studio’s next horror game, The Medium, puts you in the shoes of Marianne, a woman who can see and explore both the physical and spiritual worlds. You’ll be able to switch between the two realities at will, harnessing this ability to solve puzzles and deal with supernatural threats.

The Medium (which is available for pre-order) is scheduled to release for Xbox Series X/S and PC later this year. It’s a bit of a standout in Xbox’s library of upcoming games, exclusively releasing on next-gen consoles. Most of the games scheduled to come out on the Xbox Series consoles at their launch will also release on the current-gen Xbox One. Xbox head Phil Spencer has even said that Xbox won’t force you into next-gen, with all first-party Xbox games releasing for both this and the next generation of consoles.

Now Playing: The Medium Reveal Trailer | Xbox Games Showcase 2020

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Fortnite Season 4 Secret Challenge Guide

Fortnite‘s Coral Buddies are on their way out, but there are still a few secret challenges you can tackle in Season 4. Epic Games has snuck another series of challenges into locations across the map–only one is available now, but more are likely to come. The first known secret challenge is called Event of the Year. This guide will show you where to go and how to complete the challenge with ease.

Check back throughout the season as more secret challenges are added to Fortnite.

Where Can I Locate Season 4’s Secret Challenge?

The first secret challenge can be accessed at a few different locations. One of the easiest to find is on the right side of the map in the H4 tile of the grid. You’ll find the entrance to an old named location that’s now abandoned. You’ll see a gnome looking at a sign on the edge of the concrete circle. All you need to do is walk up to it to complete the challenge. Here’s a map with the exact location:

Fortnite Season 4 Secret Challenge
Fortnite Season 4 Secret Challenge

There are other locations around the map with gnomes in places like Weeping Woods, but you can only get experience for visiting one of them. Don’t worry about the rest if you’ve already gone to the location north of Dirty Docks.

Fortnite Event of the Year Challenge
Fortnite Event of the Year Challenge

What Do I Get For Completing The Secret Challenge?

Completing this extra task will gives you 20,000 experience points to help level up your battle pass and get all that Marvel gear. Be sure to check our guide to unlocking Wolverine if you’re having trouble with completing the hero’s additional challenges.

GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.

Microsoft Calls New Apple App Store Policy Bad for Users

Microsoft has responded to Apple’s updated terms of service that at first glance opens the door somewhat for streaming services like xCloud to exist in the iOS App Store. Unfortunately, the updated terms are still heavily restricted and in an official statement, Microsoft says it “remains a bad experience for customers.”

Apple previously barred video game streaming services like xCloud and Stadia from using the iOS App Store, citing security concerns. Today, the company announced some revisions that would let streaming subscription services onto the App Store but with serious caveats.

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“Games offered in a streaming game service subscription must be downloaded directly from the App Store, must be designed to avoid duplicate payment by a subscriber, and should not disadvantage non-subscriber customers,” says Apple’s new ToS.

Apps for Streaming Services may be allowed on the App Store as a “catalog app” that will help users sign up for the service and see what’s available on platforms like xCloud and Stadia. But Apple says each game available must have an individual App Store page, which is a big ask considering xCloud offers hundreds of games.

And that’s on top of Apple’s customary 30 percent cut, which Epic Games is fighting in an ongoing lawsuit.

In a statement to IGN, a Microsoft spokesperson said,

“This remains a bad experience for customers. Gamers want to jump directly into a game from their curated catalog within one app just like they do with movies or songs, and not be forced to download over 100 apps to play individual games from the cloud. We’re committed to putting gamers at the center of everything we do, and providing a great experience is core to that mission.”

In August, Microsoft announced it will be unable to bring xCloud to iOS because Apple previously ruled game streaming services violated App Store guidelines. While the new terms now allow xCloud to launch iOS Apps, there are still strict rules that will prevent Microsoft from launching the full xCloud service on iOS, at least for the time being.

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Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake Is Up for Preorder

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake is set to release January 21, 2021 for PS4, Xbox One, and PC (see it on Amazon). And while Ubisoft hasn’t officially announced a Nintendo Switch version, you can already preorder it from GameStop, though it’s slated for a later release date. The date listed is March 31, 2021, the typical stand-in date for games scheduled for the first quarter of the year. Anyway, preorders are now live.

Preorder Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake

prince-of-persiaPS4

Xbox One

Nintendo Switch

PC

A remake of the widely adored 2003 original, this version sports a host of improvements. It has all-new graphics, including re-made cut scenes using motion capture and newly recorded dialog. The camera and controls have been rebuilt completely. It also sports a new combat system and is based on the Anvil engine, which Ubisoft also uses for the Assassin’s Creed series.

Aside from that, it will tell the same story as the original and will feature the same time-manipulation mechanics players enjoyed so much years ago. Here’s where you can preorder the game.

Preorder Bonus

prince-of-persia-remake-preorder-bonusPreorder Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake and you’ll receive the Back to the Origins set. This includes the following in-game items:

  • Original Weapons Set
  • Original Prince Outfit
  • Classic Filter

Other Preorder Guides

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Chris Reed is IGN’s shopping and commerce editor. You can follow him on Twitter @_chrislreed.

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Cobra Kai Season 3 On Netflix: What Happens Next For Johnny?

Since debuting on Netflix, scores of new viewers have been exposed to the first two seasons of Cobra Kai, which picks up 30 years after the initial Karate Kid movie. Those who have watched the show, which originally debuted on YouTube Premium, have witnessed the role reversal between the characters Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) and Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka).

In the original film, Daniel is cast as the hero, with Johnny being his nemesis. As adults, though, that’s not quite the case. Instead, Johnny is an antihero, trying his best to survive and thrive while his old opponent is living in the lap of luxury as a used car salesman, seemingly with the world at his fingertips.

For Zabka, the role reversal is a gift he never expected. “To get a chance to do that after living with being the bad guy from Karate Kid for 30 years and to have this new stage that’s like this, it’s a dream come true,” he told GameSpot.

Of course, with that reversal comes a new set of challenges. Now, everyone who watches Cobra Kai becomes invested in the man Johnny has become–and the situations he finds himself in. “He’s a broken man. This is a guy that was already gun shy to interact with the world, living on his own and you and odd jobs. He was very much a loner,” Zabka said. “And this kid came into his life, played amazingly by Xolo Maridueña, that lifts Johnny up and gives him a little seed of hope. He taps back into himself and he puts his best foot forward with everything that he knows.”

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Of course, everything he knows was taught to him by his former sensei, Kreese (Martin Kove), and might not be what’s right. Consider this your warning that the following contains spoilers on the end of Cobra Kai Season 2. If you’ve yet to watch the series, you should do that right now.

At the end of Season 2, Johnny’s students and Daniel’s students battled in what can only be described as a high school karate riot, violently attacking each other. It came to a head when Miguel (Maridueña) was knocked off of a balcony, causing him to fall to the ground floor of the school, landing spine-first on the railing of a staircase. When viewers last saw Miguel, he was in a hospital with his fate unknown, with Johnny barred from seeing his prized pupil.

“[He] loses everything,” Zabka explained. “That’s a tough spot to be in, especially for a character like Johnny. What’s he going to turn to? What’s he going to do? Those are all the questions that I had at the end of Season 2, going into Season 3. Our writers knew exactly where that was going and you won’t be disappointed.”

What Zabka couldn’t share, though, is how this particular cliffhanger will be resolved. Speaking to GameSpot previously, though, Maridueña knew how he wants to see the story play out in Season 3. “I would love to always stick by Johnny’s side. I think he really has his head in the right place and I love it,” the actor explained. “So, personally, I would love for him to stay on that side.”

You’ll find out the next chapter in this story when Cobra Kai Season 3 arrives on Netflix in 2021.

Now Playing: Cobra Kai – Talking With The Cast & Producers | SDCC 2019

Apple Changes App Store Rules To Allow xCloud, Microsoft Calls It A “Bad Experience”

Apple has made rule changes to its App Store guidelines, which could have a big impact on Microsoft and Google’s plans to offer cloud gaming services. The rule changes appear more favorable to Microsoft xCloud and Google Stadia, but Microsoft has already issued a statement saying the requirements make for “a bad experience for customers.”

Apple’s new guidelines explicitly say that game streaming services are allowed. However, those games would need to be downloaded from the App Store individually. Apple will allow providers to have a “catalog” app that manages these downloads, but each game would have to be its own distinct listing.

That would appear to rule out cloud gaming, as both xCloud and Stadia rely on a model in which you don’t download individual games at all. Instead, the games stream through the cloud, similar to watching a movie on Netflix–which Apple allows through its App Store, of course.

“This remains a bad experience for customers,” a Microsoft spokesperson told GameSpot. “Gamers want to jump directly into a game from their curated catalog within one app just like they do with movies or songs, and not be forced to download over 100 apps to play individual games from the cloud. We’re committed to putting gamers at the center of everything we do, and providing a great experience is core to that mission.”

Allowing a catalog of games to download under one payment umbrella is more akin to Microsoft’s Game Pass subscription service. Microsoft recently announced that a Game Pass subscription will soon include xCloud access, but an all-you-can-eat download subscription and a streaming service are still two very different functionalities.

In a Twitter thread, analyst Daniel Ahmad pointed out that Apple has clarified that companies can submit each individual game, including demos, and then have them available for streaming functionality. But this could be hundreds of games, and each would have to be evaluated individually. Plus, by submitting them this way, Apple would get its share of the profits from any in-game purchases.

Microsoft previously ended its iOS preview for xCloud, and explained it had no plans to bring the service to Apple’s devices. The company said it is “committed to finding a path to bring cloud gaming with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate to the iOS platform,” but that Apple’s policies were standing in the way. As of now, xCloud is only planned to release on Android devices.

This all comes as Apple is locked in a high-stakes legal battle against Fortnite developer Epic Games, over whether the company can offer its own App Store and direct in-app purchases.

Apple has its own game subscription service, Apple Arcade, which offers all-you-can-eat access to roughly 100 mobile games, many as timed exclusives.

GameSpot has reached out to Microsoft and Apple for comment.

Now Playing: Fortnite Removed From App Store, Epic Games Suing Apple | Save State

A Detailed Look At Lizzy Wizzy, Grimes’ Cyberpunk 2077 Character

The countdown to Cyberpunk 2077‘s November 19 release has been steadily ticking and more details about the game are being shared. In the latest reveal, we got a more comprehensive look at Grimes’ character, Lizzy Wizzy, on Cybr Magazine’s cover.

Technically, it’s not a first look, since we’ve seen a hint of what Lizzy Wizzy looks like from Grimes’ tweet back in December 2019. Grimes also spoiled details about her character’s storyline during a livestream. (Warning: spoilers ahead for Cyberpunk 2077.) She said, via Reddit, “I did my voice acting for Lizzy Wizzy, that game is going to be f***ing good…I play a pop star who committed suicide on stage, and they had to quickly come and perform emergency surgery and replace her whole body with cybernetics while she was dead for an hour. Then she finished the show as a cyborg.” Grimes also contributed to the Cyberpunk 2077’s soundtrack, along with artists like ASAP Rocky and Run The Jewels.

Lizzy Wizzy getting a cover on a cyberpunk magazine is part of Cyberpunk 2077’s accelerated promotional rollout. CD Projekt Red also announced a collaboration with Rockstar Energy on Cyberpunk 2077 energy drinks. Purchases come with Xbox credit and chances to win prizes. CD Projekt Red will also be hosting a third Night City Wire livestream on September 18 at 9 AM PT / 12 PM ET. The episode will focus on Night City gangs and give a glimpse of the soundtrack developed by The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt composer Marcin Przybyłowicz alongside P. T. Adamczyk and Paul Leonard-Morgan.

Cyberpunk 2077 will be available to play PC, PS4, and Xbox One, and will include a free next-gen upgrade to PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.

Now Playing: The Bloody Corporate Wars That Set The Stage For Cyberpunk 2077 – Cyberpunk Lore

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