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Naughty Dog, the famed studio behind the critically acclaimed post-apocalyptic adventure The Last of Us and its 2020 sequel, has renamed Outbreak Day. From now on, it will be known as The Last of Us Day.

The decision comes in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the viral respiratory disease that has claimed more than 200,000 US lives. Given the nature of the outbreak, Naughty Dog said it didn’t feel right about the celebratory day being called Outbreak Day, especially in the context of current real-world conditions. As such, every September 26 will be called The Last of Us Day instead.

“For the last 7 years, September 26 has been our opportunity to recognize and celebrate the incredible passion of The Last of Us community,” Naughty Dog said in a statement. “However, as we thought about the events of the last year and the challenges we all continue to face with COVID-19, we didn’t feel right continuing on under the ‘Outbreak Day’ banner. While the name and date are rooted in the fiction of the game, September 26 means so much more than lore. It’s about showing our appreciation for our fans.

“That’s why, this Saturday and moving forward, September 26 will be known as The Last of Us Day–a name that not only acknowledges the world around us, but also reflects the growth of the community as we welcome millions of new players with the release of The Last of Us Part II. We have a lot of exciting things planned and we can’t wait to share them with you in just a few days.”

In The Last of Us, September 26 is the day when the cordyceps brain infection–the parasitic fungal virus that attacks the brain and kills its host–reached critical mass and began spreading like wildfire. The infection hit Austin a day later, kicking off the events of the 2013 game.

Outbreak Day, now known as The Last of Us Day, is a celebratory day in which Naughty Dog unveils new The Last of Us content in the form of behind-the-scenes footage, limited-time PSN avatars, additional in-game content, exclusive merchandise, and more. Last year’s event included a look inside The Last of Us Part II demo, a Last of Us PSN sale, the chance to win a signed poster, and more.

The Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S preorders go live September 22 at 11 AM ET in the US, and 8 AM BST in the UK, according to Microsoft.

Knowing the time and date makes things much easier to plan for, unlike the surprise PS5 preorder drops we experienced. The downside is we could see even more server problems at major retailers, but hopefully they all learned from the PS5 situation. If you’re looking to preorder an Xbox Series X or Series S in the UK, click here to find out everything you need to know.

Everything You Need to Know About Xbox Series X Preorders at a Glance

• Xbox Series X and Series S Release Date: November 10, 2020
• Xbox Series X Price: $499/ £449
• Xbox Series S Price: $299/ £249
• Xbox Series X and Series X Preorder Date: September 22, 2020

Xbox Series X Preorder Placeholder Pages

These pages previously held Xbox preorder placeholder pages, although Amazon’s has disappeared into the internet ether. We’ll update them with the most recent links as soon as they become available.

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Which Retailers Will Have Xbox Preorders?

According to Microsoft, the following retailers will have Xbox Series X and Series S preorders beginning at 11 AM ET/8 AM PT:

• Microsoft Store
• Amazon
• Best Buy
• GameStop
• Walmart
• Target
• Sam’s Club
• Newegg
• “other participating retailers”

 

Xbox Series X and Series S Preorders in the UK

UPDATE: GAME just went back online with Xbox Series X and S stock. Keep an eye on this page and @IGNUKDeals for live stock updates.

Xbox Series X Live UK Preorders

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Xbox Series S Live UK Preorders

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Xbox Series X/S Controller and Accessory UK Preorders

The new Xbox consoles are actually compatible with your older Xbox One controllers, but if you’re looking for that slick next-gen feel to all your handsets, you may want to invest in a controller or two, alongside some new accessories. You can currently preorder the Xbox Series X/S Black, Robot White, and Blue controllers.

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Xbox All-Access in the UK

Xbox Series X/S are part of the Xbox All Access, in which you can pay a set fee a month and get a new console, alongside Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Both of these will be available from GAME in the UK, and cost as follows. For Xbox Series X you will be paying £28.99 per month, and for the Xbox Series S, you will be paying £20.99 per month. Both are available to sign up for now.

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Xbox Series X Preorder Information Pages

We’ve known for a while now the Xbox Series X is coming November 2020, but the exact preorder date, price, and release date were closely held secrets for what seemed an eternity. Xbox Series X and Series S preorders go live September 22, with a $499 price tag and a November 10 release date.

Make sure to bookmark this page for updates, and for more immediate info about Xbox One X and Xbox Series S preorders when they eventually go live, be sure to follow IGN Deals on Twitter.

The info pages on major retailers have changed to reflect the new information, and some of the sites have removed the option to sign up for information:

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Xbox Series S Preorder Information Pages

Retailers have, for the most part, adapted their earlier Xbox Series X pages to include information on preorders for Xbox Series S as well. They’ve also started updating the pages to reflect the Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X November 10 release dates.

Xbox Series X Specs

Microsoft released the official Xbox Series X technical specs on February 24, promising 12 teraflops of graphical processing power and backwards compatibility all the way back to the original Xbox console.

Here’s a quick rundown of the Xbox Series X technical specifications:

• Custom-designed AMD Zen 2 and RDNA 2 processor
• A “patented form” of variable rate shading (VRS)
• DirectX raytracing (hardware accelerated)
• SSD storage
• HDMI 2.1
• 120fps support

The console’s Velocity Architecture, Microsoft Says, should mean we’ll see smaller game file sizes, less and faster loading, along with other immediate benefits. Microsoft also showed off the Xbox Series X UI, saying its new interface reduces load times to the home screen on start-up and when returning to it from a game.

Xbox Series X Release Date

The Xbox Series X release date is officially November 10, 2020. It took a long time to get here, but we finally made it.

Are Next Gen Games Going to Be $70?

Pricing on next-gen games is a little complicated. Many Xbox Series X-compatible games launching this fall, including Ubisoft’s fall lineup, will cost $60. Others, like NBA 2K21, will cost $70. But… probably not? Take-Two went back on its initial price point declaration for Xbox Series X and PS5 games, so only time will tell. However, first-party Sony PS5 games are listed at $69.99 on many retailer sites, so it’s entirely possible.

Checking retailer pages for Xbox Series X games, you see the $70 price tag all over the place. Ultimately consumer demand will dictate prices, but for now, the $60 game looks like it’s sticking around, but won’t be much longer.

Xbox Series X Games

Thanks to Microsoft’s years-long push for backwards compatibility, Xbox Series X will launch with “thousands of games.” Some of the big launch-window titles that have been announced include Halo Infinite, Cyberpunk 2077, and Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Check out our Xbox Series X game list wiki for an up-to-date list of all the confirmed and rumored Series X titles.

How to Preorder Xbox

My recommendation for ensuring you get an Xbox is the same as for the PS5. Sign up for free accounts at the major retailers now, so when the preorders do go live, you can just click through the check out process without needing to enter in your address and billing info while under duress. Keep an eye on the IGN Deals Twitter account, and make sure you have the cash on-hand for retailers like Best Buy and Walmart that put a hold on your account for the full amount.

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FIFA 21 will not receive a demo this year so that the game’s developers can focus on “delivering the best full game experience.”

EA Sports took to Twitter to reveal the news, noting that players can still get early access to the game by subscribing to EA Play. FIFA’s yearly demo is a long-standing tradition, which is why this news might be shocking to some fans of the veteran football series.

“We’ve made the decision to focus our development team’s time on delivering the best full game experience for current & next-gen consoles,” EA’s statement reads.

If you still wish to check out the game ahead of launch, EA Play subscribers will be able to jump in and trial FIFA 21 for 10 hours from October 1, ahead of the game’s official release date on October 9.

We aren’t releasing a demo for FIFA 21.

Instead we’ve made the decision to focus our development team’s time on delivering the best full game experience for current & next-gen consoles.

We look forward to EA PLAY members jumping in 10 days from now and launching the game Oct 9.

— EA SPORTS FIFA (@EASPORTSFIFA) September 21, 2020

If you pre-order the FIFA 21 Ultimate or Champions edition, you’ll also be able to access the game three days early on October 6. And if you pick up the current-gen version of FIFA 21, you’ll be able to upgrade to the PS5 or Xbox Series X version at no extra cost due to EA’s Dual Entitlement system.

In other FIFA 21 news, check out our article covering the improvements headed to Career Mode this year.

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

Action-FPS Bright Memory is “currently in development” for the launch of  Xbox Series X and S, with its already-announced follow-up, Bright Memory: Infinite to follow next year.

Announced on the Playism Game Show stream, one-man developer FYQD announced that the game was in development and that he’s “trying to do it at launch”. Alongside that announcement, the developer also confirmed that the game’s follow-up, Bright Memory: Infinite will come to PC and Xbox Series X in 2021.

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Bright Memory is a melee-and-ranged FPS developed in FYQD’s spare time and released on Steam in 2019. The game combines a cyberpunk storyline with classic action game combat and environmental puzzles.

Originally envisaged as the first episode in a series, FYQD has now decided to remake Bright Memory and significantly extend it, calling the new game Bright Memory: Infinite.

Infinite was announced and shown off for Xbox Series X at an Inside Xbox showcase in May – we called it one of our favourite Series X games shown on the day.

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Joe Skrebels is IGN’s Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Xbox Series X and S preorders have gone live, but seem to be causing problems for some retailers, with Best Buy, GameStop, and Microsoft’s own store experiencing issues at time of writing.

IGN sister site DownDetector reports that Best Buy’s website is experiencing significant problems, with many reporting that they’re not able to see search results or haven’t yet seen the Series X and S listings go live. DownDetector also says Amazon is experiencing problems, although it’s not clear if the company’s preorders have gone live late, or if there are legitimate errors.

GameStop is currently serving an “Access Denied” error message, and the Microsoft Store website is serving a 503 error message. Many are also reporting that Walmart has run out of stock, but IGN staff members have said that reloading the page can return a working preorder link.

Developing…

Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X preorders begin at 11 AM ET/8 AM PT in the US. The Xbox Series X has an estimated retail price of $499, while the Xbox Series S has an ERP of $299. Both consoles release November 10. UK users, click here to find out about your preorders.

Here’s where to grab yours:

Where to Preorder Xbox

Preorder Xbox Series X

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Preorder Xbox Series S

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Preorder Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S Games

Xbox Games at Amazon

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Xbox Games at Best Buy

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Xbox Games at GameStop

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Preorder Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S Controllers and Accessories

Xbox Controllers and Accessories at Newegg

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Xbox Controllers and Accessories at Best Buy

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Xbox Controllers and Accessories at Target

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Sign Up for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate

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Xbox Series X and S Preorders for the UK

Keep an eye on this page and @IGNUKDeals for live stock updates. Check out all the live preorder pages below.

Xbox Series X Live Preorders

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Xbox Series S Live UK Preorders

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Best Xbox Series X/S Controller and Accessory Preorder Deals

The new Xbox consoles are actually compatible with your older Xbox One controllers, but if you’re looking for that slick next-gen feel to all your handsets, you may want to invest in a controller or two, alongside some new accessories. You can currently preorder the Xbox Series X/S Black, Robot White, and Blue controllers.

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Xbox All-Access in the UK

Xbox Series X/S are part of the Xbox All Access, in which you can pay a set fee a month and get a new console, alongside Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Both of these will be available from GAME in the UK, and cost as follows. For Xbox Series X you will be paying £28.99 per month, and for the Xbox Series S, you will be paying £20.99 per month. Both are available to sign up for now.

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Best Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Deal

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Preorder New Xbox Series X/S Games in the UK

Here are all the best preorder deals for Xbox games in the UK at the moment. You’ve got your console, and now you need your games.

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Xbox Series X Release Date

The Xbox Series X and its smaller sibling the Xbox Series S have a November 10 release date in the US.

Xbox Series X Price: How Much Does It Cost?

The Series X, the more powerful of the two consoles, has an “estimated retail price” of $499.99. The Xbox Series S, the smaller, less-powerful version, sells for $299.99. The Xbox Series X includes a 4K Blu-ray disc drive and 1TB of storage, while the lower-cost Series S comes with 512GB of storage and doesn’t have a disc drive.

The Series X plays games at 4K resolutions and frame rates up to 120fps. The Series S has a maximum resolution of 1440p, or “2K” as it’s sometimes known, and also plays games up to 120fps.

 

Xbox Series X and S preorders go live today at 8am PST, 11am EST. Make sure you cash in on your preorder. At the same time, Xbox Gift Cards are 10% off. That’s especially useful for prospective Xbox Series S buyers, since your library needs to be digital. For Nintendo Switch owners, you also get 10% off any game at the eShop if you pick up any one of the cards below. There’s also still time to score the best deal ever on Sony’s best active noise cancelling wireless headphones, and you even get freebies.

Check out our Xbox Series X and S Preorder Guide for more info on where and when to preorder the Xbox, accessories, and games.

Deals for September 22

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More Video Game Deals

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Eric Song is IGN’s deal curator and spends roughly 1/4 of his income on stuff he posts. Check out his latest Daily Deals Article and subscribe to his IGN Deals Newsletter.

Bithell Games (Thomas Was Alone, John Wick Hex) has announced its third Bithell Short, The Solitaire Conspiracy, which arrives on Steam on October 6.

Announced on Twitter, The Solitaire Conspiracy will be a stylish take on the classic solo card game, complete with extra powers and effects, with time attack and skirmish modes and… a full story campaign. If you want it even more unique, that story campaign features full FMV cutscenes featuring IGN alum Greg Miller in the role of a spy agency analyst called Jim Ratio.

So… what if Solitaire, but extra, with powers and a full FMV storied campaign, time attack and skirmish modes!https://t.co/y2ajsbnNqL

The third Bithell Short: The Solitaire Conspiracy. Coming October 6th. Wishlist now, and help us make a splash on launch day. pic.twitter.com/P12191zW4I

— Mike Bithell (@mikeBithell) September 22, 2020

According to the game’s Steam page, you play games of solitaire to guide home the scattered agents of a compromised agency, Protego. “Guided by Protego’s only remaining analyst, Jim Ratio (Greg Miller),” reads the description, “you must master the unique powers of each crew in a game of tactical Solitaire like none you’ve ever played before. Guide your crews home in a tale of intrigue where nobody can be trusted. Keep your cool in a world of AI spies and cyber-enhanced operators.”

Bithell Shorts are smaller, experimental games released between Bithell’s bigger projects. Bithell makes clear that this isn’t connected to the last two Shorts, Subsurface Circular and Quarantine Circular. It’s a brand new storyline, meaning no prior knowledge is required. Except maybe knowledge of playing endless Solitaire on Windows 95, that probably helps.

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Joe Skrebels is IGN’s Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is set to release for PS4 and PS5 on November 12, making it a PS5 launch title (see it on Amazon). The game takes place a year after the events of the original Spider-Man, with Miles Morales getting caught up in a war between the evil energy corporation Roxxon and the Underground, a criminal army led by the supervillain The Tinkerer.

The fighting mechanics and gameplay look fairly similar to the 2018 original, with lots of swinging through the city and agile pounding on bad guys. And while it’s not quite a full sequel, it is a stand-alone game that’s bigger than you’d expect from an expansion. That explains the $49.99 price for the standard edition.

Spider-Man: Miles Morales comes in two editions and is up for preorder right now at a number of retailers. Here’s everything you need to know to lock in your preorder.

Spider-Man: Miles Morales Standard Edition

PS4 (includes free PS5 upgrade)

• Get it at Amazon – $49.99
• Get it at Best Buy – $49.99
• Get it at GameStop – $49.99

PS5

• Get it at Amazon – $49.99
• Get it at Best Buy – $49.99
• Get it at GameStop – $49.99
• Get it at Target – $49.99

The standard edition just comes with the new Miles Morales game. Note that anyone who buys the PS4 version of Spider-Man: Miles Morales will get a free PS5 upgrade if you buy a PS5 console in the future. So if you’re not planning to pick up a PS5 at launch, this is the version to get.

Spider-Man: Miles Morales Ultimate Edition

PS5

• Get it at Amazon – $69.99
• Get it at Best Buy – $69.99
• Get it at GameStop – $69.99
• Get it at Target – $69.99

The only difference between this and the standard edition is that the ultimate edition also includes Spider-Man Remastered. That’s the entire original game, updated for PS5.

Note that the game will require at least 50GB of hard drive space for the standard edition, or 105GB for the ultimate edition. For more information, check out our in-depth look at the story of Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and check out the gameplay trailer below.

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We have a lot more preorder guides for you below. Anyone with a PS5 preorder may want to take a look at Cyberpunk 2077, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, and other games with free PS5 upgrades.

Other Preorder Guides

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