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This week, Animal Crossing fans finally get the island getaway they’ve been waiting for when Animal Crossing: New Horizons releases on Nintendo Switch this Friday, March 20. Best of all, Amazon recently discounted Animal Crossing: New Horizons to $49.94, the cheapest we’ve seen it so far. New Horizons is the first mainline entry in the series since 2012’s Animal Crossing: New Leaf, so it’s easy to see why fans are so excited. The Switch entry is making some big changes, including the ability to mold your island village however you see fit.

In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, your character will be ferried (via the Nook, Inc. charter) to a deserted island, where you can set up a tent and start growing your own town through many of the same activities seen in previous Animal Crossing games: crafting items, shaking trees, fishing, and more. You can read the GameSpot Animal Crossing: New Horizons review-in-progress to learn more.

In its Animal Crossing Direct last month, Nintendo revealed a slew of new information about the upcoming Switch game. We finally know quite a few details about New Horizons, including brand-new characters that will turn up on the island, Amiibo compatibility, a new terraforming gameplay mechanic, restrictions on save data recovery, and more.

As the release date for Animal Crossing: New Horizons draws closer, you might be wondering where you can pre-order the game and if there are any bonuses. Read on for more info on the best places to pre-order Animal Crossing: New Horizons as well as its adorable special-edition Switch console. (Also, if you like what you see below, check out our full guide to where to find all the compatible Animal Crossing Amiibo, as well as the best Animal Crossing accessories and merchandise being released for New Horizons–there are so many cute products coming out soon!)

Animal Crossing: New Horizons pre-order bonuses

Animal Crossing: New Horizons doesn’t have a universal pre-order bonus you get by pre-ordering at any retailer. However, some retailers have been offering exclusive pre-order bonuses. Target was offering an adorable New Horizons-themed journal with a 2020 calendar, but it’s out of stock online. Best Buy and Walmart have sold out of their pre-order bonuses too. Best Buy was offering a Tom Nook tech sticker and Walmart had a Tom Nook tote bag, but neither are available now.

The remaining available pre-order bonus is at GameStop, which is offering a double-sided poster with purchases of Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

Pre-order Animal Crossing: New Horizons standard edition

The standard edition will come with the base game and any pre-order bonuses.

Pre-order Animal Crossing: New Horizons Bell Bag bundle

While it’ll cost you a little more, Best Buy has a cute bundle available to pre-order. For $65, you get a copy of the game the plush Bell Bag shown above.

Pre-order Animal Crossing: New Horizons edition Switch console

Finally, Animal Crossing fans’ prayers have true: a special-edition Nintendo Switch console inspired by Animal Crossing: New Horizons released on March 13. This is the newer model Switch that includes longer battery life, and it’ll cost you $300.

Unsurprisingly, a lot of people wanted to get their hands on this pretty console, and it’s now sold out online at all major retailers. We’ve been seeing it restocked sporadically at some stores since its release on March 13, but it never lasts for long. Some retailers have relisted it a pretty steep markup, too. You can see the online listings for each retailer below. Some stores will allow you to sign up with your email to get notified when it’s back in stock.

It’s official! I’m hosting @WrestleMania this year…and it’s gonna be too big for just one night. For the 1st time, #WrestleMania will be a 🚨2-NIGHT🚨event: Saturday, April 4 AND Sunday, April 5 on @WWENetwork! Tell you more this Friday night on #SmackDown at 8 ET on @FOXTV.

— Rob Gronkowski (@RobGronkowski) March 18, 2020

March 20 will see the release of two very different games from long-running franchises, Animal Crossing: New Horizons on Nintendo Switch and Doom Eternal on PS4, Xbox One, Stadia, and PC (the Switch version will arrive later). Fans have responded to the tonal disparity between these two games with plenty of fan art, and the producer and director of Animal Crossing have taken notice.

In an interview with IGN, New Horizons director Aya Kyogoku and producer Hisashi Nogami have commented on the Doom/Animal Crossing fan art they’ve seen.

“I definitely do notice and have noticed that there’s a lot of Doom and Animal Crossing collaboration art and illustrations that are being posted, and as I look through them I’m in awe of how much creativity our fans have,” Kyogoku told the site. “I think because there is a common denominator of this type of communication happening between Doom and Animal Crossing fans, and also the fact that Animal Crossing is a communication game.”

Nogami agrees, too. “It’s so great to see that these two different [fandoms] are coming together and hyping up the gaming [community] and gaming culture itself.”

Doom Eternal director Hugo Martin has previously talked about Animal Crossing: New Horizon as well, with similar sentiments. “I’m so proud to work in the game industry and the fact that two games that are so completely different, getting a ton of press, come out on the same day,” he said. “It’s an incredible time to be in development and I’m excited to play Animal Crossing.”

We have reviews-in-progress up for both Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Doom Eternal right now. Both games will, of course, be available on March 20.

For years, choosing an IPS monitor meant sacrificing speed and response time. Those days are becoming a thing of the past. Over the last year, we’ve seen IPS displays from big companies like Gigabyte and ASUS hit the market, delivering the blisteringly fast 1ms response times and high refresh rates gamers crave. Usually, those features come with a hefty price tag, but what if you’re on a budget?

Pixio may have the answer. Today, we’re looking at the Pixio PX247, a 24-inch 1080p gaming monitor that uses a color-rich IPS panel clocked to 144Hz. Combine that with an esports-ready 1ms response time and a $169 price tag, and you have a compelling package. But is it as good as it seems?

Design and Features

The PX247 is a budget gaming monitor and it shows. The design is very simple with no RGB or other aesthetic frills. The stand is barebones and only allows you to adjust tilt. There are two video inputs, HDMI and DisplayPort, and only DisplayPort unlocks the full 144Hz (HDMI is limited to 120Hz). It’s light on gaming features, the speakers are some of the worst I’ve ever heard, and the five-button menu navigation system feels last-gen. Having reviewed several of Pixio’s monitors, it was clear to me right away the company pushed itself to make this monitor as cheap as possible.

What the Pixio PX247 does have is a fast IPS screen. In my testing, it performed well through the response time and ghosting tests on Lagom’s LCD Test Pages with no color shifting or visible ghosts. This shows how quickly the panel in the PX247 is able to transition from light to dark colors and is on par with some of the best VA panels I’ve tested. Blur Buster’s Test UFO did show minor ghosting, but in actual gaming I wasn’t able to observe any at all.

To pull off that low price, you’re also sacrificing some modern display features, like HDR and 10-bit color. This is a standard SDR screen rated for 350-nits of peak brightness. That said, certain scenes looked unusually dim, such as running through the fields in Kingdom Come: Deliverance. I actually found myself digging inside the monitor’s menus to make sure the brightness was turned up all the way.

Even though the panel offers the expectedly rich colors and wide, 178 degree viewing angles typical of IPS, how good it looked really seemed to depend on the content. In Overwatch, the visuals felt very good, thanks, I believe, to the oversaturated color pallete and that silky smooth 144Hz refresh rate. Kingdom Come and even certain parts of The Witcher 3 just made me worry I was missing out on details in the shadows. The monitor offers a few generic picture profiles – Standard, Internet, Game, and Movie – but none of them looked better than what I could dial in myself with the built-in color balance.

On the plus side, the combination of 144Hz and 1080p is a great fit. Upgrading to any high refresh rate monitor is an improvement if you’re used to 60Hz, but if you’re not running at high fps, you’re missing out on its potential. 1080p is easier than ever to run with modern graphics cards, so pulling off triple-digit fps is a real possibility without turning down all of the graphical bells and whistles.

The screen size is also a good fit for 1080p. The 24-inch screen of the PX247 feels a bit small, but it allows for a higher pixel density and a more crisp image. The screen isn’t “frameless” like some of Pixio’s more expensive models, but the bezels are still very thin and help the screen to feel more spacious. I would have liked to have seen a curve to enhance the effect further, but at this price, it’s something I can live without.

Getting started with the monitor is simple, which is one of the only good things I can say about the stand. It comes in two parts and needs to be screwed into the back of the monitor with four separate screws. Thankfully, the silver plate is hidden behind a plastic cover. It sits low, and I repeatedly felt like the screen wasn’t completely level, as if the mounting plate were slightly off. Even if it was my desk (which I don’t think it was), there was no way to fix it since you can only adjust tilt, not pivot. It’s bad, and I would waste no time replacing it if the PX247 were my daily driver.

Performance

Gaming on the PX247 wasn’t bad but wasn’t that impressive either. The first game I tried was Kingdom Come: Deliverance, which I’ve already said was a disappointment. The game makes heavy use of shadows and the dynamic range of the monitor wasn’t able to consistently make it look good. The darks felt crushed at times (a cross-check of Lagom’s did reveal black crushing, even at 100 percent brightness) and made taking in that beautiful world less fun than it should have been. I tried to turn Black Equalizer up – a gaming feature that lets you spot enemies skulking in the dark – but then the rest of the image looked washed out.

Playing shooters seemed to be a better fit. I main Orisa in Overwatch and picking off enemies while shielding my team was a lot of fun thanks to the saturated colors. I even found myself choosing Tracer to take advantage of the high refresh rate. My 2080 Ti was easily able to churn out more than 144 fps and the reduced motion blur when performing quick flicks and turnarounds allowed me to pick off other players while staying constantly on the move.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Battlefield V were a bit harder since they each make heavy use of shadows to hide enemies. I didn’t find it to be as off-putting as with Kingdom Come, which makes me think its blandness may have something to do with the game engine, but I still found myself craving more dynamic range to make enemies and objects stand out more in the environment.

You’ll also need a headset or separate speakers to enjoy any kind of gaming. The speakers here are terrible. They’re quiet, tinny, and once even distorted inside a dialogue tree. It’s nice Pixio included them, but they should only be used as a last resort.

For the price, I was impressed to find that the PX247 worked very well with both FreeSync and G-Sync. Given the other issues I found, I was worried it wouldn’t play well with my RTX 2080 Ti. As it turns out, I had nothing to fear as the monitor performed flawlessly across the different games I tested it with.

Purchasing Guide

The Pixio PX247 is available on Amazon with an MSRP of $169.

The Walking Dead actors for Carl and Lori, Chandler Riggs and Sarah Wayne Callies, have brought back the classic “CORAL” meme for a good cause.

Callies uploaded a video to her Twitter feed where she calls out those who aren’t practicing social distancing in the coronavirus pandemic. She says she has “a message” for them.

STAY IN THE HOUSE CARL!! #SocialDistanacing pic.twitter.com/3GdibqoBmA

— Sarah Wayne Callies (@SarahWCallies) March 18, 2020

“I got a message for everyone choosing not to practice social distancing right now,” Callies said. “Stay in the house, Carl! You know what happens when you don’t.”

Her on-screen son, Riggs, responded to the tweet with “LOL” before quote-tweeting it with a message of his own. Clearly, he loves that this meme is still alive and well:

jesus christ this has been going on for eight years i can’t take it anymore https://t.co/h5oVs3yzVO

— chandler riggs (@chandlerriggs) March 18, 2020

The actors are referencing the Carl memes that were so rampant on social media during the early seasons of The Walking Dead. Carl, the young son of Callies’ Lori and Andrew Lincoln’s Rick, had a tendency to get himself into trouble, thus causing his father — played by the British Lincoln doing his best Southern accent — to shout after him in a way that more often than not sounded like he was saying “Coral.” The infamous meme “Stay in the house, Carl” was even made into a t-shirt that can be bought on Amazon.

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The Walking Dead is currently airing its 10th season on AMC. IGN reviewed the last episode positively by praising the twists that keep the series fresh. The show has already been renewed for season 11.

As medical experts have advised social distancing as a key preventative measure to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, IGN has rounded up links to donate to charity and tips on how to stay safe.

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Petey Oneto is a freelance writer for IGN.

John Boyega, known to many as Finn from the Star Wars sequel trilogy, is celebrating his birthday in style with a Naruto themed cake.

Boyega shared a video of his birthday celebration on Twitter, a beaming smile on the noted anime-enthusiast’s face as he showed off the multi-tiered Naruto cake.

The cake features the colors and iconography of Naruto himself — an orange, black, white and gray base topped with a smaller cake wrapped in his signature headband and a poof of yellow icing on top to evoke his blonde hair.

Boyega celebrated his 28th birthday on March 17 and seems to be making the most it, despite having to spend it in quarantine.

The Star Wars actor made headlines a few months ago for accidentally losing the script to The Rise of Skywalker, which wound up getting sold on eBay for $84. Boyega said he “got a call from every official” at Disney, but in the end, everything worked out okay.

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With former Disney CEO Bob Iger announcing that the franchise would take a brief break from making movies after the Skywalker saga, it appears that The Rise of Skywalker will be the last Star Wars film for a while. However, there are still a lot of Star Wars TV shows planned for the coming months.

While we wait for those, Disney has announced that the digital version of The Rise of Skywalker will be available a few days early, so those stuck at home can enjoy it. Further, the powerful mouse has also announced that Frozen 2 will be coming to Disney+ three months early.

While you’re enjoying these films, be sure to check out some easy tips to avoid spreading COVID-19 to others.

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Andrew Smith is a freelance contributor with IGN. Follow him on Twitter @_andrewtsmith.

Animal Crossing and Doom Eternal are both out Friday. You still have a chance to preorder it now and save some money. The Baby Yoda Animatronic Edition is also back up for preorder at both Walmart and Amazon. Finally, the crazy Alienware laptop deal that expired a few weeks ago is back! This is likely the only time you can score an Alienware RTX 2070 equipped laptop with a 4K OLED display for under $1600.

Out Friday: Preorder Animal Crossing for Switch, Save $10 on Amazon

We’ve published our review of Animal Crossing: New Horizons and not suprisingly, this game is “Amazing”. Amazon just dropped the price of preorder by $10. That beats Best Buy’s $10 back in reward credit. You’ll need a MyBestBuy membership to get this free credit, but it’s free to sign up. If you liked Stardew Valley, this one should be right up your alley.

• Preorder it on Amazon for $49.94
• Preorder it at Best Buy for $59.99
• For an extra $5 get an Official Animal Crossing Bell Bag

Preorder the Star Wars Baby Yoda Animatronic Edition at Amazon or Walmart

This toy launched yesterday and has been insanely popular. It’s already sold out at many places including Amazon. This cute mascot from The Mandalorian features over 25 sound and motion combinations, including happy and excited, giggles and babbles, tired and sleeping, and Force effects sounds. Motorized movement includes a head that moves up and down, ears that move back and forth, eyes that open and close, and more.

• Preorder it on Amazon for $59.99
• Preorder it at Walmart for $59.97

Out Friday: Preorder Doom Eternal and Save $10

Guess what? The other game that’s out this Friday also scored an “Amazing” 9/10 at IGN. Doom Eternal has been a hugely anticipated release and you can save $10 when you preorder it. If you’ve watched any of the gameplay trailers you already know this game is going to pretty amazing. Preorder it and you’ll also receive a digital copy of Doom 64.

• Preorder it for PS4 on Amazon for $49.94
• Preorder it for Xbox One for $49.94
• Preorder it for PC for $49.94

Alienware m15 15″ 1080p 144Hz Intel Core i7-9750H RTX 2070 Laptop with Dual 512GB SSD for $1399

Use code “AW950OFF”

This is one of the best prices we’ve seen for an RTX 2070 equipped laptop, regardless of brand. The Alienware m15 is the newly designed 15″ laptop and weighs only 4.8 pounds, which is remarkable given its payload. We reviewed the m15 and highly recommend it. It’s easily one of the best laptops you can get in terms of build quality and under-the-hood power.

• Use code “AW950OFF” to get it at Dell for $1399.99

Super Upgrade: Alienware m15 15″ 4K Ultra HD 3840×2160 OLED 1ms Intel Core i7-9750H RTX 2070 Gaming Laptop with Dual 512GB SSD for $1599

Use code “AW950OFF”

Upgrade to a very rare and very awesome 4K Ultra HD 3840×2160 display for only $200. We reviewed a very similar OLED equipped model less than a year ago (with inferior specs) with a price tag of $2800 and we LOVED it. This deal won’t stick around.

• Use code “AW950OFF” to get it at Dell for $1599.99

Get 2 Months of Kindle Unlimited for Free

Make your life stuck at home (and for many of you, with kids) a lot easier. Kindle Unlimited is a great way to keep yourself at home and still get access to a virtual library of over 1 million Kindle eBooks and over 20,000 digital comics This deal is typically for new subscribers only, but there have been reports that it has worked for people who have previously subscribed for Kindle Unlimited but are not current members. Check out this very awesome Harry Potter “Kindle in Motion” book with animated art, free with a Kindle Unlimited subscription.

• Get 2 Months of Free Kindle Unlimited on Amazon

65-Inch Vizio P659-G1 4K HDR QLED Smart HDTV with Bonus $300 Dell eGift Card for $999.99

We reviewed this TV last year and awarded it an “Amazing” 9.3/10. The Vizio Quantum P-series is a higher end model over the M-series and a good choice for real image quality enthusiasts. Like the M-series Quantum it features full HDR support, a full-array LED backlight, and has SmartCast Smart TV functionality, but that’s where the similarities end. This TV boasts 200 local dimming zones, 1,100 nits of brightness, and a 240Hz refresh rate, perfect for sports, gaming, and anything else with fast movement.

• Get it at Dell for $999.99

55-Inch LG OLED55C9 4K OLED Smart HDTV with Bonus $150 Dell eGift Card for $1497

In terms of picture quality, the LG C9 OLED TV is the best OLED TV on the market. There is an LG E9 model that is “higher end”, but the screen and processor are identical (the main difference is that the E9 has a better sound system). If you aren’t satisfied with “just” getting an OLED and want the “best” OLED, the C9 is your ticket.

• Get it at Dell for $1497

Xbox One X (Factory Refurbished) for $229.99

This is the lowest price we’ve ever seen for an Xbox One X gaming console from a reputable vendor. Note that this is a Microsoft refurbished item, which means that it still comes with a 90-day warranty. Microsoft refurbished items generally look brand new and come in its original packaging. Since you’re getting it from Walmart (and not a marketplace vendor), it’s easy enough to return to your local store if you have any problems with the unit.

• Get it at Walmart for $229.99
• Get it with Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Headset, and 2nd Controller for $299
• Get it with NBA 2K20, Headset, and 2nd Controller for $299

Sign up for a Free 30-Day ComiXology Unlimited Trial

ComiXology is Amazon’s digital comic platform and is the largest digital retailer of American comics. The site hosts 20,000 digital comics, graphic novels, and manga from DC, Marvel, Image, Dark Horse, and more. Here’s your chance to access all of it, totally free, for 30 days. If you’re an avid comic reader, you might want to consider continuing on afterwards, since it’s only $5.99/month. You can even sign in with your Amazon account.

• Get a 30-Day Free Trial to ComiXology

Out 4/10: Preorder Final Fantasy VII Remake for PS4, Get $10 in Best Buy Credit

Our preview is up, but I’d suggest you give the demo a whirl and make your own opinion first. After all, it’s free. The game is out in just over a month and Best Buy is the only place you can preorder it with cash back. You’ll need a MyBestBuy membership, which is free to sign up.

• Preorder it at Best Buy for $59.99
• Preorder the Deluxe Edition for $79.99
• Preorder the Premium Deluxe Edition for $99.99

Out 3/31: Preorder Persona 5 Royal Steelbook Launch Edition for PS4, Get $10 Best Buy Gift Card

If you thought Persona 5 couldn’t get any better, guess again. One of the best (if not the best) RPGs to grace the PlayStation 4 console is receiving the royal treatment in 2020. Persona 5: Royal Edition introduces a new character, the ability of customize your Thieves’ Den, and new story lines with new cutscenes and new endings. The Steelbook Launch edition throws in a snazzy metal case at no additional cost.

• Preorder it at Best Buy for $59.99

Out 4/3: Preorder Resident Evil 3 and Save $10

Resident Evil 3 has dropped $10 to $49.94. For those of you who have already preordered the game from Amazon, your price is automatically adjusted to the lower one. Resident Evil 2 was a remake done right, and we expect RE3 to receive the same treatment. RE3 completes the Raccoon City arc, and this time you’re playing as the iconic Jill Valentine.

• Preorder it for PS4 on Amazon for $49.94
• Preorder it for Xbox One for $49.94

Nintendo Switch Video Game Deals:

• Animal Crossing: New Horizons + $10 Best Buy Credit for $59.99
• Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night for $19.99 at Gamestop
• Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth Complete Edition for $39.99 at Gamestop
• God Eater 3 for $29.99 at Gamestop
• Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition for $44.97 on Amazon
• Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden for $9.99 at Gamestop
• Octopath Traveler for $29.99 at Nintendo eShop
• Our World is Ended for $19.99 at Gamestop
• Pokemon Sword for $49.49 on Amazon
• Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales for $19.99 at Nintendo eShop
• Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Complete Edition for $49.99 on Amazon

PS4 Video Game Deals:

• Assassin’s Creed Odyssey for $14.99 at Best Buy
• Batman: Arkham VR for $11.99 on Amazon
• Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night for $19.99 at Gamestop
• Borderlands 3 for $23 on Amazon
• Borderlands 3 Super Deluxe Edition for $36.47 on Amazon
• Code Vein for $33.99 on Amazon
• Control for $29.99 at Gamestop
• Death Stranding for $41.94 on Amazon
• Doom Eternal for $49.94 on Amazon
• Dragon Ball FighterZ for $19.99 on Amazon
• Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition for $14.99 on Amazon
• Final Fantasy VII Remake Demo for Free at PlayStation Store
• Kingdom Hearts All-in-One Package for $29.99 at PlayStation Store
• Man of Medan for $14.92 on Amazon
• Nier Automata: GOTY Yorha Edition for $19.99 at PlayStation Store
• Shadow of the Colossus for Free for PS Plus Members
• Slay the Spire for $7.99 at Gamestop
• Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order for $38 on Amazon
• Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint for $14.99 on Amazon
• Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 for $4.99 at Best Buy
• Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Complete Edition for $14.99 at PlayStation Store
• World War Z for $14.99 on Amazon

Xbox One Video Game Deals:

• Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown for $19.99 on Amazon
• Assassin’s Creed Odyssey for $14.99 at Best Buy
• Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night for $14.99 at Gamestop
• Borderlands 3 for $22.49 on Amazon
• Borderlands 3 Super Deluxe Edition for $36.80 on Amazon
• Doom Eternal for $49.94 on Amazon
• Dragon Ball FighterZ for $19.92 on Amazon
• FIFA 20 for $24.99 on Amazon
• Gears 5 for $24.99 on Amazon
• Injustice 2: Legendary Edition for $14.99 on Amazon
• Man of Medan for $13.49 on Amazon
• Need for Speed Payback for $4.99 at Microsoft
• Red Dead Redemption 2 for $30 on Amazon
• Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration for $4.49 at Microsoft
• Slay the Spire for $7.99 at Gamestop
• Sonic Mania for $9.99 at Microsoft
• The Outer Worlds for $35 on Amazon
• The Outer Worlds for $29.99 with Xbox Live Gold
• Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint for $14.99 on Amazon
• Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 for $4.99 at Best Buy
• Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Complete Edition for $19.99 on Amazon

PC Video Game Deals:

• Up to 80% Off Ubisoft Spring Sale
• New Free PC Games with Twitch Prime Membership
• Resident Evil 3 for $43.79 at Green Man Gaming
• Witcher 3: Game of the Year Edition for $14.99 at Humble
• Nier: Automata Game of the Yorha Edition for $19.99 at Humble
• Offworld Trading Company for Free at Epic Games Store
• GoNNER for Free at Epic Games Store
• Celeste for $6.79 at Steam

______________________________

Eric Song is IGN’s deal curator and spends 25% of his pay on stuff he posts.

If you’re looking for ways to connect with your friends without leaving the comfort of your couch, a handy Google Chrome extension called Netflix Party is making it easy to watch movies online together.

Netflix Party isn’t anything new — it’s been around for years — but it feels more relevant now more than ever. By installing the extension to your Google Chrome web browser, you and your friends can stream a Netflix show or movie together at the same time.

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Once everyone has the extension installed, one person needs to start the viewing party. That person will pick a movie or show on Netflix and then click the NP extension button to the right of the address bar at the top of the browser. With the party started, the person running everything can send the unique URL to all of their friends and just like that, everyone’s singing along to Toss a Coin to Your Witcher with Jaskier, watching the latest season of Netflix’s Castlevania, or binging whatever else strikes your fancy.

Once everyone’s in the movie or show’s stream, a chat box on the right side of the screen can be used to talk (or at least type) with fellow party members – basically, Netflix Party lets you talk to your friends during a movie without anyone actually having to talk during the movie. The person who started the party can either choose to limit control so that only they have the ability to pause, rewind or fast-forward, or this can be shared among every member of the group. When you exit the movie, the party will automatically end.

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While you can’t watch them on Netflix Party, you can now rent new movies like The Invisible Man, The Hunt, and Emma online and on-demand after Universal opted to distribute its recent releases digitally following the temporary closure of movie theaters across the globe. Sony’s Bloodshot will be available online from March 24. If you’re wondering how to stay safe or find ways to help others during the coronavirus outbreak check out our resource guide.

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

It’s been eight years since the trailer for the Western Edition of Phantasy Star Online 2 dropped, but it seems like the free-to-play multiplayer action RPG will finally be coming to the west.

The open beta will have complete English translations and localized text of all three years of content from Japan. As well as being the most up to date version of the game, including all quality of life updates, the game will include all current content releases up to this point. This includes all four races and nine classes available in the Japanese client. The Xbox One X version of the game will also be able to run PS2O at 4K with expanded user interface display size.

For those of you who participated in the closed beta test and still have it installed, the update to the live beta is only 2GB. Without the closed beta test client or app, the download is available from the Xbox One Store directly, instead of through the Xbox Insider Hub.

Phantasy Star Online open beta is currently, well, open. Sign up to the open beta on the Microsoft Store and start downloading now. Let’s hope the wait has been worth it.