The Division 2 Has A Huge Day-One Update

Ubisoft’s new loot-driven shooter, The Division 2, is only a few days away. The publisher is taking an Anthem-like approach to the game’s release and offering it several days early depending on where and what edition you pre-order. Regardless of when you can jump into the game, however, you’ll first need to download a hefty day-one update.

As it detailed on its support website, Ubisoft is releasing a big patch alongside The Division 2 that includes “various bug fixes and improvements for the main game.” On Xbox One and PC, the update will weigh in at 48-52 GB “depending on your region and preferred language,” while the PS4 patch will weigh between 88-92 GB.

On top of that, Ubisoft is rolling out Title Update 1.5 beginning March 11. This patch is likewise mandatory but is mercifully much smaller, weighing in around 2 GB depending on your platform and region. Ubisoft says this update “addresses occurrences of audio missing or cutting out experienced by some during Open Beta.”

The Division 2 officially launches on March 15, but some players will have a chance to play the game a little early. Those who pre-order the Gold or Ultimate Editions will get to dive into the title beginning March 12. The game will also go live at different times depending on region; you can see all the listed times here.

Much like the previous game, Ubisoft will continue supporting The Division 2 with a steady stream of free post-launch updates. The publisher recently laid out the game’s Year One roadmap, which will see two new episodes arrive this summer and fall, with a third slated for this winter. Ubisoft is also offering a $40 Year One pass that will grant early access to these episodes and exclusive cosmetics and other perks.

Complete Guide To Nintendo’s Mario Day Deals On Switch Games

As with May 4 and Star Wars or October 3 and Mean Girls, March 10 is one of those days that has become inextricably linked to an iconic piece of pop culture: Mario. At some point in human history, someone realized that March 10–when stylized as MAR10–has an uncanny resemblance to the name of Nintendo’s heroic plumber, and while Nintendo had no involvement in declaring March 10 as Mario Day, the company has since come to embrace the unofficial day of celebration. This year, many retailers are recognizing Mario Day by offering discounts on select Mario games with the purchase of a Nintendo Switch console. Here’s a full breakdown of all the deals:

Starting Sunday, March 10, you can purchase a Nintendo Switch and one of its Mario games for a combo deal of $330. The five Mario games being offered are:

The Switch sells for $300 and first-party Nintendo games are steadily priced at $60, so this combo deal is about $30 in savings. It may not seem like much, but if you were already planning to buy a Switch, getting one of its best games for 50% off isn’t anything to sneeze at.

GameStop is offering the above deal on March 10 only, while supplies last. However, other retailers are offering this deal all week long, from March 10 through March 16. Those retailers include Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and Target. This promotion is running both online and in stores.

Already own a Switch? Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and Target also also offering a digital download code for one of the above Mario games for $40, so if you’ve been waiting to pick up any of those games, now’s a great time to do so.

Shop these Nintendo Switch Mario Day deals:

Is Nintendo’s Labo VR Going to Be Worth It?

Nintendo’s recent announcement that the next Labo set will be a virtual reality kit was undoubtedly a bit of a surprise to all. We here at IGN aren’t sure how the final product will come together, though there’s been some internal debate as to just how much success Nintendo will see with it’s “My First VR” playset. Our Reviews Editor Dan Stapleton and our host (and unofficial toys editor) Max Scoville had contrasting opinions on the whole thing…here’s how they felt about Nintendo diving into the VR market.

Continue reading…

Why Does Nick Fury Wear An Eyepatch? Captain Marvel Reveals The Answer

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is full of mysteries, from the origins of each Infinity Stone to just what the hell the point of that Adam Warlock reveal at the end of Guardians 2 was. With the release of Captain Marvel today, we’ve finally gotten an answer to one of the MCU’s longest running and most mysterious of enigmas: the source of Nick Fury’s eyepatch.

Set in the 1990s, Captain Marvel actually reveals a lot about Nick Fury’s origins and the start of his Avengers initiative. The movie features a de-aged Samuel L. Jackson co-starring alongside Brie Larson’s Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel–not to mention a de-aged Clark Gregg as the beloved Agent Coulson–during Fury and Coulson’s early days in SHIELD. Besides the uncanny digital effects on these actors’ faces, the most notable thing about Fury’s appearance in Captain Marvel is that he’s lacking that signature, badass, half-pirate-half-super-spy eyepatch. And there’s a good reason for that, as Captain Marvel finally reveals the origin of his mysterious eye injury.

To understand what happened to Nick Fury’s eye, you first have to understand why everyone’s talking about Goose the cat. You see, the cute orange tabby isn’t really a cat at all–it’s a Flerken, a dangerous alien creature that closely resembles a cat, but is far more powerful. Flerkens possess pocket dimensions in their stomachs, which has the incredible effect of allowing them to swallow just about anything–including, say, Infinity Stones. It also has a mouth full of massive, Lovecraftian horror inspired tentacles that erupt from its eldritch maw and swallow Kree whole, which comes in handy during the film.

Most importantly, the Flerken is a mysterious creature that possesses powers unknown. That becomes important late in the movie when Goose scratches Nick Fury in the eye. Unfortunately for him, it turns out to be no normal cat scratch, ultimately resulting in the eye becoming useless. Guess he should have listened to the numerous other characters who told him not to get so close to the thing.

No Caption Provided

Anyway, that’s it! Nick Fury’s famous eye injury didn’t come from some epic showdown with murderous aliens or a fight against supervillains from across the wide spectrum of MCU characters. It didn’t even come from the car crash early on in Captain Marvel–the bandage Fury sports above his left eye for the rest of the movie turned out to be a red herring. Instead, Fury wears that signature eyepatch thanks to the character’s love of cats and a deceptively adorable Flerken named Goose. Who would have guessed?

Of course, Captain Marvel reveals much more about the MCU’s past and future than simply what happened to Nick Fury’s eye. Go check out what the movie’s major Skrull changes could mean, the full breakdown on Fury’s origin story, and what actually happened in the post-credits scenes. Then, once you’ve brushed up on all your facts and figures, start working on polishing up your Endgame theories.

New Warframe PC Update Changes How Melee Combat Works

Digital Extremes has announced a new update that changes how melee combat works in the PC version of Warframe. This update is only the first part of a multi-phase process for transforming melee strikes and how they operate in Warframe.

This first phase of changes mostly addresses how combat in Warframe was previously split between firearm and melee portions. The update allows you to quickly transition between shooting and slicing, which is designed to create a more flow-like state to the game’s combat. “When interrupting a melee combo with gunfire, dodging, bullet jumping, or any parkour, your next melee attack will resume the combo where it left off (within a window),” Digital Extremes live ops & community director Rebb Ford wrote in a forum post. “This simply means taking brief and tactical actions between combo executions is now a valid strategy.”

Ground slams have also been changed. Previously, ground slams interrupted all momentum and aimed straight down. Now, you’ll be able to aim your ground slams, allowing you to also use the move to retreat from a forward jump or extend forward to an enemy. To account for these changes, as well as the aforementioned flow-like state for firearm and melee combat, Warframe’s keybindings have been updated as well. Those changes are outlined below. If you’re looking for more details, you can find them in the forum post that’s linked above.

Warframe Keybinding March Changes

Blocking

  • Blocking with a melee weapon is no longer keybound, it is automatic when facing enemies who are dealing damage to you in melee mode.

Channeling

  • Channeling is now a toggle set to your alt-fire button when in melee mode.
  • Your ‘F’ button now exclusively swaps between Primary and Secondary weapons with a tap.
  • Your left mouse button is gun fire, always, instantly.
  • Your right mouse button is now aim, always, instantly.

Options

  • We are adding a toggle to preserve one aspect of the older melee system. You will be able to toggle an option, allowing you to continue melee attacks with the left mouse button once in melee mode.

In our initial Warframe review, Chris Watters gave the game a 6/10, writing, “Without new challenges for your combat abilities, the excitement soon dries up, leaving you without a compelling reason to keep playing. This free-to-play shooter is still technically in beta, so changes may come that make a substantive difference. But as of now, Warframe’s interesting combat mechanics are too quickly overcome by the grind of repetition.” However, last year we picked Warframe as one of our five favorite evolving multiplayer games in 2018. The game has certainly changed for the better in recent years.

We want to see your Marvel collection!

No Caption Provided

Avengers: Endgame is around the corner, and we want to commemorate the end of the franchise with you. We’ve partnered with TV Guide, TechRepublic, ZDNet, and CNET, searching high and low for the hardcore fans that love Marvel to create a gallery that showcases your favorite Marvel collectibles. You can share a complete set of comics, your favorite Avenger t-shirt, or maybe you even have a Marvel shrine. Anything and everything Marvel is on the table!

Here is my personal collection.Here is my personal collection.

My personal collection consists of some Marvel apparel that I’ve acquired at every SDCC–yes, even the exclusive ones to San Diego Comic-Con. Also a Black Widow Itty Bitty and an autographed art book by Marvel’s artist, Humberto Ramos. Your collection can be big, small, old, new, or just simply important to you.

Share your photos by using the form below. Remember to keep the photos under 3MB and send us horizontal pictures–this will showcase your collection much better! And don’t forget to caption your photo to tell us about what we’re seeing and why it’s special.

And we also have a Captain Marvel inspired giveaway right now that you should check out right after submitting your photos. We can’t wait to see your pictures!

What Captain Marvel Reveals About Nick Fury And The Avengers

Save Big on Bluetooth and Alexa Smart Speakers Today

If you buy something through this post, IGN may get a share of the sale. For more, read our Terms of Use.

Listen up, because a nice selection of Bluetooth and smart speakers are on sale right now at Amazon. If you’ve been waiting for a discount on an Alexa-capable speaker or a way to blast tunes away from an outlet, now is a good time to buy. Here’s what you can save money on today.

Sonos One (Gen 1) for $179

sonos-one

Continue reading…

Double Fine’s Caryl Shaw: Thanking My Heroes

Editors Note: This year, for International Women’s Day, we wanted to open our platform up to developers to share their experiences, their thoughts, and their messages to the community as we all reflect on the contributions women have made in the games industry. We’re incredibly grateful these (very busy) women took the time out of their day to share this message with you all.

Years ago, I worked with a woman who rarely spoke specifically about being a “woman game developer.” I never asked her directly, but it always seemed like her general preference was just to be referred to as a game developer. I think in this respect, she was just ahead of her time — or at least she wanted to be. She wanted all the people that contributed to game development to be treated as equals.

Continue reading…