The Last House debuts on Netflix on August 7.

A chamber piece with no consistency, Louis Leterrier’s The Last House plays tonal hopscotch with reckless abandon. Following a family of four who find themselves suddenly trapped indoors, the movie jumps not just between scenes but entire genres, with a head-spinning edit that makes things move at a million miles an hour while, paradoxically, very little actually happens.

Assisted by voiceover befitting children’s folklore, the story opens with Jason Delgado (Wagner Moura) fishing off the coast of Seattle. Rain bears down as the seemingly glum patriarch laments his sparse catch before heading back to his sprawling suburban home. However, any potential drama offered by Jason’s mood (or environmental commentary, by his spoken lines to no one in particular) is quickly brushed aside when he returns to what seems like a happy marriage to Riley (Greta Lee), with whom he has two kids: an elder son, Graham (Noah Alexander Sosnowski), and a younger daughter, Ruth (Riley Chung).

The strange premise rears its head before long as the family suddenly finds that their doors and windows won’t open and their neighbors are in a similar jam. The details are best discovered while watching The Last House — they involve a sudden downpour and mysterious shapes fluttering in the distance — but the film features no sense of buildup or gradual discovery. Perhaps to move things along, the family’s very first assumption is some supernatural occurrence or lurking evil, though this is just one of many instances where they behave more like plot delivery mechanisms than actual human beings.

The days turn into weeks as the Delgados learn more about their conundrum. The movie begins to resemble something born from COVID lockdowns, then adopts the hues of a survivalist thriller before eventually zig-zagging into something else entirely. However, few dramatic beats are allowed to breathe along the way, making this metamorphosis feel especially awkward. Despite its nearly two-hour runtime (which seems endless on occasion), The Last House feels cut within an inch of its life, moving suddenly and jaggedly between conversations and events.

More time goes by than you’d expect, which the evolving production design of the family’s home helps track. However, you might not feel these changes intuitively based on how anyone behaves. Moura and Lee are two of their generation’s finest actors, but The Last House turns them into cheap sideshows who burst with anger and melodrama practically at random. It’s a perfect example of how to build bad performances from presumably serviceable footage; both Jason and Riley go from passive to hysterical at the drop of a hat. It’s grating to watch, even before the movie swings in its umpteenth different direction, widening to include Lovecraftian concepts without the requisite, eerie atmosphere.

There’s some heavy-handed moralizing about humanity’s place in this world, but it ends up taking the form of either clunky narration or ethical dilemmas spun from thin air via flashbacks to scenes shown just minutes prior. Leterrier has never been the most interesting storyteller — The Incredible Hulk and Clash of the Titans are hardly vulgar auteur classics — but his previous works have at least held together as coherent mainstream fare. Whether he’s to blame, or it’s the powers that be at Netflix, The Last House feels cobbled together from disparate footage and ideas, resulting in hastily-changing story modes and emotions you can barely track. The individual images all look right, but when strung together, everything feels wrong.

I've been reading almost exclusively LitRPG books for years now. It's a genre that leans heavily into fantasy while appealing to the side of me that loves diving deep into the mechanics of a chunky RPG. Having characters that level up as the series goes on is the kind of simple, yet addictive story development that really just hits the spot for me. I just can't get enough.

With Matt Dinniman's Dungeon Crawler Carl series bringing LitRPG to mainstream media in 2026, I feel it's my duty to point out that there are other good books out there with similar elements. If you're looking for another well-written story with very likable characters who grow in power, I highly recommend checking out Will Wight's Cradle series.

In yet another sweep of layoffs within the gaming space, Crossfire developer That’s No Moon has axed an as-yet undetermined number of staff.

Now-former employees began posting about the situation on their LinkedIn profiles on August 6, confirming that they were affected by layoffs at the studio. Roles impacted appear to have included technical and environmental artists. IGN has reached out to That's No Moon for comment.

That’s No Moon was founded in 2021 by industry vets from powerhouse developers like Naughty Dog and Infinity Ward. Based in Los Angeles, it revealed its first AAA offering, a narrative-driven, single-player title called Crossfire, at Summer Game Fest 2026.

Thus far, the project doesn't have an official release date, but the minds behind the game gave players a first look at what they can expect duing an in-depth showcase, which they presented alongside Geoff Keighley at Summer Game Fest. Crossfire features a unique mechanic called 'adaptive cover,' where characters dynamically adapt their stances in reaction to terrain and nearby enemies.

Game director Jacob Minkoff explained that it rewards tactical thinking, stealth, and repositioning, saying it "fundamentally changes your relationship with the environment and becomes an active skill to master" while playing.

Crossfire follows the journeys of enemy operators Layla Qassem and Delroy Cross as they fight for survival in a tenuous, but temorary, alliance. Layla's story begins during a routine reconnaissance mission in the Atlas Mountains that turns into a "harrowing struggle" in which she must confront her "rigid worldview." Cross, described as a "tier one operator and elite member" of Global Risk, is forced to confront his own beliefs during a mission for Sodara Biotech.

As you can probably guess, Crossfire takes place in the world of the multiplayer shooter of the same name, though it hones in on two members of these opposing factions for a focused storyline that forces enemies into a union of sorts.

Crossfire is in development for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X, and is currently available to wishlist on Steam, the PlayStation store, and the Microsoft store.

These are the latest layoffs to impact a major gaming studio after Psychonauts developer Double Fine laid off a quarter of its staff following its return to independent ownership last month as a result of Xbox's massive restructuring efforts.

Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.

The Fourth Wing series is getting its first graphic novel next year. Amazon has recently posted a preorder listing for the first volume with a release date of April 6, 2027. The cover has yet to be revealed, but the listing states that it will be 256 pages long and adapts chapters 1-22 of the first book.

The graphic novel will be getting released as a hardcover, paperback, and Kindle edition all at the same time. You can choose to preorder either the standard version or the more expensive "Deluxe Signed Edition".

Netflix has reportedly chosen to shelve David Fincher’s American Squid Game spinoff series, according to sources close to the project.

Reports of the spinoff first surfaced in 2024, and it’s been slow going ever since then. Dennis Kenny, creator of the 2013 British thriller series Utopia, was attached to write the script, with Fincher set to direct.

However, nothing moved forward for months — at least, not publicly. Then, in November 2025, the show was listed on the Film and Television Industry Alliance website with the title ‘Squid Game: America.’ The site listed a shoot date for February 2026 in Los Angeles, but given this most recent information, it’s safe to say this is no longer the case.

Sources informed The Playlist about the spinoff’s cancellation, telling the outlet that Netflix’s goals for the franchise have substantially changed since Fincher’s version was first conceptualized. Insiders suggested that Netflix was initially eager for an American take on their record-breaking Korean series, but are now focused on exploring stories within the Squid Game universe in “individual international markets” — though whether that means country-specific spinoffs (such as Squid Game: Brazil, Norway, etc.) remains unclear.

The Playlist’s sources reportedly “stressed” that such regional versions of the show are not known to be in the development, though Fincher’s Squid Game: America seems to firmly be a thing of the past. As for why this happened, sources gave a few reasons, pointing to a long production process, changes at the executive level within Netflix, and Fincher taking on other projects like his film The Adventures of Cliff Booth.

This makes Cate Blanchett’s surprise appearance at the end of Season 3 even more confusing, though it was confirmed that her involvement in the show wasn’t tied to Fincher’s series. It did directly hint that there were more versions of the Games out there in the world, and set up a future follow-up exploring players and the VIPs in other countries.

Squid Game’s original creator, Hwang Dong-hyuk, previously bandied about the idea of a spinoff series exploring what happens to its characters in the time skip between seasons one and two. However, he also confirmed that Season 3 was the end-all, be-all finale of the entire story, saying, "It's the finale for the whole series. The whole show. It's time to say goodbye."

For now, it’s anyone’s guess as to what Netflix has planned for Squid Game as an IP, but those itching for more Korean thrillers on the streamer should turn their eyes to Mask Girl, another dark, time-jumping series that hits many of the same tonal notes (minus the deadly childrens' games).

IGN has reached out to Netflix for comment.

Image Credits: Netflix

Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.

The 2021 remaster of Quake has gotten a new, 19-level campaign co-developed by MachineGames in honor of the FPS' 30th anniversary.

At QuakeCon, id Software and MachineGames announced a free new campaign for the 2021 version of Quake. The new campaign is titled Dawn of the Machine and is available for Quake owners right now at no extra cost. Ranger is stuck in a time loop and must solve puzzles and fight new foes using new weapons (including an axe!) to survive. It includes a new soundtrack, new deathmatch maps, and achievements.

id Software and MachineGames have also ensured there will be a high degree of replayability with these levels, noting that the narrative presentation of the time loop allows for players to tackle them to their hearts' content and make new discoveries. If you load up a level again, new paths will unlock, new secrets will be made available, and there will be new upgrades for you to grow stronger. Ultimately, it sounds like a lot of really exciting content made available to all players through a free update.

MachineGames wears its Quake influences on its sleeve with its games, as the studio is widely regarded as one of the best FPS developers in the industry right now. They made a name for themselves on the recent Wolfenstein games, and it's expected that they will complete their Wolfenstein trilogy in the future, but nothing has been formally announced on that particular front.

The team also cut its teeth on Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, an immersive first-person adventure game that shies away from over-the-top gunplay. Their experience with both franchises makes them a great fit for this new Quake campaign, as they've proven their mettle at both FPS combat and making thoughtful and fun puzzles.

Cade Onder is a freelancer for IGN's news team. He covers all things entertainment, including gaming, film, and more. You can find him on Twitter @Cade_Onder.

Dataminers have discovered content that suggests Call of Duty: World at War would've had a much larger focus on vehicle combat in its multiplayer modes.

Back in the mid to late 2000s, Call of Duty was defining its formula. It became annualized, with multiple studios alternating between games, ast-paced and class-based PvP multiplayer modes, and a blockbuster campaign. Still, there was a lot to figure out on what exactly those multiplayer experiences would look like. We know it well now, but it seems that Treyarch was playing around with vehicles in the series' earliest multiplayer modes.

Call of Duty 3 and Call of Duty: World at War's multiplayer modes both featured vehicles that players could freely get into and use. In World at War, it felt like a bit of an afterthought, as only four maps actually had tanks, but it turns out there were much larger plans for them.

As discovered by ForwardLeaks and @TheSpoopatron on X, World at War would've allowed players to call in tanks after obtaining seven kills. These tanks would've been fully customizable with special perks, different weapons, and more. Players would've been able to equip flamethrowers to the tanks, have control over their speed, and much more.

To support all of this, World at War would have had more maps that were specifically designed to accommodate tanks. Unfortunately, all of this got cut (or at least drastically reduced) before launch. It's unclear why Treyarch pulled back on this, but it's possible that it wasn't as fun or didn't work as well as they'd hoped.

World at War also suffered from a fairly rushed development. Despite having a two-year dev cycle, the game underwent massive revisions and changes, which may be another reason why these features and maps were cut.

🚨LOST MEDIA FOUND:

Call of Duty: World at War was initally going to have a much deeper focus on vehicle combat within the game before being scrapped.

After a play reached a 7 kill streak, the player would have the ability to call in a tank. The tank would be able to be fully… pic.twitter.com/6zzWJ6vl9d

— Forward (@ForwardLeaks) August 6, 2026

• Railway (mp_railway)
• Sandtrap (mp_sandtrap)
• Village (mp_village)
• Zoo (mp_zoo)

* indicates map released in WaW pic.twitter.com/hU6jd95Jzi

— Forward (@ForwardLeaks) August 6, 2026

It's interesting to think about what Call of Duty might have looked like, had these features shipped. Would vehicles have played a bigger part in future Call of Duty games? It's hard to say. The recent Modern Warfare games have had vehicles as part of its Ground War mode, seemingly as a way to compete with large-scale multiplayer games like Battlefield. It's a fun addition, but it has yet to rival the more intense 6v6 experiences in the game.

Players also discovered a cut Zombies tower defense mode in the recent Black Ops ports. Those ports are among the best selling games of 2026, as fans have flocked to the older games in droves.

Cade Onder is a freelancer for IGN's news team. He covers all things entertainment, including gaming, film, and more. You can find him on Twitter @Cade_Onder.

Editor's Note: This article is sponsored by Foot Locker.

Soon we’ll be stepping into a new season, and if you’d like to do that in the latest styles, grab some fresh kicks and apparel from Foot Locker. Not only is there up to 40% off back-to-school essentials like shoes, bags, and more, but Foot Locker also has the hottest trending sneakers in stock in a bunch of sizes, including the New Balance 9060 and the Jordan Retro 3. All the classics from Adidas, Nike, New Balance, ASICS, and more are available, too. So, whether you’re heading to campus or hitting the gym, you can do so in style with Foot Locker’s back-to-school lineup:

Foot Locker's 7 Top Sneakers for Fall

If you’re after a go-to option for everyday, Nike’s Air Force 1 '07 and Adidas’ Originals Campus 00s or Samba are no-brainers. These deliver essential streetwear style and have remained timeless closet staples for a reason, blending comfort, functionality, and fashion. While black and white remain the most popular colorways and are sure to match just about any outfit, these iconic kicks also come in flashier options for those after a bolder look.

Want to make even more of a statement? Get Nike’s Jordan Retro 3, featuring a unique, eye-catching design with an elephant-print texture. Two color options are currently available: white and blue, or grab the olive option for 30% off if your size is still in stock. The New Balance 9060 is another cool kick that delivers futuristic vibes, combining features of other classic New Balance sneakers like the 990s and 860s.

For shoes that are more functional than fashion-forward, there’s the Nike Zoom Vomero 5 or the ASICS GEL-1130. Both make excellent running and gym options with a nice modern aesthetic for everyday wear.

No matter which of these sneakers you grab, they’ll seamlessly take you from summer to fall, ensuring you’re classroom- or street-ready.

Looking to Save on Foot Locker Apparel?

Gareth Edwards has exited the Jurassic World Rebirth sequel as its director, citing “creative differences” as the reason for his departure from the project.

Sources informed The Hollywood Reporter of his exit, with Universal Studios providing a succinct statement on the matter. “We had an incredible experience working with Gareth on Jurassic World Rebirth,” they told the outlet.

While it’s as-yet unclear who will direct the project now, this bump in the road isn’t the end for Rebirth’s sequel. A script has already been penned by David Koepp, who famously wrote the script for the original Jurassic Park film in 1993 and 1997’s The Lost World: Jurassic Park.

Rebirth’s stars Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, and Jonathan Bailey are also expected to return, though nothing has been confirmed as of yet, since schedules are reportedly still being worked out. The film famously made Johansson the highest-grossing lead actor ever, launching her over Robert Downey Jr. and Samuel L. Jackson.

It was a hugely profitable flick, grossing over $750 million at the box office, in part due to its massive opening weekend, where it raked up $300 million globally. While the numbers speak for themselves, critics’ opinions were decidedly less positive, with IGN’s Clint Gage rating Rebirth a 5 out of 10, arguing the film “plays it frustratingly safe, falling back on the blueprint of the original film, but not shedding any of the problems with the more recent movies.”

Rebirth was a fairly stand-alone experience, though its ending certainly pointed to a continuation of its story, which took place in the aftermath of the events of Jurassic World Dominion. For now, Universal seems to be moving full-speed ahead as fans await more details.

Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.

The late great Sam Neill will reportedly make a posthumous appearance in Sony Pictures’ forthcoming Legend of Zelda film, with Dichen Lachman and Yvonne Strahovski also confirmed to star.

Sources alerted Deadline of the news, which the outlet published on August 6 — the same day that Uli Latukefu was revealed to play the beloved game series’ big bad, Ganondorf.

Thus far, nothing is known about what role Neill will play in the movie, and neither Sony nor Neill’s team could be reached for comment. Both Sony and Nintendo have been tight-lipped regarding news about the project, but there are a few things we do know thus far.

Benjamin Evan Ainsworth is set to play Link, as officially revealed by Nintendo in November 2025, while Bo Bragason will take on the role of Princess Zelda. Footage from the movie’s set also leaked online around this time, showing an actor who appears to be Dichen Lachman playing Impa. Deadline is now able to confirm that she is, indeed, protraying Impa in the film, with Yvonne Strahovski also confirmed to play a "queen" character, though nothing else about her role was shared.

Sam Neill died on July 13, 2026 in Sydney, Australia at 78 years old. The prolific actor is best known for his performance as Dr. Alan Grant in three Jurassic Park movies, as well as Chester Campbell in the historical drama series Peaky Blinders.

Neill’s death was described as “sudden and unexpected” in a statement shared to his official Instagram account at the time, which confirmed that he “surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life.”

Neill is one of the better-known stars involved in the Legend of Zelda movie, with Aisnworth and Bragason being relatively fresh faces. Australian actor Uli Latukefu has appeared in a fair few big productions, best known for playing a young Dwayne Johnson in the NBC comedy Young Rock and Byamba in Netflix’s Marco Polo series.

Bragason notably starred in BBC One’s Three Girls drama series and historical fantasy romp Renegade Nell on Disney+. You’ve probably seen Ainsworth in the latest season of House of the Dragon, where he shines as Prince Daeron Targaryen, a young prince trapped between a rock and a hard place, to say the least.

The Legend of Zelda is scheduled to hit theaters on April 30, 2027. For now, fans can look forward to the Ocarina of Time remake, which fans believe will release in November this year in direct competition with the highly-anticipated GTA 6.

Image Credits: David Zorrakino/Europa Press via Getty Image

Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.

Hideki Kamiya revealed that Okami's main planner took inspiration from a scene in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2 movie to shape one particular moment in the highly-acclaimed 2006 game.

If you’ve seen the movie and played Okami, you probably know what moment I’m talking about. If you haven’t, this is your warning that spoilers lie ahead (though, to be fair, both of these things are over 20 years old at this point).

In the unlikely event you haven’t seen the Tobey Maguire Spider-Man movies, there’s a scene in the second film where he uses his webs to stop a runaway train at the last second. It’s an iconic moment that has sparked endless tributes and parodies over the years — and it apparently inspired a story beat in Okami, of all things.

In the game, players must find a way to cross a massive, raging river in order to progress to another area. A non-playable character is tasked with repairing the bridge that crosses this river, but in the middle of his chore, a log comes flying downstream at top speeds, prompting a timed gameplay segment where Amaterasu is tasked with slowing the log down using her Vine power before she careens off the side of a waterfall.

As told by Okami director Hideki Kamiya on his official X/Twitter account, this segment was created by planner Hiroshi Shibata, who took direct inspiration from Spider-Man 2.

“This scene was planned by Shibata-san, who served as the main planner, drawing inspiration from the train scene in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 2,” Kamiya said matter-of-factly in response to a clip from the moment posted to the official Okami X account.

この場面は、メインプランナーを務めてくれた柴田さんが、サム・ライミ版スパイダーマン2の電車の場面から着想を得て企画しました… https://t.co/O9ZtBYNlLZ

— 神谷英樹🍀 Hideki Kamiya🍀 (@HidekiKamiya_X) August 5, 2026

This is one of several insights that Kamiya has given about his games over the last few months, most recently confirming that Leon S. Kennedy was, indeed, named after the 1994 movie Leon: The Professional. Kamiya famously directed Resident Evil 2, creating one of the series’ most iconic characters whose popularity has stood the test of time. (He’s even getting a life-sized statue in Shibuya later this year to celebrate Resident Evil’s 30th anniversary.)

Okami is finally getting a sequel game, produced by the newly-formed Clovers, founded by Kamiya after his exit from Platinum Games. In collaboration with Capcom, it is a direct continuation of Okami’s main story, not a spin-off in the vein of Okamiden on the DS.

“I always wanted to create an Ōkami sequel,” Kamiya told us in an exclusive interview in February 2025. “Thinking back to about 19 years ago when I first created the game, you have to remember that the story itself isn't really complete, and I always wanted to complete this game.”

For now, not much else is known about the project, with Clovers saying it will be some time before anything further is shown off publicly. However, we do know that it's being developed in Capcom's RE engine, which gives us a vague idea of what the sequel's visual design might look like off the back of its unique art style in the original game.

Image Credits: Sony Pictures / Capcom

Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.

The Legend of Zelda movie has found its Ganondorf.

According to a report from Deadline, Uli Latukefu will play the film's villain, Ganondorf. The actor also reportedly signed a multi-picture deal, meaning the studio will have the opportunity to bring him back for sequels, should the film be a success.

The Legend of Zelda film wrapped filming earlier this year, and somehow, Sony and Nintendo have managed to keep a tight lid on everything in the movie. The only other confirmed castings are for Link and Zelda, who are already relatively unknown actors. A handful of images also trickled out, but they don't reveal much about the movie. Ultimately, we don't know much about the film, and it's less than a year away from release.

We're not even sure if Ganondorf will be physically played by Latukefu. Ganondorf may be a CG creature, and that's why they were able to keep this casting under wraps for so long. If he's just providing the voice, the studio may have been able to avoid any leaks for a while. We'll likely find out sometime later this year, as Nintendo will presumably drop the first trailer before the holiday season.

This will be Nintendo's second attempt at a modern big-screen adaptation of one of its franchises. Mario graced the screens in an animated film in 2023 and returned in a sequel earlier this year. Although the films aren't critical darlings, they make heaps of money at the box office and largely capture the spirit of the games in a way that the 90s Mario movie didn't. This will be the first attempt at bringing Zelda to the big screen, and it remains to be seen if Nintendo will be able to replicate the success of Mario with this franchise.

The Legend of Zelda movie hits theaters on April 30, 2027.

Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images

Cade Onder is a freelancer for IGN's news team. He covers all things entertainment, including gaming, film, and more. You can find him on Twitter @Cade_Onder.

The LEGO Star Wars: The Mandalorian's N-1 Starfighter is a beautiful display piece. It combines the futuristic aesthetic of the prequel trilogy with the busted up, weathered presentation of the original films, and building this model recalls the best bits of both eras. LEGO clearly understands what makes Star Wars special, even if the creatives at Disney and Lucasfilms occasionally don't.

The N-1 Starfighter vessel made its debut in The Phantom Menace as a Naboo spacecraft. Because water is such a predominant element on Naboo, the filmmakers borrowed from aquatic ship design, designing the bottom of the craft to look like a ship's hull and eliminating the landing gear so it could land in water. Its resulting, sleek appearance thematically dovetails into the prequel trilogy's overall presentation – of a prosperous galactic republic at the heights of its power and influence.

When Peli Motto first shows the ship to a nonplussed Mando in The Book of Boba Fett, she's giddy over it, despite its dilapidated state.

"Do you have any idea what this is?! This is an N-1 starfighter, handmade for the royal guard and commissioned personally by the Queen of Naboo!"

She's a gearhead, and this N-1 is akin to a classic car from "back in the good old days," when vehicles had character and craftsmanship and were fashioned by human hands instead of machines. She and Mando proceed to do a total restoration on this ride, with extra modifications to make her even faster. It retains the ship's iconic lines, but leaves its extra engine parts exposed, akin to the supercharger on a muscle car. The astromech port is converted into a bubble compartment for Grogu. The show presents the final result as a beautiful work of vintage art.

LEGO clearly understands what makes Star Wars special, even if the creatives at Disney and Lucasfilms occasionally don't. 

The Star Wars universe is filled with homebrew creations like this, where the new owners take something old, from a bygone era, and modify it to make it new again – literal things, like the Corellian YT-1300 that, with numerous enhancements, became the legendary Millennium Falcon – and figurative things, like a Jedi Order that survived by outgrowing its stodgiest traditions.

Mando shares this ethos of change. He used to live on the Razor Crest, undertaking long missions while leading a nomadic existence. But by the end of Season 3, Mando has officially adopted Grogu as his son, and the two build a cabin on Nevarro. Mando's work life and home life are no longer one and the same. He has a permanent home for domestic stability. And he has the N-1 Starfighter for action, speed, and short-term missions. This ship is part of an emotional narrative arc, told through non-verbal discourse.

The build is straightforward but excellent; LEGO always puts its best designers to work on its major Star Wars sets, and it shows. You start by building the ship's main body and its wings. The chassis is long and slender, and because of this, there are few flat parts on the build; you're constantly using sloped tiles to create a continuous, curved line.

Once the body is done, you mount it on a buildable black stand, which bends back at an angle. The instruction booklet recommends mounting the model into two possible ways. One, you could mount it so the model is pointed upwards, as though it is blasting off from a planet. Two, you could mount it so the model is pointing horizontally but banking to the side. For the sake of presentation, I prefer to mount it the second way, although your physical space concerns might preclude this decision; the model measures over two feet long.

Last are its twin engines, which are actually not as redundant to build as you might think. Each has unique "greebling" that makes it distinct from the other. It represents the sort of DIY mechanisms that a ship mechanic might use as workarounds for broken or outdated parts.

Rather than keeping the classic yellow finish, Mando goes with a more stripped-down, chrome presentation. LEGO recognizes this decision by including numerous silver, shiny tiles in the set, which catch the light and stand out in the final build. LEGO marks the silver tiles with a tiny white spark in the instructions, distinguishing them from the predominant greys and whites.

The set comes with two minifigures – one of Mando and one of Grogu – and a placard with the vehicle's specs. The final product looks aerodynamic and slick. It's a part of LEGO's Ultimate Collector Series, a shorthand way of saying that this is the most official, advanced build that the designers will create. It is a distinction reserved for LEGO sets that receive uncommon attention and care, which makes it confusing that Disney/Lucasfilms – apart from LEGO – has not reciprocated with similar attention and respect.

How so?

By the time you read this, the newest Star Wars feature film, The Mandalorian and Grogu, will have finished its theatrical run. The movie received a mixed critical response, and the box office current take of $344 million worldwide makes it the lowest grossing theatrical release in franchise history.

There are several reasons why the film didn't resonate with audiences. But from the perspective of a LEGO fan, I was surprised by the film's decision to replace the N-1 Starfighter with yet another ship – a brand new Razor Crest.

Mando's original, customized ship in Season 1 (2019) was The Razor Crest, which was eventually destroyed in Season 2 (2020). In Season 3 (2023), he got the N-1 Starfighter as a replacement to the Razor Crest, with an entire plotline and montage dedicated to its restoration and Mando's acceptance of it.

The LEGO Star Wars: N-1 Starfighter set came out on May 4th, 2026. Then, The Mandalorian and Grogu debuted in theaters on May 22, 2026. And in the first 20 minutes, Mando is gifted a factory-new Razor Crest from Colonel Ward (read: screenwriters) with none of the enhancements, character, or narrative build of the other two ships.

Thanks to this ham-handed decision, the lapsed Mandalorian fans from Seasons 1-2 now have a ship they recognize. But the N-1 Starfighter – character arc be damned – gets demoted offscreen. And this is the ship that LEGO is celebrating as part of their Ultimate Collector Series? It deserves to be celebrated, certainly. But Disney/Lucasfilms' recent decisions, concerning its larger legacy, belie that.

To summarize: I really enjoy this LEGO set. I like its build. I like its look and scale. I love what this ship represents to the franchise as a whole. LEGO understands what makes it special. But does Disney? I suppose it's more about the mainstream recognition of the iconography than what the iconography actually represents. And unfortunately for this ship model, that's what we've settled for.

LEGO Star Wars: The Mandalorian's N-1 Starfighter, Set #75442, retails for $249.99, and it is composed of 1809 pieces. It is exclusively available for purchase at the LEGO Store. LEGO also sells a model of the Razor Crest 2.0, although it's neither as detailed nor as cool-looking as this.

Kevin Wong is a contributing freelancer for IGN, specializing in LEGO. He's also been published in Complex, Engadget, Gamespot, Kotaku, and more. Follow him on Twitter at @kevinjameswong.

Back when the PS5 Pro came out, PSSR, or PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution was one of its biggest selling points. It didn't have the best start, but Sony released PSSR 2 back in March, with much better visual quality. And now, it seems that future updates will have the refreshed upscaler enabled by default.

According to a post on ResetEra – so obviously take this with a grain of salt – the latest PS5 Pro beta system update has PSSR 2 enabled by default. The option to enable or disable the new upscaler has been around for a while, hidden in the video output settings, where you'd find a toggle to "enhance PSSR image quality." The main difference with this beta update is that toggle is now enabled by default, rather than needing the user to turn in it on in the current retail system software.

The whole reason this toggle exists is to essentially force the new upscaling model in games that haven't been updated with it. While some folks might not love the fact that Sony is forcing a system setting on, there's not really much reason to not use PSSR 2.0 over the launch PSSR. When you go into the settings to enable PSSR 2, there is a tooltip that tells you to disable if you "experience unexpected behavior during gameplay" – essentially visual artifacts and glitches.

But in the four-ish months since PSSR 2.0 rolled out, I've had it enabled and haven't noticed any weird visual glitches. Apparently Sony also hasn't seen many issues, otherwise it wouldn't be forcing it on by default. Even though this feature will probably be enabled by default on the stable system software, you will still be able to go in to Settings, then Screen and Video, then Video Output and disable Enhance PSSR Image Quality. Though, you should probably only disable it if you're running into problems on your PS5 Pro.

As for when this will make its way to the retail build of the PS5 Pro's system software, it's anyone's guess. But in the meantime, you can just go in and enable it on your PS5 Pro and enjoy the better visual quality in any game that uses PSSR.

Jackie Thomas is the Hardware and Buying Guides Editor at IGN and the PC components queen. You can follow her @Jackiecobra

Three first print Pokemon games are selling for an eye-watering $2 million to the owner of the Dubai Collection, one of the most prominent and highly-graded collections of video games and trading cards in the world.

The games in question are three first print copies of the original Pokemon titles for the Game Boy: Pokemon Blue Version, Pokemon Red Version, and Pokemon Yellow Version: Special Pikachu Edition. These were some of the earliest-manufactured copies for the series, and the original seals on all three were completely intact. Each copy was graded and encapsulated by PSA, one of the most prominent third-party grading agencies in the business, which gave them equally jaw-dropping scores: 9.8 (Blue), 10 (Red), and 10 (Yellow), making them the world's highest-graded first print collection among first print Pokemon games.

Nathan Howerton, owner and founder of Nostalgix, a private collectibles brokerage service that facilitated the transaction, spoke with IGN about the significance of the sale and what it means for physical games in an industry that’s hurtling toward a digital future.

"In an increasingly digital world, collectors continue to place extraordinary value on physical media,” he told us. “The sale of these three PSA-graded Pokémon games shows that truly exceptional physical copies aren't just nostalgic artifacts — they're irreplaceable pieces of gaming history.”

Howerton told us that this deal marks the second-largest graded video game transaction ever completed, only behind a copy of Super Mario Bros. for the NES that sold at auction for $3 million back in June. This copy was given a 9.6 by PSA, a score that would later be eclipsed by 97 pristine, never-before-seen versions of Super Mario Bros. / Duck Hunt that were discovered in a Wisconsin warehouse not long afterward, five of which were given 10s in a historic first for the agency.

As told in a previous interview with IGN, PSA very rarely gives out 10s for video games. The fact that three copies of the original Pokemon games — some of the most impactful titles in video game history — were graded so highly speaks to their pristine condition, meaning that the company could barely find anything, if at all, that was flawed about them.

“We look at so many things, and everything has at least some flaws,” Claire Shelton, Head of PSA Video Games, told us in July. “We’re looking for perfection, or at least as close to it as you can come. Because with injection-molded parts, there’s always going to be pulloff lines right from where something is detached from a mold, or just the intricacies of manufacturing are going to leave things with a little bit of inconsistency.”

Howerton says this landmark $2 million sale signals an evolution in the collectibles marketplace, elevating games to a point where “the rarest physical games are now being viewed alongside the world's most significant collectibles."

"A $2 million transaction for three graded Pokémon games would have seemed unimaginable a decade ago. Today, it reflects the growing recognition that historically important, investment-grade games deserve to be mentioned alongside the most valuable comics, trading cards, and sports memorabilia in the world," he said.

His remarks regarding physical media in a progressively digital landscape aren’t off the mark; given players' heated response toward Sony’s divisive decision to stop printing physical games as of January 2028, it’s clear that gamers value their tangible titles — enough to spend $2 million on them.

Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.

Grand Theft Auto 6 fans aren't thrilled with Rockstar's decision to release the next look at the game through Netflix.

Earlier today, Rockstar Games confirmed it will debut an "extended look" at Grand Theft Auto 6 on August 27 at 3pm ET through Netflix. The extended look will also be available at 9pm ET on YouTube, but for six hours, it will essentially be paywalled behind a Netflix subscription. Essentially, Rockstar and Netflix are asking fans to fork over some cash to see the game's next big marketing beat the moment it goes live. Given the high anticipation for this game, there'll certainly be people who sign up for Netflix just to watch this instead of waiting for it to release for free on YouTube later that evening.

As you might imagine, some fans find the entire thing a bit odd and are even upset about the move.

"This is unbelievably scummy," said one fan on X. "Everyone is excited for the extended look of GTA 6, but it's premiering on Netflix first, which will influence people to get a subscription. This needs to be called out, because if any other studio, such as Bethesda, did this, they would be crucified."

"Hiding the first potential gameplay reveal behind a subscription, even if cheap and temporary, is peak Rockstar arrogance," said another.

There are numerous other near-identical messages under Rockstar's social media posts about the announcement, so these aren't isolated comments. Some have questioned why Netflix was even chosen for this event. It's likely Rockstar and Netflix partnered up after the streamer helped release Red Dead Redemption and the remastered GTA trilogy through its service, making the games accessible to millions of people who may not own a console or PC.

There are also fears that Netflix might not be able to handle the demand for the new look at GTA 6. The service is pretty notorious for crashing under pressure, particularly when there's a highly anticipated premiere of a new show like Stranger Things or a live sporting event. Is Netflix prepared to handle millions of people flooding its servers at once to catch a glimpse at GTA 6? We can only hope.

As of right now, we're not quite sure what will be featured in this new look. Will it be raw gameplay? A playthrough of a mission? A very long trailer? Some are hoping that we'll get 15–30 minutes of footage of the game, which seems reasonable for something that is premiering on Netflix. Rockstar released 10 minutes of gameplay for Red Dead Redemption 2 ahead of its release across two gameplay deep dive videos, so an even deeper look at GTA 6 doesn't feel totally out of the question.

The entire situation has resulted in a second wave of backlash against GTA 6. Although Rockstar is treating the game like an unprecedented event, some fans aren't happy about the ways the company is going about it. In June, Rockstar confirmed that GTA 6 will not release on a disc, saying physical copies would only include a digital code. It's speculated that Rockstar is doing this to prevent the game from leaking through early copies, but physical media fans are frustrated about the game from a preservation perspective. On top of that, the game is also $80 and certain content is locked behind a $100 ultimate edition.

Whether or not any of these annoyances are enough to turn people off to the game remains to be seen. GTA 6 is expected to be a pop culture golliath either way, and will likely be one of the biggest entertainment releases in history.

Cade Onder is a freelancer for IGN's news team. He covers all things entertainment, including gaming, film, and more. You can find him on Twitter @Cade_Onder.

Erin Hunter’s iconic young adult book series, Warriors, is finally getting its first major video game, and it’s a turn-based RPG.

If you grew up with Firestar and the Four Clans, you’ve been waiting since 2003 for there to be some whisper of a large-scale, official adaptation following his journey from kittypet to Clan Leader. While comic books chronicling the Clans’ brutal and dramatic histories have been around since the mid-2000s, news of a film, series, or full-scale video game has been disappointing at best, leaving fans to create their own animations in labors of love that stand as a testament to how well-loved the franchise has been for the last two decades (we'll never forget you, SSSWarriorCats).

That all changed in 2026 — 23 years after the first book was published — when, finally, it was revealed that the Warriors series is getting both an animated show on Disney+ and its own officially licensed video game released on consoles and Steam.

A trailer shared to the official Warrior Cats Instagram account on August 5 gave fans a first look at the game, titled Warrior Cats: Clans of the Forest. It’s a turn-based RPG coming to PC (Steam), PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch 2 this fall.

Players will create their own cat, choose a clan, and embark on an original adventure through the plains, forests, rivers, and swamps that generations of readers have come to know and love over the years. The trailer showcased a glimpse at what combat will look like, with players and members of their chosen Clan facing off against snakes, badgers, and even dogs. Traversal also looks as immersive as one would expect for such a game, allowing players to climb up trees and race through the wilderness to catch prey and explore their surroundings.

They’ll even get to meet iconic characters from the books, with the trailer specifically showing off the beautiful but scarred Brightheart and what seems to be Cloudtail, Firestar’s nephew. Thus far, it’s unclear if players will be able to choose specific roles, leaving the option of being a Medicine Cat up in the air for now.

Warrior Cats: Clans of the Forest is developed by TRAILMARK Games, an IP-focused developer based out of Minnesota best known for titles like Cruis’n Blast, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants, and The Walking Dead: Streets of Survival. It’s got a solid track record, and we can’t wait to see how Clans of the Forest shapes up by launch in just a few more months.

While Clans of the Forest is technically the first full-scale Warriors game published on major consoles and Steam, it isn’t the first officially licensed one; Warrior Cats: Ultimate Edition, an RPG that similarly lets players create their own cat within the world of the books, was released on Roblox in 2021. Developed by Aldrich-Callen Studios and Coolabi Group (who now owns the rights to the Warrior Cats IP), it was initially released in 2019 with limited features, and an expansion titled Warrior Cats: Lake Territory is currently in development. (A mobile game is also in the works, slated for release in 2027, though not much is known about the title at present.)

This is the latest big news for Warriors fans after Disney confirmed that an animated series adapting the beloved novels is in active production. Revealed in June, CG studio Original Force (God of War 2018, Black Myth: Wukong) is animating the show on behalf of Tencent Video and Coolabi, with A.C. Bradley (Ms Marvel, What If?) listed as showrunner. Rodrigo Blaas (Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Wall-E) is set to direct in collaboration with independent animation studio El Guiri Studios (Star Wars Visions: Sith).

Concept art for the show was revealed in July, showing Firestar bathed in a sunspot looking out on other cats of the Clans within a shadowy forest. The series is slated for release in 2028, giving longtime fans the hope they’ve been waiting for all these years.

Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.

For this week only, Best Buy has dropped the price on a rare compact convertible laptop that doubles as a gaming powerhouse. You can pick up a brand new Asus ROG Flow Z13 gaming laptop with 64GB of RAM for just $2,099.99 with free shipping after a massive $1,000 off discount. The Asus Flow Z13 (in tablet mode) isn't much bigger or heavier than a handheld gaming PC, but it boasts way better gaming performance that rivals full-sized laptops.

Save $900 Off an 2.65-Pound Asus ROG Flow Z13 Gaming Laptop

If you frequently bring along a power strip because you need AC outlets in addition to USB ports, then Orico has the most elegantly compact solution I've seen, and at a great price. For a limited time, Amazon is offering the compact Orico Travel-Friendly Power Strip for just $19.79 after coupon code: "WAR9DZOP". All colors - white, black, blue, and purple - are eligible and you don't need to be an Amazon Prime emmber. This compact travel charger features multiple AC outlets and USB ports while still being able to pack down to the size of a smartphone.

Travel-Friendly Power Strip with AC and USB Ports for Under $20

Dell is offering a steep discount on its most powerful desktop computer. The Alienware Area-51 gaming PC equipped with a GeForce RTX 5090 GPU has dropped to $4,779.99 shipped after a $1,550 instant discount. This is one of the only RTX 5090 equipped prebuilt desktop computers that you can get under $5,000 and a far better deal than buying an RTX 5090 GPU by itself, which currently goes for about the same price as this entire PC.

Alienware Area-51 RTX 5090 Gaming PC for $4,780