Category: Gaming

Today, Square Enix announced that its successful MMORPG, Final Fantasy XIV, is on its way to Xbox consoles after years of being a PlayStation console exclusive. And to hear the CEO of Square Enix tell it, it sounds like Xbox has successfully ensured that even more Square Enix games will end up on its consoles in the coming years.

During the Final Fantasy Fan Fest 2023, Final Fantasy XIV game director Naoki Yoshida (Yoshi-P) welcomed Xbox head Phil Spencer onto the stage alongside Square Enix CEO Takashi Kiryu to celebrate the Xbox release announcement. While onstage, Kiryu made the following statement:

“And one more thing: as CEO of Square Enix, we want to continue to deliver fabulous games to fans across the world. And of course, we want to welcome the Xbox community as well. And starting with today’s announcement of Final Fantasy XIV coming in spring 2024, and whenever possible, we are planning to bring our games to Xbox for players around the world to enjoy. We’re really looking forward to working closely with Phil and the Xbox team to make this possible.”

In response, Spencer said the following:

“Thank you Kiryu-san. we deeply respect the rich legacy of Square Enix, and we look forward to building on the relationship that we’ve established in bringing Final Fantasy XIV to the Xbox, and partnering closely with you and the Square Enix team on future games.”

On its face, the idea that Square Enix wants its games on Xbox consoles might not seem that strange, but there’s a lot of fascinating context surrounding this statement that makes it a bit extraordinary. Square Enix has long been the subject of exclusivity deals with both Xbox and PlayStation over the years that have pushed its games toward one console or another for the duration of their launch periods, or even permanently. Most recently, Final Fantasy XVI launched exclusive to PlayStation consoles, and there’s been no word yet on an Xbox release.

The gravitation of Square Enix toward PlayStation has been a serious concern for Xbox, though, as we saw during the recent FTC v. Microsoft trial. One evidence document revealed that Xbox had seriously considered buying Square Enix in 2019, though we did not learn from that document why the deal never occurred. Square Enix also came up repeatedly during the trial, with Final Fantasy XVI used as an example of the kinds of games PlayStation was buying exclusivity rights to in a frustrating but acknowledged part of games market competition. From the trial, we learned how critical it has become to Xbox to stuff its library full of content, and to ensure it isn’t missing out on major games like FFXVI.

In light of that, it’s no surprise that Spencer has been courting Square Enix for franchises like Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, Nier, Just Cause, and many more. While neither Kiryu nor Spencer elaborated on specifics, their willingness to take the stage together today perhaps hints at a future with fewer PlayStation exclusivity deals for Square Enix content, and more Square Enix content on GamePass.

Today’s Fan Fest keynote was a busy one. Aside from the Xbox announcement, we got updates on the new Final Fantasy 14 Dawntrail expansion, a major graphics update for the game, a mysterious T-shirt tease, and a confirmation that no, Dawntrail does not include Blitzball (sorry).

Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

With the announcement of a brand new Final Fantasy 14 expansion that’s giving everyone massive Final Fantasy X vibes, fans are clamoring for the addition of Final Fantasy’s favorite sport: Blitzball. Unfortunately, game director Naoki Yoshida (Yoshi-P) has a message to everyone begging for the weird, underwater soccer game: “No Blitzball!”

That’s what Yoshi-P told fans during today’s Final Fantasy Fan Fest 2023, when while discussing updates to the Golden Saucer in upcoming patches, fans began to eagerly shout “Blitzball” from the audience. Nope, sorry! No Blitzball!

The audience in Las Vegas wasn’t alone in wanting Blitzball, either. Online, the Final Fantasy 14 community has reacted dramatically to Yoshi-P’s dismissal of their sport of choice:

One fan referred to Blitzball’s somewhat checkered reputation, which has split fans since it’s introduction in Final Fantasy X.

And other fans are just sad.

Blitzball was first introduced in Final Fantasy X, dividing fans with its deep but sometimes confusing take on water sports. It supporters cheered its roster recruitment, league play, and varied strategies, but its detractors derided it as clunky and difficult to learn. Still, it’s an indelible part of Final Fantasy X’s legacy — the ultimate expression of Final Fantasy’s many PS2-era minigames.

While this sounds like a bunch of fans being goofy, it’s not entirely without precedent for fans to expect Blitzball might be on the horizon. Final Fantasy XIV has a rich history of grabbing content, ideas, and references from other Final Fantasy titles, so including Blitzball would hardly be unprecedented. But during today’s reveal of the new Dawntrail expansion, we also got a look at a new allied race, the Pelupelu, which appeared in Final Fantasy X and X-2. The Pelupelu reveal, combined with the new region Tural being very beach-forward, led many to expect that Blitzball might make an appearance. Sadly, no.

It’s been a big day for Final Fantasy 14 fans. The robust new expansion reveal today gives them plenty to chew on for a while, but we also learned that the MMO is finally coming to Xbox consoles next spring after years of fan requests. Sadly, Blitzball won’t be there to welcome it, but there’s always next expansion, Warriors.

Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

If you love point-and-click adventure games, you’ve probably heard of Syberia (if you haven’t, where have you been?). If you haven’t jumped in yet, you are in luck! As part of IGN Rewards, we are giving away 10 console Collector’s Edition bundles for Syberia: The World Before, the latest entry in the series.

Haven’t thrown your name in the hat yet? Enter the giveaway on the IGN Rewards page.

What is Syberia: The World Before?

Syberia (from Microids) is a four-game series of point-and-click adventure games focusing on the travels of Kate Walker, an attorney who is caught up in a journey when she tries to handle the sale of an automaton factory. Now, in Syberia: The World Before, while Kate is imprisoned and forced to work in the mines, she receives tragic news from the United States, which kicks off her new journey.

Back in 1937, a talented young musician named Dana Roze finished her classes in Vaghen and was thinking about going to Paris to continue her studies. Players bounce between Dana in 1937 and Kate in 2004, solving puzzles, learning more about the world, enjoying beautiful music, and more.

Syberia: The World Before ‘Collector’s Edition’ Contents

10 copies of the Collector’s Edition of Syberia: The World Before are up for grabs in this giveaway (including 5 for PlayStation and 5 for Xbox), and the winners will receive the following:

• Full Game
• Metal Case
• Adjustable Figurine of Kate & Dana
• Artbook
• Music Box
• Map of Vaghen
• Exclusive Lithograph
• Keychain
• Set of Postcards
• Digital Script of the Prologue
• Digital Soundtrack
• Collector’s Box

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What you get as an IGN Plus member:

Brian Barnett writes reviews, guides, features, & more for IGN & GameSpot. You can get your fix of his antics on YouTube, Twitch, Twitter, Bluesky, & Backloggd, & check out his fantastic video game talk show, The Platformers, on Spotify & Apple Podcasts.

While Final Fantasy XIV director Naoki Yoshida may just be a fan of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the TMNT: Mutant Mayhem shirt he was wearing during the Final Fantasy XIV Fan Fest keynote has led fans to believe he is teasing something more.

Much like Xbox boss Phil Spencer does, Yoshida (who is affectionately known as Yoshi-P) actually has a history of wearing shirts to tease upcoming content in Final Fantasy XIV. For example, he wore a Batman shirt before the Dark Knight class was revealed and a Bugs Bunny shirt before the Viera race was announced.

This latest tease has obviously caused fans to start guessing what it all means, especially after Yoshi-P revealed Final Fantasy 14’s fifth major expansion, Dawntrail, and said two DPS jobs would be arriving alongside it. While Yoshi-P wasn’t ready to share what these new jobs were or if they were related to the turtles, he did unveil it as he was talking about them.

So, if the shirt is a tease of a new class or two, what could they be? Final Fantasy 14 already has a Ninja class, a Samurai class, and a Monk class that uses Kung-Fu, so could there be an upcoming DPS class with a staff like Donatello? Could this actually also be a tease for a turtle race like the Kojin? Or could it be some kind of weapon swapper class where you will be able to switch between multiple weapons that may or may not be related to the turtle’s iconic weapons?

Speaking of the Ninja, some think the team may add a new scouting class because the Ninja is the only one, and that class could possibly specialize in nunchaku or sais like Michelangelo or Raphael, respectively. Lastly, is there a chance it could be a word play like when Yoshi-P wore a Spider-Man shirt to announce the Samurai class, which sounds a lot like director Sam Raimi? There really are so many possibilities.

Either way, we have some time to wait until we get to play these new classes as Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail won’t be released until Summer 2024. As for what Dawntrail is, it is meant to be the “very best summer vacation a hero could possible have” and will signify the first step into a “new story” for the game after the events of Endwalker.

Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail Official Images

In addition to all this news, Yoshi-P welcomed Phil Spencer himself on stage to help announce that Final Fantasy 14 would finally be cooming to Xbox consoles in the future.

If all this turtle talk has got you in a TMNT mood, be sure to check out our Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem review ahead of its theatrical release on August 2, 2023.

Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Preorders for the Spider-Man 2 PS5 bundle, DualSense controller, and PS5 console covers (sold out) are now available at PS Direct, GameStop, Walmart, Target, and Best Buy in the US. While Amazon has the PS5 bundle for $599.99, alongside the DualSense controller for $79.99, we’re yet to see the incredibly popular faceplates there. Stay tuned for more developments, and make sure you’re following @IGNDeals for immediate updates.

Preorder at Amazon

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Preorder at PS Direct

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Preorder at Target

Where to Preorder Spider-Man 2 Bundle and Accessories in the UK

Both the PS5 console covers and DualSense controllers have already sold out at PS Direct UK, but are now available to preorder at GAME. Besides PS Direct, it looks like GAME will be the only other UK retailer with preorders available for the DualSense and PS5 console covers, so this is your best chance of securing them. Note: GAME charges an additional £5 delivery fee, and does not provide a free click and collect scheme via their website. Stand by for new UK developments or follow @IGNUKDeals for instant updates.

Our Tips for Securing Your Preorder Today

Trust us, we’ve gone through this kind of thing before. With stock being limited, you’re going to want to be prepared as possible going into this preorder. For starters, make sure you’re logged into PS Direct or any other retailers you might need to utilize (i.e. Amazon, Best Buy, etc).

Make sure you have your payment information and shipping details updated and readily available right now, do not wait until you are at checkout. Furthermore, ensure you have a stable internet connection to avoid any technical glitches during the process, and set a reminder for the time the preorders are live (10 AM local, or 7 AM PT / 10 AM ET in the US).

It goes without saying that you should be on the respective websites well in advance of these times. Remember, demand is expected to be incredibly high, so act swiftly to secure your Spider-Man 2 PS5 bundle and accessories before they sell out. And finally, make sure you’re following @IGNDeals / @IGNUKDeals on Twitter for immediate updates throughout the day.

Where Can I Preorder the Spider-Man 2 PS5 Bundle?

That’s an easy one. PS Direct (UK, US, France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Austria, and Portugal) will definitely have the bundle, DualSense Controller, and console covers available to preorder on July 28 (with all three officially launching on September 1).

Otherwise, Sony has also confirmed that other retailers will be holding the items for preorder as well. In the US, this is Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, Walmart, and Target. We’ll be updating this page on July 28 with quick links to the preorder page, so bookmark it ASAP to stay in the know (or follow @IGNDeals on Twitter).

When Can I Preorder the Spider-Man 2 PS5 Bundle?

Today, Friday July 28, is the confirmed preorder start date at PS Direct and other retailers for the Spider-Man 2 PS5 bundle, controller, and faceplates. It is also now confirmed that it will be the same start time as the recent Spider-Man 2 preorders: 10 AM local time or 7 AM PT in the US.

Can I Just Preorder the Spider-Man 2 DualSense or Faceplates?

Yes! Good news if you don’t want to buy an entirely new PS5, as the console covers (both for the regular PS5 and the PS5 Digital Edition) and the DualSense will be sold separately. A great consumer-friendly move from Sony here, as there’s plenty of different options for gamers to choose from.

How Much Does the Spider-Man 2 PS5 Bundle Cost?

Sony hasn’t confirmed a price for the console bundle nor the Spidey-themed accessories in the US. But, it shouldn’t be hard to figure it out by look at the UK listings. We’re expecting the DualSense to be around $80/£70, the faceplates $65/£55, and the console bundle to be around $600/£560.

Spider-Man 2 PS5 bundle and accessories preorders have started for those in the UK, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, with the US next in line to begin placing orders. Preorder stock has been limited in other regions, with the popular Spider-Man 2 DualSense controllers and PS5 console covers now unavailable in the UK at the time of writing.

Keep an eye on @IGNDeals or @IGNUKDeals on Twitter where we’ll be immediately notifying you when preorders go live. Stock is also expected to be quite limited, so it’s essential to act quickly if you want to secure your preorder. PSA: PS5 consoles are also on sale today in the UK.

We’ve got more info on the rest of the Spider-Man 2 panel here, alongside everything else announced at SDCC. Otherwise, make sure to check out our full Spider-Man 2 PS5 preorder guide with info on all the different editions available, including the brand new Collector’s Edition featuring a statue of Venom. Finally, we’ve also collected all the best PS5 deals available right now, which will certainly save you some extra cash while still enjoying your favorite hobby this summer.

Robert Anderson is a deals expert and Commerce Editor for IGN. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter.

In the latest Campfire Chat for Diablo 4, Blizzard announced a host of upcoming balance changes in a livestream that opened with a somber tone.

In a lengthy stream in which developers discussed upcoming changes to their hit ARPG, the mood seemed quite grim initially, as the usually smiling panel were seen with more serious expressions after a tough week of critical feedback from the Diablo IV community. In the past, many of the familiar faces could be seen smiling and making jokes, especially in the opening moments of their Campfire Chats, but today’s presentation had a noticably different mood.

It’s also worth noting that Campfire Chats have been described by Blizzard as casual discussions where patch notes aren’t discussed, but they broke from that tradition in today’s stream and detailed a lengthy list of promised changes to Diablo IV, which mostly focused on the two character classes that have received the most complaints online: the Barbarian and the Sorcerer.

The patch notes were lengthy — so much so that we’re still jotting down the details for the other three classes — but here is everything that was announced for the two weakest classes in the current Diablo IV meta:

• Sorcerer:
  • Skills:
    • Flickering Fire Bolt change to fire bolt generates 2 mana when hitting an enemy, instead of hitting a burning enemy.
    • Fireball: enhanced fireball increases its radius by 50%, destructive fireball’s critical strike damage is increased by 20% which goes to 30% if it hits 3 or more enemies.
    • Greater Chain Lightning deals 5% more damage with each bounce, Destructive chain lightning’s chance to form cracking energy goes from 25% to 30%.
  • Passives:
    • Vyr’s Master: damage bonus increased from 10%-15%
    • Esu’s Ferocity: both bonuses are also granted for 3 seconds when hitting a boss with critical strike. No longer requires a kill.
    • Combustion: Your burning effects deal x20% increased damage, plus an additional x2% increased damage per unique source of burning you have applied to the enemy.
  • Paragon:
    • Searing Heat Legendary Node: Casting Fireball or Meteor increases your Critical Strike Chance by 5% for 5 seconds, up to 15%
    • Ceaseless Conduit Legendary Node: increases cracking energy’s damage from 2% to 3% per 20 Intelligence the player has.
    • Reinforce Rare Glyph: damage reduction increased from 10% to 15%
    • Territorial Rare Glyph: Damage reduction increased from 10% to 15%
    • Warding Rare Glyph: Damage Reduction increased from 13% to 25%
    • Keeper of Flames Rare Node: Damage reduction increased from 4% to 5%, bonus damage reduction increased from 4% to 5%
    • Smoldering Embers Rare Node: Damage reduction from burning enemies increased from 4% to 5%, bonus damage reduction from burning enemies increased from 4% to 5%.
    • Guarded Rare Node: Damage reduction from Vulnerable enemies increased from 4% to 5%, Bonus damage reduction from vulnerable enemies increased from 4% to 5%.
    • Oppressive Rare Node: Damage reduction from Vulnerable enemies increased from 4% to 5%.
    • Lightning Resilience Rare Node: Maximum Life bonus increased from 4% to 6%.
    • Restorative Rare Node: Maximum Life bonus increased from 4% to 6%.
  • Legendaries:
    • Serpentine Aspect: You may have 1 additional Hydra active, and Hydra’s duration is increased by 14-24%. This now also affects Hydra’s Enchantment Effect.
    • Aspect of Conflagration: Bonus burning damage increased from 20%-30% to 20%-40%.
    • Aspect of Engulfing Flames: Bonus burning damage increased from 30-40% to 60-80%.
    • Aspect of Three Curses: Increase the Critical Strike Damage of Meteor and Fireball by 20-40%. Double this bonus against healthy enemies.
    • Firewalker’s Aspect: Bonus movement speed duration increased from 4-6 seconds.
    • Gravitational Aspect: Ball Lightning orbits around you and deals 15-25% increased damage.
    • Recharging Aspect: Each time Chain Lightning bounces, you gain 2-3 mana
    • Aspect of Unbroken Tether: Bonus chain lightning bounces increased from 2 to 4
    • Charged Aspect: Bonus movement speed increased from 20-25% to 25-30%.
    • New Legendary – Mage-Lord’s Aspect: TheVyr’s Mastery Key Passive damage reduction is increased by 20-30% for each close enemy, up to 60-90%.
    • Aspect of Frozen Orbit: damage increased from 20-30% to 30-40%.
    • Storm Swell Aspect: Bonus damage increased from 11-20% to 21-30%
    • Snowveiled Aspect: Unstoppable Duration increased from 2-3 seconds to 3-5 seconds. Additional functionality: also grants 10% bonus armor for 3-5 seconds
    • Incendiary Aspect: Lucky Hit: damage from your pyromancy skills has up to a 12-17% chance to restore 10 mana.
    • Snowguard’s Aspect: While within your own Blizzard and for 2 seconds after leaving it, you take 20-25% less damage.
    • Aspect of Concentration: Mana regeneration increased from 20-30% to 40-50%. Duration requirement to gain its benefit is reduced from 3 to 2 seconds.
  • Uniques:
    • Gloves of the Illuminator
      • Damage penalty reduced from 65-55% to 45-35%. Damage to stunned affix replaced with Lucky Hit: Change to restore resource. Reduced the distance offset per bounce range from 3 to 2.5 (should make it easier to hit close enemies with Fireball).
• Barbarian
  • Skills:
    • Bash: fury gain increased from 11 to 13
    • Flay: Fury gain increased from 10 to 13
    • Frenzy: Enhanced Frenzy: fury gained increased from 2 to 3.
    • Lunging Strike: Fury gained increased from 10 to 12.
    • Double Swing: Damage increased from 40% to 50%.
    • Rupture: Enhanced Rupture: Damage increased from 45% to 70%
    • Charge: Enhanced Charge: Damage increased from 30% to 60%. Mighty Charge: Vulnerable duration increased from 2 to 4 seconds.
    • Upheaval: Violent Upheaval: If Upheaval damages at least 2 enemies or a boss, you gain berserking for 2 seconds, increased to 3 seconds if it damages at least 4 enemies.
  • Passives:
    • Aggressive Resistance: Damage reduction increased from 3% to 4%.
    • Gushing Wounds: Bleed damage dealt based on Critical Damage bonus increased from 100% to 115%. Bleed damage when overpowering increased from 11% to 70%.
    • Unconstrained: Berserking damage bonus increased from 24% to 35%. Updated the tooltip to more clearly reflect this Key Passive’s value.
    • Walking Arsenal: Bonus damage duration increased from 6 to 8 seconds.
  • Legendaries:
    • Aspect of Ancestral Force: Damage increased from 32-50% to 40-58%
    • Death Wish Aspect: Thorns increased from .5-.75 to .65-.85
    • Aspect of Unrelenting Fury: Core skill cost to refund increased from 10-20% to 20-30%.
    • Aspect of Ancestral Charge: Damage increased from 50-100% to 75-125%.
    • Aspect of Burning Rage: Damage increased from .22-.28 to .3-.38
    • Aspect of Bul-Kathos: Damage reduction while in Earthquakes increased from 5-15% to 15-25%.
    • Earthquake Aspect: Damage bonus in Earthquakes increased from 5-15% to 15-25%.
  • Uniques:
    • Fields of Crimson: Damage increased from .18-.34 to .22-.38. Damage that enemies take standing in pools increased from 15% to 20%. Rupture cooldown reduction affix replaced with Bonus critical strike damage.
    • Hellhammer: Damage increased from .6-.8 to .85-1.1. Burning duration increased from 3 to 4 seconds. Damage to Crowd Controlled enemies affix replaced with bonus critical strike damage.
    • Ramaladni’s Magnum Opus: Physical damage affix replaced with vulnerable damage.
    • 100,000 Steps: Attacks reduce Evade’s cooldown affix replaced with bonus evade charges. Damage against stunned affix replaced with bonus movement speed.
    • Battle Trance: Basic Skill Damage affix replaced with Cooldown reduction. Bonus attack speed to other skills increased from 10-20% to 35-45%.

As one of many who was devastatingly impacted by the Season of the Malignant update’s debuffs, these changes certainly seem like a step in the right direction. The 1.1.1 patch is planned for rollout next week.

Diablo IV Season 1 rolled out with much fanfare earlier this month, but it was soon met with major backlash over balance changes, battle pass implementation, and more. Blizzard has promised to address community feedback as quickly as it can.

For more, check out our complete guide to Season of the Malignant.

Travis Northup is a freelance writer at IGN.

Final Fantasy XIV is receiving a major graphics makeover in an update for the upcoming Dawntrail expansion.

At Final Fantasy Fest 2023, producer Naoki Yoshida said in the Final Fantasy XIV keynote that the graphics update will improve the screen-wide aesthetic appeal and higher-resolution textures and shadows. The quality of the improved material in the game preserves the overall look you know and love, specifically the look and feel of existing characters.

“We’re really taking care that you’ll look at your updated character and won’t say, ‘Oh that’s really not what I expected at all,'” Yoshida said, pointing out that all the characters, including NPCs, will have improved hair texture, improved eyes, and beautiful skin.

The update will buff up the metal on armor and other objects to make them shinier than they were in the game’s previous updates. Even more so now that the lighting will be enhanced.

“You’ll notice that the 7.0 areas are kind of prettier than the previous areas,” Yoshida said. “But in the old areas things like the shadow improvements and the lighting will be automatically applied. It will take some time to add those extra objects I mentioned, but in terms of visuals it will look better.”

The game’s vegetation will also be given a brighter pop of color. Enhanced lighting will be automatically applied in the update, but the poly count won’t increase as much.

“[Plants and grass] will automatically be applied to the system. We can’t automatically increase the poly account available in the game… Grapes, grapes, we must mention the grapes. I just need you to know that we cannot give any more polygons to the grapes,” Yoshida said. “With these graphic updates, it’s not just that things are getting prettier. There are some system updates that are happening too.”

The dye system will be updated to allow players to dye more parts of their gear. However, they will only apply two dyes per gear piece, and the dye system update won’t apply to certain housing items.

Players will also get to equip eyeglasses alongside their headgear, making the game more inclusive for those who wear eyeglasses in the real world. Object and furnishing limits will also increase.

While the graphics update will introduce a number of immediate improvements, Yoshida said they won’t come to the game all at once. Square Enix will add them as the 7.0 update progresses, starting with Dawntrail and the earliest version of the game and continuing on to the middle expansions. Square Enix plans to eventually bring the updates to all of the gear and the areas in the game.

The Dawntrail expansion has brought changes to system updates for those playing the PC version of Final Fantasy XIV, but Square Enix says it plans to continue supporting the PS4 version. Here’s are the new system requirements.

Dawntrail is the fifth expansion in Final Fantasy XIV after Endwalker, Shadowbringers, Stormblood, and Heavensward. The expansion will be out in Summer 2024, and is also set to come out on Xbox for the first time next year.

Cristina Alexander is a freelance writer for IGN. To paraphrase Calvin Harris, she wears her love for Sonic the Hedgehog on her sleeve like a big deal. Follow her on Twitter @SonicPrincess15.

Final Fantasy 14 is at last coming to Xbox consoles, after years of fan requests.

Today during Final Fantasy Fan Fest 2023, Phil Spencer made a surprise appearance at the end of the keynote to announce the news. He spoke about his own enjoyment of the game as well as the close collaboration between Xbox and Square Enix to make the game the best it can be on the console.

Xbox Series X and S versions of Final Fantasy 14 will come with faster loading, and 4K support on the Xbox Series X. It’s currently planned for release in spring of 2024, with an open beta scheduled for patch 6.5. This means that the upcoming new expansion, Dawntrail, will be playable on Xbox when it launches in summer of 2024. Of course, the Xbox release will feature cross-platform play, meaning you can pick up your existing accounts on Xbox and play with others on PC and PS5. You will need to purchase a copy of the game separately on Xbox to play, however (unless you’re enjoying the free trial, which will soon go all the way up through the Shadowbringers expansion).

Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail Official Images

We learned a lot more today about planned major updates in the Final Fantasy 14 universe, including a ton of new details about the coming new expansion, Dawntrail. Dawntrail will include numerous updates including a major graphical overhaul, new jobs, a “New World” called Tural with a summer vacation theme, and even more.

Final Fantasy 14 itself has been on fire in recent years, ever since it revamped its original experience as A Realm Reborn and released multiple new critically-acclaimed expansions. We gave the most recent expansion, Endwalker, a 9/10 and said of it that, “if this is how Final Fantasy XIV’s showrunners end a story, then I’m more than ready to walk with them from the beginning to the end of the next one.”

Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

Dawntrail will be Final Fantasy XIV’s fifth major expansion, Square Enix announced today. The new expansion was unveiled during the Final Fantasy XIV Fan Fest keynote with a trailer featuring a summer vacation theme and multiple new jobs, all coming summer of 2024.

At Final Fantasy Fan Fest 2023, FF14 director Naoki Yoshida (affectionately known as Yoshi-P) took the stage to unveil the new expansion, joyfully declaring he wanted to continue to work on the game “until I die or even afterward.”

Dawntrail’s story is intended to be “the very best summer vacation a hero could possibly have,” in “a sudden change from the ending of Endwalker” and marks the first step into a “new story” for the game. It takes place in the “New World,” known officially as Tural, which lies over the ocean to the far west of Eorzea. There, the Warriors of Light will assist in a rite of succession to determine Tural’s next ruler. The rite involves a contest that eventually takes them to the gates of a “fabled city of gold.” Of course, the Scions will be involved in this, but Yoshi-P warns that the contest may divide the Scions into two factions…

In Tural, players will get access to a new hub city: Tuliyollal, a city with an emphasis on diversity located in a larger region called Yok Tural. It’s not very industrialized, but is inhabited by diverse groups of people focused on living in harmony with nature, and is ruled by Gulool Ja Ja, a two-headed Mamool Ja. The contest at the heart of Dawntrail is to determine who will succeed him.

Dawntrail includes a number of new content features, including new allied tribes such as the Pelupelu, a race that debuted in Final Fantasy X and X-2 who are short, wear bird-like masks, and excel at trade and beverage-making. Additionally, the 7.0 patch will bring the following:

• A level cap increase from level 90 to 100, including new skills for all jobs
• Multiple new jobs: Yoshi-P did not say what these were, but confirmed they would both be DPS roles, one melee and one ranged magical DPS
• New dungeons
• New enemies
• A duty support update
• New gear and recipes
• New lifestyle content
• New variant dungeons
• New raids, including a new Alliance raid that will be “even more Final Fantasy-ish”
• PvP update

And, it sounds like, a lot more, including system updates. 7.0 will also see the game’s first major graphical update. We saw an extensive array of screenshots of everything from environments to characters showing off the upgrade, and it’s pretty significant. As Yoshi-P said, “the NPCs will get a lot prettier,” and…yeah, they are! Another system update involves materials: previously, FF14 had a limit on the number of objects that could be in an area, but that limit has been increased, meaning areas will just generally have more things in them, which means more detail.

The development team is also clearly excited about an update to plants and vegetation, which gives it more detail and density and which will apparently be on full display in Tural’s forests. That said, Yoshi-P pointed out that they cannot increase the number of polygons in the game. “We cannot give any more polygons to the grapes,” he said, referencing a community meme.

All the system updates also means an update to dying clothes, allowing players to apply two dyes to a piece of gear instead of just one, with some limitations. Players can also now equip eyeglasses alongside headgear, and later in the 7.0 expansion will see the limit on housing furnishings increased. Unfortunately, they also mean a slight increase to system requirements.

As he closed his keynote, Yoshi-P announced that Square Enix is preparing, in its 6.5 update, to expand its free trial of Final Fantasy 14 from the end of Heavensward to include all the content in Stormblood, all the way up to the start of Shadowbringers. This means that Final Fantasy 14 enthusiasts will need to adjust their copypasta meme.

And finally, in a surprise announcement at the end of the show, Phil Spencer joined Yoshi-P onstage to announce that the game is finally, finally coming to Xbox consoles.

Dawntrail joins Heavensward, Stormblood, Shadowbringers, and Endwalker in the line of expansions released for Final Fantasy XIV. The expansions have been lauded for their in-depth storylines, each of which is a roughly 60 to 80 hour RPG on its own. Endwalker was a major success for Final Fantasy XIV, coming at a time when World of Warcraft was suffering a great deal of upheaval. It was so successful, in fact, that Square Enix had to take it off sale to account for the server load.

Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

Myth: Gods of Asgard is a roguelike action RPG based on the fantastic world of Norse gods, beasts, and myths.You choose a god-hero and hack and slash your way through the legendary realms of Asgard, Midgard, Helheim, and more. Ragnarok is coming to wipe out mortals and gods alike, but if you triumph in boss encounters with the likes of Fenrir the apocalyptic wolf and the massive serpent Jormungard, the world might yet have a fighting chance.

Myth: Gods of Asgard’s ever-changing isometric battlegrounds and fast-paced action brings to mind the critically acclaimed Hades. If you’ve already conquered the Greek Pantheon, it makes sense to see what you can do as a warrior ordered to prevent Ragnarok. Moreover, if you’re a God of War fan, you’re already familiar with exchanging a Greek setting for the cold Norse winds. Just pack some shaggy underwear and you’ll be fine.

There are five gods to incarnate in Myths: Gods of Asgard, and your style of attack is determined according to which god you work with. Brundhild the Valkyrie favors a deadly spear capable of punching an enemy full of holes in the blink of an eye. The beefy warrior Siegfried wields an equally beefy sword that packs a massive punch. Ullr, the ice-rimed god of the hunt, shoots arrows that split for a wide area-of-effect attack. Freya, the ever-popular goddess of love, prefers magic attacks. Finally, Thor is capable of calling down the thunder, and he has the hammer to prove it. A large selection of classes lets you customize your warrior through countless builds. Experiment and find your preferred playstyle.

The characters in Myth: Gods of Asgard have a distinct Marvel comic book feel, but the game’s art style also harbors an anime streak that adds individuality and charm to its roster of gods, battlegrounds, skills, and weapons. Myth: Gods of Asgard’s graphics jump to life with powerful combat effects that bring a real sense with every strike.

And while the stars of Myth: Gods of Asgard may have their specialized styles of combat, you’re still encouraged to experiment with myriad character builds. Switching between the gods grants you new fighting styles, each of which has unique strengths and drawbacks in different combat situations. The terrain is treacherous, and you have to work closely with your heroes to overcome the unexpected challenges and surprises that pop up in roguelike games. Once you’re finished fighting against fate itself, you can turn your ethereal warriors on each other in guild-based PVP fights.

If your fingers have been twitching since Hades, Myth: Gods of Asgard might be what you need to scratch that itch (with a big hammer that shoots lighting). Become proficient with a variety of weapons, then sink them into some wolf flesh. It’s available on July 28th on the Google Play Store and the App Store!