I’ve tested a huge selection of gaming monitors and here’s my picks for the very best models in every category.
Screenshots of Every New Pokemon in Sword and Shield
See all new Pokemon from the Galar Region in Pokemon Sword and Shield.
Bleeding Edge Hands-On – The Ugly Joy Of The MOBA Tangle
There’s absolutely no need to reiterate the enduring popularity of the MOBA in a world where League of Legends consistently draws in the biggest crowds and the most dedicated player base. But Bleeding Edge is a good reminder of how mechanics that were once deemed complex and inaccessible are now a mainstay in the inventory of core gaming components.
To be clear: Bleeding Edge is not a MOBA. But during a quick hands-on at X019 in London I found that, thanks to its close-quarters nature, it feels notably closer to the likes of LoL and Smite rather than hero shooters such as Overwatch. Each tussle and tangle has the feeling of deliberate, skillful chaos that’s unique to MOBAs, with your disengage and escape skills being as vital as your damage abilities.
IGN UK Podcast #513: We Can Catch Pokemon in the UK but Can’t Watch The Mandalorian
This week we have special superstar guest Sydnee Goodman join Cardy and Joe to tell them all about a frankly bizarre sounding childhood filled with pun-slinging cartoon dogs, pineapple haired teens and clipping her own ears back to create leprechaun ears. It’s a wild ride. Cardy’s been playing that new Pokemon Sword and Shield game so talks about that for a bit, plus the trailer showdown of the century is here as Sonic the Hedgehog takes on Scooby-Doo.
The Endless Search returns as we take another dive into the deep lagoon of Hideo Kojima’s tweets.
IGN UK Podcast 513: We Can Catch Pokemon in the UK but Can’t Watch The Mandalorian
Halo: MCC Hands-On – Reach On PC Is Almost Perfect
It’s hard to think of a console FPS that is more deserving of a PC release than Halo. Bungie’s beloved series of super-solder simulators practically defined a generation of shooters, and at the time it was a crime that most of them were not playable with a mouse and keyboard. Microsoft’s upcoming re-release of the Master Chief Collection rectifies that. But while this version ensures the world of Halo looks and sounds better than it ever has, it feels that it has arrived a decade too late to show the games off at their best.
At X019 in London I was able to go hands-on with the first mission of Halo: Reach on PC. As Bungie’s last Halo game, it is naturally the prettiest of that era of the series. Particle effects erupt and shower from plasma weapons, and environmental lighting reflects beautifully across the surfaces of the Covenant enemies’ carapace armour. It’s the ideal game in the collection to show off MCC on PC’s 4K60 capabilities. While the upgrade doesn’t quite make Reach look as if it were released yesterday – the lighting notably anchors the game in the era of the Xbox 360 – it’s still pleasantly handsome.
Terminator: Resistance Review
The Terminator franchise has long since established that things are not always as they seem on the surface, with robots that pose as naked Austrian bodybuilders, liquid metal machines that disguise themselves as friendly policemen, and movie sequels that pretend to be even the slightest bit necessary. Terminator: Resistance stays true to that idea; it certainly has the convincing appearance of a modern day first-person shooter campaign, but beneath the shiny veneer its mechanics and AI are seemingly ripped straight from another period in time, as though it’s a game that’s been sent forward from 2003 to hide in the plain sight of the present on a mission to terminate hours of your life.
The Mandalorian: When Will Episode 3 Hit Disney Plus?
Now that The Mandalorian has been released on Disney+, Star Wars fans probably have one question on their minds – when does the next episode of The Mandalorian come out? (Check out our episode 2 review of The Mandalorian.)
How Often Do New Episodes of The Mandalorian Come Out?
Disney+ will release new episodes of The Mandalorian weekly rather than all at once, which will be the case with all of Disney Plus’s original shows – a distinct difference from Netflix’s binge model of releasing a whole season on the same day. Though in the case of The Mandalorian, the release schedule is a bit more complicated. Episode 2 arrived on Friday, November 15, a mere half week after The Mandalorian episode 1.
The Mandalorian Episode 2 Review
This review contains spoilers for The Mandalorian episode 2, “The Child.” To find out when The Mandalorian episode 3 comes out, check out our release schedule, and if you’re confused about The Mandalorian’s timeline, here’s when it takes place in the Star Wars canon.
It was hard to predict what kind of show The Mandalorian was going to be, based on episode 1 – which had to do a lot of heavy lifting to establish the world, tone, and players of this previously uncharted corner of the Star Wars galaxy.
The Mandalorian Episode 2, “The Child” Review – This Is The Star Wars Show We Were Looking For
While the first episode of The Mandalorian–the live-action Star Wars show on Disney+–showed a lot of potential, it was far from perfect. “Chapter One” could have done a better job of introducing the titular Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) and so much ancillary information was packed into the 38-minute running time that it was difficult to tell what was important. Still, it was clear how much potential there was for the series.
Warning: The following contains spoilers for the second episode of The Mandalorian Season 1, titled “Chapter 2: The Child.” If you haven’t watched it yet, look away now or you will be spoiled.
With the second episode–“Chapter 2: The Child”–it’s clear The Mandalorian is something special. The episode begins quickly after the climax of “Chapter One,” which saw the introduction of an indescribably cute creature we’re going to call Baby Yoda that is very valuable to The Client (Werner Herzog). As “Chapter One” ended, though, we were left wondering what Mando would do with the creature–and what kind of danger it would be in should it wind up in the hands of The Client.
Whereas “Chapter One” attempted to cover a lot of ground, skipping over certain details, “The Child” was an extremely focused episode. It followed one story from beginning to end, giving viewers more time to get to know Mando and his bounty, Baby Yoda.
Granted, the episode was essentially a sidequest mission. Jawas stripped Mando’s ship of parts, leading him with the need to barter with the creatures–with the help of Kuiil (Nick Nolte)–to repair his vessel and head back to turn in his bounty. Along the way, he fought a giant monster, got his hands on a fuzzy egg, and learned Baby Yoda isn’t just the “kid” Mando thinks him to be.
Like Yoda and Yaddle, the only other two members of this species we’ve met in Star Wars history, Baby Yoda is Force-sensitive. He shows that when helping Mando defeat the giant beast guarding the fuzzy egg by levitating it in the air. Mando looks beyond confused as Baby Yoda finally passes out after using all of his energy with the Force power.
That development opens up several questions for The Mandalorian to answer. What will Mando do when it’s time to hand Baby Yoda over? Just how powerful is he and is he related to actual Yoda, somehow? And with his apparent connections to the Empire, what does The Client want with the tiny creature? Obviously, he and Dr. Pershing (Omid Abtahi) know exactly what they’re they’re getting when it comes to Baby Yoda. What is their plan?
The episode also allowed a new side of Mando to shine through. It was clear he cared about the safety of Baby Yoda. While, at first, it’s mostly about collecting his bounty, it slowly transformed into feeling protective for what he thought was a helpless child that refused to stay put in its space crib.
The episode’s humor is also worth noting. While the look of “Chapter One” was stunning, giving tonal nods to Samurai films and westerns, it was pretty dry. There were a couple of laughs thanks to IG-11 (Taika Waititi), but the rest of the episode felt flat. “The Child,” however, used the Jawas perfectly, making them incredibly funny troublemakers messing up Mando’s day. Whether it was Mando battling them on the Sandcrawler, the negotiation to get his ship parts back, or their pure joy over getting their hands on the egg, everything they did was hilarious.
The inclusion of the Jawas also allowed Mando to show a bit of his personality as he reacted to their antics. After how monotonous and borderline silent the character was in the first episode, this was a welcome change. Kuiil (Nick Nolte) was no slouch either, providing perfect deadpan humor throughout his scenes.
The only real downside of the episode is that it’s essentially a filler episode. While the story of this installment was an entertaining one, everything involving the Jawas and rebuilding his ship didn’t matter much to the show’s overall plot. It was a fun distraction, but one that ultimately didn’t move the plot forward until Baby Yoda revealed his Force powers. Revealing those abilities and showing Mando bonding with the little guy were essential to the character arcs playing out, but that’s something that could have been done in a way that advanced the larger plot as well.
Still, this episode is a significant improvement over the first episode. That’s not to say “Chapter One” was bad, because it wasn’t. The tone and pacing of “The Child,” however, was a big step forward.
Death Stranding’s 40-Hour-Long Story, Explained
Death Stranding’s story, confusing as it may seem, is ultimately about reconnecting the world after a great catastrophe pulls it apart. That’s Death Stranding’s plot in a nutshell, but if you want something a little deeper than that to truly find out what’s going on in Hideo Kojima’s latest, well pull up a chair, because here’s Death Stranding’s 40 hour story (including the big ending) summed up in a nice digestible plot summary in 3,000 or so words. If you need help understanding some of the terms used, we have a neat Death Stranding glossary you can use as a reference.