New The Last Of Us 2 Screenshots Drop After Delay

Despite The Last Of Us 2 delay, developer Naughty Dog has dropped a bunch of new The Last of Us Part 2 screenshots to tide eager fans over while we wait for the game’s now-unclear release date.

The screens are all captured on a PS4 Pro, showing off The Last of Us 2’s incredible detail in everything from its lighting to its skin textures and more. We also get a better look at Old Man Joel, both blinded by the sun and strumming around on an acoustic guitar. The TLOU2 screens also show Joel’s younger brother Tommy sitting across from Ellie in a room, Ellie exploring some overgrown forest, and more.

You can check them out below.

Getting some very Red Dead Redemption 2 vibes here.
Getting some very Red Dead Redemption 2 vibes here.
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The Last of Us 2 was slated to launch this May on PlayStation 4, three months after the game was originally planned to release in February 2020. However, due to the impact of the coronavirus, Naughty Dog and publisher Sony have opted to push the game back “until further notice.” Sony also indefinitely delayed the release of Marvel’s Iron Man VR, which was similarly scheduled to launch this May.

Some other games are being affected by the coronavirus, including Halo Infinite and Final Fantasy VII Remake. Particularly in the case of FFVII Remake, Square Enix said it’s doing everything it can to ensure that physical copies of the game arrive at or around the April 10 release date. For now, the launch of both games remain unchanged.

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Amazon Prime Video Is Bringing This Year’s SXSW Movies Into Your Home, For Free

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has caused plenty of event cancellations this year, including this year’s SXSW. The city of Austin pulled the plug on the event, but alas, those who were excited about watching the movie premieres this year will be able to watch them from home very soon.

Amazon Prime Video revealed in a tweet that it has partnered with SXSW for an upcoming streaming event. That means you’ll be able to watch these movies from your couch. Check out the tweet below.

The key word here is “everyone.” That means that anyone in the United States–regardless of whether or not they have an Amazon Prime Account–will be able to take part in this event. All you need is a free Amazon account to access the movies. This will be a one-time event. It will be up to the filmmakers if they want to participate in the SXSW streaming launch. They will receive a screening fee for streaming their movies over this 10-day period.

GameSpot reached out to Amazon for more details about this event, and they stated that while a date for the event has not been finalized, they are targeting late April.

“We’re honored to be able to provide a space for the SXSW filmmakers to share their hard work and passion with audiences for the first time,” said Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios. “It’s been a privilege collaborating with Janet Pierson and the SXSW team to bring these diverse and inspiring films to viewers around the country. We are supporters of SXSW and other independent film festivals, and hope this online film festival can help give back some of that experience, and showcase artists and films that audiences might otherwise not have had the chance to see.”

“Ever since SXSW was cancelled by the City of Austin, we’ve been focused on how we could help the incredible films and filmmakers in the SXSW 2020 Film Festival lineup,” said Janet Pierson, director of film, SXSW. “We were delighted when Amazon Prime Video offered to host an online film festival, and jumped at the opportunity to connect their audiences to our filmmakers. We’re inspired by the adaptability and resilience of the film community as it searches for creative solutions in this unprecedented crisis.”

While none of the movies participating in this streaming event have been announced yet, SXSW had a few key entries set to debut. One was Psycho Goreman, a bizarre horror comedy follows two kids who resurrect an ancient alien with a thirst for violence, and the first trailer is filled with gore. However, the movie comes off like an ’80s kids movie where they’ve made friends with an alien like E.T. or Mac and Me. It is truly bizarre looking.

Additionally movies that were set to debut at SXSW are Maureen Bharoocha’s comedy Golden Arm, Andrew Rossi’s documentary After Truth: Disinformation and the Cost of Fake News, Kris Rey’s comedy I Used to Go Here, and Shahad Ameen’s fantasy drama Scales.

Epic Games, J.J. Abrams’ Long-Dormant Spyjinx Finally Revealed, Getting a Limited Beta

Spyjinx, a collaboration between Epic Games and J.J. Abrams’ production company Bad Robot Entertainment has been revealed after laying dormant for years. It will be going into beta in select markets very soon.

The game was initially revealed back in 2015 and was set for a 2016 release. Spyjinx missed that target and we hadn’t heard much about the project until now, with the game receiving a surprise development update. The Spyjinx game overview goes into more detail about what kind of game this is – first off, it’s a mobile title framed in a “secret world of espionage, thrilling heists, and crazy gadgets.”

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As for genre, Spyjinx is referred to as a “mix of action-strategy gameplay, RPG character development, and head-to-head multiplayer.”

The images tease an experience similar to games like Clash of Clans, with mention of “taking down rival bases” as you forge your career as a spy mastermind. You can customize your base to “stop other Mastermind’s agents from stealing what you rightfully stole.”

In doing so you’ll build up a squad of agents including hackers, brawlers and other specialities, equipping them with gadgets and sending them on infiltration missions. It appears Epic has been teasing Spyjinx in plain sight, as the base shown on the new game’s website is identical to The Shark, the Agency base from Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 2.

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You can check out the full beta test announcement blog here, which talks about how the game will launch into closed beta in Malaysia and later Australia on iOS. You can sign up to learn when Spyjinx is coming to your region using a link in the blogpost above.

This isn’t the first time J.J. Abrams and Bad Robot have collaborated with a video game developer. You may remember the Super 8 Interactive Teaser that was added to Portal 2 as a piece of promotional bonus content, created by Valve. J.J. Abrams also spoke at DICE in 2013 and announced a partnership of sorts with Gabe Newell to work on movies related to Valve’s intellectual properties, though that seemingly never came to fruition.

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

Sony Launches $100 Million COVID-19 Relief Fund

Sony Corporation has revealed that it is launching a $100 million global relief fund to help those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The fund was announced in a press release from Sony, which detailed the Sony Global Relief Fund for COVID-19. It’s worth noting that Sony Interactive Entertainment, the company responsible for PlayStation, are subsidiaries of the Sony Corporation conglomerate, which is where this news is sourced from.

The corporation revealed that it will be supporting the COVID-19 relief effort in three main areas: “assistance for those individuals engaged in frontline medical and first responder efforts to fight the virus, support for children and educators who must now work remotely, and support for members of the creative community in the entertainment industry.”

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$10 million of the fund will be allocated first and foremost to organizations such as Medecins Sans Frontieres, UNICEF and the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund.

Sony is also looking at ways in which it can use its expertise in technology to support the loss of education opportunities around the globe, while schools are closed and teachers and students forced to isolate.

The statement also notes that it is working on means to support the creative community in “music, pictures, games and animation.” Sony Corporation CEO Kenichiro Yoshida rounded off the statement with a message of support for those affected by the virus.

“We will do all we can as a global company to support the individuals on the frontlines of the battle against COVID-19, the children who are our future, and those who have been impacted in creative communities,” his quote reads.

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This follows a number of other companies in the games industry who are doing their bit to help fight the pandemic and support health workers worldwide. Nintendo recently donated nearly 10,000 respirator masks to healthcare workers in Washington, and CD Projekt Red has donated almost $1 million to help fight COVID-19’s spread in Poland. 

IGN is encouraging safety and positivity for all of our readers during this pandemic. Read our tips on how to help, and stay safe, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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

Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Remastered’s “No Russian” Fails Now More Than Ever

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 includes a lot of moments that stick in the memory, for a variety of reasons. The 2009 game’s campaign features a Russian invasion of the U.S., sees your player characters killed not once, but twice, and heralds the return of fan-favorite hero Captain Price. It also puts you in a position to gun down an airport full of civilians and police in the infamous mission, “No Russian.”

The newly released Modern Warfare 2 Remastered campaign updates the game’s visuals and sound, but the gameplay and story are identical to what was originally released. Revisiting the game demonstrates that Modern Warfare 2’s intense first-person shooter moments still stand up to more recent games and remain as powerful as they were more than a decade ago. But the whole game resonates a bit differently when considered in the light of what has happened in the last 11 years. That’s never more apparent than with “No Russian.”

I went into a replay of Modern Warfare 2 with the expectation that “No Russian” and the rest of the game’s story had been misunderstood over the years. After all, if there’s a subversive Call of Duty game, Modern Warfare 2 is probably it. The bad guy is an American general and the mission in which you have a hand in a massacre puts you in the role of an American CIA operative. I had come to think that Modern Warfare 2 was making a comment about United States foreign policy and militarization, rather than just being shocking for shocking’s sake. Especially after years of rising mass shootings, though, “No Russian” just comes off as callous. There might be interesting underlying ideas in Modern Warfare 2, but the game either fails to commit to them, or tells its story so poorly that they don’t come across.

At the point you hit “No Russian,” you play as PFC Joseph Allen, an Army Ranger who has been recruited for a secret mission by General Shepherd, the guy in command of your characters throughout the game. After a couple of levels as Allen in which you fight the bad guys alongside a bunch of other Rangers, you’re sent undercover to Russia to infiltrate the organization of a terrorist named Makarov. As the game notes, you take on the name Alexei Bodorin for the mission, but you’re not primed for what comes next.

When “No Russian” loads up, you’re armed with a massive machine gun and start in an elevator with Makarov and a few other guys. Makarov tells the group, “Remember: no Russian,” reminding them to speak only English, then steps out of the elevator into a crowded airport. With no warning, Makarov and his men start firing into the crowd of unarmed civilians, who scream, run in panic, writhe in pain on the ground, and, on several occasions, try to crawl to safety, only to be executed by the terrorists at point-blank range.

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Essentially, “No Russian” is a mass shooting scenario, and you’re the one with the gun. You can choose not to participate, of course. No one forces you to pull the trigger, and refusing to do so relegates you to the role of watching your digital comrades commit murder after murder. At the same time, though, you’re also unable to stop the carnage; you can’t turn on Makarov and are forced to watch things play out. Eventually, you do have to do some shooting, as Russian police and FSB officers arrive to stop the attack. These guys are armed and fight back, though, making them more in line with your usual Call of Duty enemies–but they’re still security guards and police, not the soldiers, militia members, or terrorists you’re usually fighting.

On the surface level, “No Russian” is still shocking today, if not more so than when it was released in 2009. Mass shootings in the U.S. have increased significantly in the last 10 years, and here a game has you participating in one. A rundown of mass shooting incidents in the U.S. from Vox logs some 2,412 incidents since 2013, resulting in 2,730 people killed and another 10,057 wounded. Regardless of how you feel about games depicting real-world ideas, events, and tragedies, “No Russian” is a troubling thing to play through when you think about these real events and how they affect real people. (It should be noted that you don’t have to play through it. Modern Warfare 2 Remastered, like the original game, warns you about “Offensive Content” and asks you if you’d prefer to skip “No Russian.”)

At the same time, you can attempt to read “No Russian” as Call of Duty at its most subversive and artistically expressive. The franchise markets itself on realism–usually in its visual fidelity and the attention paid to creating digital versions of real-world guns–and mostly depicts soldiers as fraught good guys, willing to put their lives on the line to protect freedom and save lives. Dying in Modern Warfare 2 brings up a screen that usually includes a quote from a famous leader, war hero, or philosopher, either praising soldiers or decrying the horrors of war. Call of Duty usually comes off as pro-gun and pro-military at the very least, and even jingoistic.

“No Russian,” on the other hand, could be seen as Infinity Ward subverting its own genre by twisting how you feel about pulling the virtual trigger, changing you from heroic warrior to indiscriminate murderer (or at least, bystander to tragedy). It’s a level that’s meant to make you recoil, evoking empathy in players by doing the thing video games do best: putting you in a role you wouldn’t normally experience. That the role is a horrific one should make the moment all the more impactful, and maybe get you thinking about what you enjoy about the idea of shooting even digital depictions of humans, or what consequences gun violence has in the real world.

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You might also see the mission as Infinity Ward calling out the U.S.’s cavalier foreign policy. After all, you play a deep-cover CIA operative tasked with getting close to a terrorist–but you don’t stop the terrorist attack, you participate in it. Whatever the goal the CIA or Shepherd have in infiltrating Makarov’s group, they’re willing to allow a massacre to proceed in order to achieve it. Given the real history of CIA intervention around the world and its aftermath, it’s pretty bold for Call of Duty, a franchise usually about brave soldiers fighting off hordes of enemy combatants, to suggest that maybe the U.S. and its institutions aren’t always on the side of right.

That’s amplified further when you see how the story campaign all plays out. At the end of the massacre, undercover agent Allen is killed by Makarov; apparently, the terrorist knew the agent’s true identity the whole time. Allen’s body is left behind as evidence that the massacre was carried out not by Russians, but by Americans, resulting in a full-on world war. Russian troops invade the U.S. in response to the attack, and you and the other Army Rangers repel parachuting soldiers in American suburbs and the literal White House in later missions.

But it turns out that Shepherd was actually behind the whole thing, somehow. Shepherd placed Allen undercover, and it seems likely he leaked the agent’s true identity to Makarov. He later betrays and kills another player character in order to intercept intelligence that links him to Makarov and to instigating the war. The entire story of Modern Warfare 2 is a false flag operation carried out by an American general to create a new war for, seemingly, personal gain. Again, that’s a pretty subversive point of a view for a franchise that’s consistently pro-military.

The trouble is, the game does so little to get any of these ideas across in its story (or any other ideas) that it’s not clear Modern Warfare 2 actually has any. “No Russian” doesn’t put any emphasis on the fact that you’re a CIA operative in a very compromised position; the rest of the characters move on after Allen is killed, cursing Makarov’s name, never acknowledging the fact that the gambit of blaming the U.S. for the massacre was possible because you were there, helping him–or at least, not stopping him. Modern Warfare 2 doesn’t use any dialogue or context to suggest what point “No Russian,” or any other part of its story, is trying to make, and so it’s hard to guess at what the scene is meant to convey. It’s easy, then, to chalk “No Russian” up as nothing more than cheap and tasteless, an example of Call of Duty trying to be edgy for edgy’s sake.

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If Modern Warfare 2 were better at storytelling, a challenging point of view on violence, militarism, or war would be easier to accept. But Shepherd’s betrayal comes abruptly and out of nowhere toward the end of the game, and it’s tough to parse his motivations. (He seems mostly mad that a lot of soldiers died in the first Modern Warfare, and he’s trying to engineer himself as a war hero, although even this much explanation is being generous with how he’s portrayed in the game.) And while there are American military bad guys to fight, there are just as many American good guys (as well as allies from the UK, Australia, and Russia), fighting the good fight for freedom. The game doesn’t stray too far from lionizing the military, especially by portraying it fending off a massive surprise attack on home soil.

And Modern Warfare 2 doesn’t slow down in parading digital humans before you to kill, so it’s tough to buy that the inclusion of “No Russian” is meant to make you stop and consider the damage guns can inflict on real people. Mixed in among the enemy soldiers are the occasional teammate or civilian who might stray into your line of fire. Shoot too many of them and the game will fail you, but a little collateral damage goes by without remark.

So Modern Warfare 2 maintains its shock value and controversy, but if it’s an attempt to make a comment about the American fetishization of guns, the U.S.’s foreign policies, the willingness of the greedy and powerful to sacrifice civilians and soldiers for their own ends, or the military industrial complex’s need to self-perpetuate through warfare, those things are muddled at best.

Modern Warfare 2 Remastered is an impressive visual update of what is inarguably a classic shooter, and its big moments–like retaking the White House or going house-to-house through an American neighborhood–are just as exciting and impactful as they were in 2009. But age and distance haven’t improved the questionable parts of Modern Warfare 2, and they’re even tougher to overlook in the modern climate. It might be exciting to defend the Burger Town and chase down Shepherd in a Zodiac, but Modern Warfare 2’s weaknesses make moments like “No Russian” feel exploitative more than informative to the story or an important part of the experience–especially in 2020.

Tiger King: Every Character On Netflix’s Original Series, Ranked

Tiger King: Every Character On Netflix’s Original Series, Ranked – GameSpot

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Disclosure: ViacomCBS is GameSpot’s parent company


How to Download ComiXology Comics to Every Device

In an ideal world, purchasing and downloading digital comics would be a cinch. We don’t live in an ideal world, unfortunately. Downloading comics from ComiXology is easy in many cases, but it can get more complicated in others. If you could use some assistance, we’re here to help. Here’s everything you need to know to download ComiXology comics to every device.

Downloading ComiXology Comics on Android and Kindle Fire

It’s easy to download comics on Android and Kindle Fire devices. All you have to do is download the ComiXology app, find a comic you want, and tap the button to purchase it. If you’re a ComiXology Unlimited member, you can also download any comic with an Unlimited banner for free.

Downloading ComiXology Comics on iPhone and iPad

Presumably due to Apple’s rule about taking 30% of in-app purchases on iOS, ComiXology doesn’t let you buy comics from within the app on iPhone or iPad. What you can do in the app is flag any comics you want to purchase by adding them to your wishlist.

To purchase the items you want to buy, you’ll need to visit comixology.com in a web browser. The Safari app on your iOS device will work just fine. Make your purchases there, and you’ll find them waiting for you in the “My Books” section of the ComiXology app next time you open it.

If you have a ComiXology Unlimited subscription (which you also have to sign up for in a web browser), you can download any comics with the Unlimited banner across their covers from within the app.

Reading ComiXology Comics on a Computer

While you can’t download every comic in ComiXology to your computer, you can read them in the web app on the site. Just go to the “My Books” section and click the “Read” button. That will open the comic in the web browser, though it doesn’t have some of the fancy reading features found in the ComiXology app on other devices.

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How to Download DRM-Free Backups

Some publishers allow you to download DRM-free backups of the comics you’ve bought on ComiXology. To download these, just head to the “My Books” section of the ComiXology website and click on the “Backups” tab. There, you can download any available comics in PDF or CBZ format.

ComiXology Unlimited

ComiXology Unlmited is the company’s subscription service that gets you unlimited access to over 25,000 comics, graphic novels, and manga. Previously, subscriptions started with a 30-day free trail, but now ComiXology has extended the trial to 60 days.

If, after the two months of free comics, you want to keep your membership, it’s just $5.99 per month to continue. For those who don’t want to continue, you can cancel your subscription before the first bill arrives and not spend a dime. It’s a killer value, and a great way for anyone looking to expand their comic reading for no money at all.

What to Read on ComiXology

batmanIf you’re new to ComiXology and are wondering where to start, here’s some advice. First, start your free 60-day trial of ComiXology Unlimited. Then check out our picks for the 25 best comics to binge on ComiXology Unlimited. Fans of the Dark Knight will also want to be sure to check out the best Batman comics and graphic novels on the service.

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

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Own Fallout 76 On PC? The Steam Version Will Be Free

Own Fallout 76 on PC already but wish you could play the game through Steam? You’ll be able to do so starting on April 14, the same day that the new Wastelanders expansion launches

Anyone who purchases Fallout 76 through Bethesda.net before April 13 and links their Steam and Bethesda accounts will get the game for free on Steam. Atoms and Fallout 1st memberships will not transfer between the platforms, but any items purchased through the shop will be available across both Bethesda.net and Steam.

This offer only applies to the PC version. Xbox One and PS4 players will have to purchase the Steam version separately in order to access it, and the game doesn’t support cross-platform play.

From April 14-28, anyone who purchases the game from Steam will also receive the Fallout Classic Collection with the original two games and Fallout Tactics for free. This applies to those who claim the free Steam version via their Bethesda.net account, as well.

The Wastelanders expansion is free to all players, and it was delayed slightly from its original April 7 release date because of COVID-19. The expansion will add much-requested NPC humans. It contains a new quest in the Appalachian Mountains, and two events called Riding Shotgun and Radiation Rumble will go live at the same time it launches. These aren’t designed for newcomers, so you’ll want to gear up and increase your level before attempting them.

Bethesda previously said it would keep Fallout 76 off Steam in order to maintain a “direct relationship” with players. However, the vast majority of other Bethesda games are on the platform already.

Now Playing: Fallout 76: Wastelanders – Official Reveal Trailer

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Tiger King: Joe Exotic Would Like Brad Pitt or David Spade to Play Him on Screen

Joe Exotic, the central figure in the wildly popular Netflix docuseries Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, has apparently revealed that he would like either Brad Pitt or David Spade to portray him in a potential scripted movie or TV show about his life.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Tiger King directors Eric Goode and Rebecca Chaiklin confirmed that Joe (real name Joseph Maldonado-Passage) had previously shared his casting preferences for a hypothetical biopic – without realising there is a Joe Exotic limited TV series in active development, with Kate McKinnon set to play Carole Baskin.

“He would like Brad Pitt or David Spade to play him,” Chaiklin claimed. “He doesn’t refer to David Spade as David Spade — he refers to him as ‘Joe Dirt.'”

At least one of these suggestions already has some support behind it, as several Tiger King fans have already identified the visual comparisons between Joe Exotic, the former G.W. Zoo owner who is currently serving a 22-year sentence in federal prison, and David Spade’s cinematic alter ego, Joe Dirt, the janitor with a mullet hairdo, acid-washed jeans and a dream. Artist BossLogic even created a parody poster of a Tiger King and Joe Dirt mash-up.

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Meanwhile, a whole host of other celebrity fans have been dream-casting themselves in various roles based on the hit Netflix series. Dax Shepard started the discussion by putting himself forward to star as Joe Exotic in “the eventual biopic,” with fellow stars Edward Norton, Justin Long, and Jim Gaffigan also joining in on the casting conversation.

The original Tiger King documentary consists of seven episodes running 40-50 minutes each and was released on March 20 on Netflix. In our review of Tiger King, we called it “a fascinating and depressing look inside a community of big cat fanatics,” which would make a worthy addition to the watchlists of “true crime fans hungry for something different.”

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For those that have already watched the hit show, read our follow-up piece to find out what happened to the colourful characters featured in the true-crime docuseries and take a look at our rundown of recommendations for other true crime shows and movies that are available to stream right now.

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Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.