Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Has Gotten a Massive Discount

Xbox Game Pass is getting a price hike, as Ultimate is rising to $16.99 per month. That makes today's lead deal even more appealing, as you can get three months of Xbox Game Pass for $31.49 (vs. $50.97 if you paid monthly). This effectively translates to roughly $10.49 per month for access to one of the most extensive game subscription services available, even featuring noteworthy titles like Bethesda's Starfield (available on Game Pass September 1). Given the high demand, we recommend taking swift action to seize this deal before it vanishes.

How to Avoid The Xbox Game Pass Price Hike

Yes, Xbox Game Pass has gone up in price in recent months, but that won't stop us from trying to secure the best deal possible for this service. Game Pass Ultimate, the all-inclusive package, has seen a $2 hike, landing at $16.99 per month. Meanwhile, the standard Xbox Game Pass has gotten a $1 increase, making it $10.99 monthly. The new pricing officially took effect on July 6 for newcomers and has since been applicable from August 13 for those already part of the Game Pass family.

With the deal we listed above, this means you're effectively getting all the benefits of Game Pass Ultimate at a price less than the cost of bog-standard Xbox Game Pass. This includes online multiplayer access, EA Play, PC Game Pass, and a whole slew of other benefits.

But, there is also a way to avoid this price hike for as long as possible, and this new deal makes it all the more enticing. We're currently recommending securing your current subscription for as long as possible. You can stack up to a maximum of 36 months of Game Pass, meaning you have the option to accumulate 3-month subscriptions up to 12 times.

Admittedly, this approach might put a strain on your wallet, totaling $377.88 if you purchase the 3-month codes via the deal we mentioned above. However, when you compare it to the new cost of Game Pass Ultimate for 36 months at $16.99 per month, amounting to $611.64, you'll realize you're saving a substantial $233.76 on your subscription for the next three years.

This is also just an example of the maximum savings available here, as it's unlikely many of us have got a spare $400 to burn on Game Pass right this second. But it's still food for thought, and you could even just buy 12 months' worth of codes for $125.96 (vs. it costing $203.88 per year) if you don't want to stomach the cost of buying three years of Game Pass at once.

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

Grand Theft Auto 6: Potential Release Window, Leaks, Story, and Latest News

With over 185 million copies sold, Grand Theft Auto 5 is easily the best-selling full-priced game of all time and among the most successful entertainment releases across all mediums. To this day, GTA 5 ranks among the most played games on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC, though 10 years on from its debut, fans are eager for a new addition to the Grand Theft Auto series.

In anticipation of Rockstar’s next open-world adventure, we’ve compiled this comprehensive overview of everything we know about Grand Theft Auto 6, including a potential release window, platforms, settings, gameplay, and more.

GTA 6 Potential Release Date

A release window for GTA 6 has not been announced. However, publisher Take-Two Interactive implied GTA 6 may be scheduled for the company’s 2025 fiscal year (April 1, 2024 – March 31, 2025). The implication is found in Take-Two’s latest yearly earnings report, which included a meteoric rise* in forecasted bookings for its fiscal year 2025 — a rise possibly explained by the anticipation of GTA 6.

*Take-Two projects over $8 billion USD in net bookings for fiscal year 2025 — a 50% increase over its previous record-high of $5.3 billion achieved during fiscal year 2023.

GTA 6 Platforms

GTA 6 will likely launch on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. A PC version is expected, though there’s no guarantee it’ll be available at launch; Rockstar’s two latest original releases — GTA 5 and Red Dead 2 — were released on PC at least a year after debuting on consoles. Switch, PS4, and Xbox One versions seem unlikely, though no official platform details have been confirmed.

GTA 6 Announcement

In February 2022 Rockstar officially confirmed the next Grand Theft Auto (presumably named GTA VI) was in development. Here’s the official announcement from Rockstar:

"With the unprecedented longevity of GTA V, we know many of you have been asking us about a new entry in the Grand Theft Auto series. With every new project we embark on, our goal is always to significantly move beyond what we have previously delivered — and we are pleased to confirm that active development for the next entry in the Grand Theft Auto series is well underway. We look forward to sharing more as soon as we are ready, so please stay tuned to the Rockstar Newswire for official details.

“On behalf of our entire team, we thank you all for your support and cannot wait to step into the future with you!"

GTA 6 Setting

Grand Theft Auto 6 will reportedly return to Vice City — the franchise’s stand-in for Miami. According to a 2022 Bloomberg report, Vice City is only the starting point, as Rockstar will purportedly add “new missions and cities on a regular basis.” It’s also said to include more interior locations than any previous GTA.

The report states GTA 6 is codenamed Project Americas, in reference to Rockstar’s rumored plan to originally include North and South American locations at launch. That plan, however, is said to have been scrapped to reduce crunch.

Adding to the reports of a return to Vice City is a potential tease found within the remastered version of GTA: San Andreas:

Another #GTATrilogy mystery hunt. The Lil' Probe'Inn has an unidentified house amongst the UFO photo display... GTAVI? (jk) (or am I, where is this from?)

Credit to ArthurZussman, mussefar03 and mrcharhead for these images.

Discussion source: https://t.co/F4uXihZS9v pic.twitter.com/1iHP1jiQML

— Kirsty (@kirstycloud) November 16, 2021

GTA 6 Story, Protagonist(s)

Grand Theft Auto 6 will reportedly star two bank robbers in a Bonnie & Clyde-inspired story, according to the aforementioned Bloomberg report. The dual protagonists are possibly named Lucia and Jason, with Lucia potentially marking the first female playable character in GTA’s 3D era.

The report noted no further plot details, though it did mention a change in Rockstar’s philosophy around satire: The company is reportedly making an effort to write fewer jokes at the expense of marginalized groups.

GTA 6 Gameplay (Leak)

On September 18, 2022, Grand Theft Auto 6 was the subject of what may be the most significant video game leak of all time. A hacker gained access to Rockstar’s network and stole dozens of assets before uploading 90 GTA 6 videos online.

The in-development footage, which was verified by Rockstar, showed off parts of the game world, gunplay, and NPCs. It also seemingly confirmed GTA 6 will feature one male and one female protagonist. (Speaking of NPCs: Rockstar filed a patent in 2019 for more realistic and immersive NPC drivers. The technology, which may be used in GTA 6, allows AI drivers to “define [their] own specific characteristics for traversing the road nodes.”)

10 months after the leak, a British teenager was arrested for his involvement in a series of hacks, one of which is believed to be the origin of the big GTA 6 leak.

GTA 6 Developer

Grand Theft Auto 6 is being developed by Rockstar North, the studio responsible for every mainline GTA game since the franchise’s debut in 1997. Notably, in August, Rockstar began officially working with Cfx.re, the modding team behind the biggest GTA 5 roleplay servers. It’s unclear if the group will work on similar content for GTA 6.

Two staple developers of the Grand Theft Auto series left Rockstar in the years following GTA 5: Rockstar games co-founder/head writer Dan Houser and former Rockstar North president Leslie Benzies. Houser wrote on most of the Grand Theft Auto games from Grand Theft Auto 2 to Grand Theft Auto 5, while Benzies served as a series producer since Grand Theft Auto III.

Rockstar’s VP of writing Mike Unsworth has also left the company, though given the timing of his departure (August 2023), his work on GTA 6 may have been completed.

Jordan covers games, shows, and movies as a freelance writer for IGN.

Final Fantasy 16 Is Getting Two DLC Expansions and Its PC Port Is Officially in Development

Square Enix has announced that Final Fantasy XVI is getting two paid DLC expansions and confirmed its PC port is officially in development. More details about both aspects will be revealed later this year.

“As I mentioned earlier, we’ve seen many opinions and reactions from our community of Final Fantasy XVI players,” said producer Naoki Yoshida. “But one thing that came through particularly strongly was how people wanted to see more of Valisthea’s story and spend more time with her inhabitants.”

Yoshida then officially announced that the development team has started work on two paid DLC installments. He then went on to share some good news for those hoping to play the latest Final Fantasy on their PC.

"Finally, while Final Fantasy XVI was released as a PlayStation 5 exclusive, we are aware that many of you have been asking for a PC version," Yoshida said. "So, allow me to take this opportunity to officially announce that development on a PC version is currently underway.

“I hope to be able to give you more information on both the upcoming DLC and the PC version before the end of the year, so please stay tuned."

Here's a special video message from Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida. #FF16 pic.twitter.com/MjyKzQXHRN

— FINAL FANTASY XVI (@finalfantasyxvi) September 3, 2023

Additionally, a free update for the game is coming today that includes alternate costumes for several characters, a new Onion Sword weapon, and the ability to change the appearance of Clive's weapons while keeping the stats of the equipped one.

Yoshida previously stated that there wasn’t any initial DLC planned for Final Fantasy XVI, but fan feedback made Square Enix reconsider the possibility.

The game is currently a PS5 timed console exclusive for at least 6 months. Now with the PC version officially announced, it’s currently unknown whether it’ll also come to Xbox Series X|S in the future too.

In IGN’s Final Fantasy XVI review, we said, “Final Fantasy 16 will very likely be looked back upon as a turning point for mainline Final Fantasy games, taking its combat fully in the direction of an action game, but I hope that conversation doesn’t overshadow its dark and captivating tale, memorable characters, and the innovative ways in which it helps you keep track of it all.”

George Yang is a freelance writer for IGN. He's been writing about the industry since 2019 and has worked with other publications such as Insider, Kotaku, NPR, and Variety.

When not writing about video games, George is playing video games. What a surprise! You can follow him on Twitter @Yinyangfooey

Beginner's Guide to Baldur's Gate 3

Baldur's Gate 3's mechanics are based on Dungeons & Dragons 5e (5th edition), but if you haven't played the tabletop before, getting a good grasp of how things work in the game could be difficult. Not to worry: If you're just getting started, or simply want to better understand how things work, here's a beginner's guide to Baldur's Gate 3 explaining everything from how to make a good character to how combat works.

We gave Baldur's Gate 3 a 10 in our review. Writer Leana Hafer said "With crunchy, tactical RPG combat, a memorable story with complex characters, highly polished cinematic presentation, and a world that always rewards exploration and creativity, Baldur's Gate 3 is the new high-water mark for CRPGs." Considering the high praise, it's worth learning the ropes!

How to Build a (Good) Character

The first order of business is making a character. You can always choose an Origin Character and go with the recommended specs to make this part easy, but you can also make a custom character (which you'll also need to do if you choose The Dark Urge Origin Character). Here are quick summaries of what each choice actually does, but click on each for more complete, thorough explanations. These pages also explain basics like how dice rolls work. You can also check out our comprehensive How to Build a Character in BG3 guide - or watch the video above!

• Class: Your class is arguably the most important choice when building a character. It determines the Abilities you'll want to invest in and generally how you'll fight in combat, as each comes with a variety of weapon proficiencies, armor proficiencies, Spells, and other features. There are 12 Classes and 46 Subclasses in BG3 to choose from. You can always check out our Best Classes in BG3 guide for more advice, but they're all viable!
• Race: Unlike traditional D&D 5e, your Race in BG3 does not affect your general stats. Instead, it provides special racial attributes, like Darkvision or special resistances; and of course, your appearance. Dialogue options may change depending on your Race as well, but don't worry, your Race won't disqualify you from any Romance in BG3! There are 11 Races in BG3 to choose from - and our Races and Subraces guide has a complete comparison chart.
• Ability Scores: Essentially, Ability Scores are your stats! Every action you perform in Baldur's Gate 3--from attacking with a weapon to persuading an NPC--is modified by your Abilities. The higher your Ability score, the more likely you'll succeed with whatever you're trying to do. See our full BG3 Abilities Guide for explanations of how ability checks work, and what each ability affects. The Abilities guide also thoroughly explains how dice rolls work in general.
• Background: This is a bit of flavor that can change some dialogue and dictate what grants you "Inspiration" - a currency that essentially lets you try again if you fail. These 12 Backgrounds also provide two proficiencies in Skills.
• Skills: Skills include things like Perception, which allows you to notice things around you; and Persuasion, which allows you to persuade an NPC. Any character can use any Skill, but having a Skill proficiency will add a bonus to your dice roll along with the usual Ability Score modifier, making you more likely to succeed with that Skill. There are 18 Skills in BG3 - and your choices of Class, Background, and sometimes Race or Feats will affect which skill proficiencies you can choose.

During these selections you'll also make a "Guardian" - see Who is the Guardian? for more information.

Can You Respec in BG3?

If you end up not vibing with your character, don't worry, you can always respec everything except for Race and Background, even very early on. You can miss this though, so see How to Find Withers and Respec to learn how.

Crucial Baldur's Gate 3 Tips

To get more acquainted with the most important mechanics, check out these most crucial Baldur's Gate 3 tips. This video gives you a quick rundown of things like how to quickly change your gear, how weapons actually work, and what Karmic dice is and how to change it.

To get you started, you'll want to find all of your potential Companions in BG3 so you can create the best party compositions. Before equipping weapons or armor, make sure that character is proficient in them so you'll actually use them efficiently. Same goes for Spells, like Shadowheart's Intelligence-based Firebolt. She has a bad INT score. This is why she misses with it so much!

Here are some more quick and important guides:

• How to Level Up
• How to Revive Characters
• How to Sheath Your Weapon
• How to Get the Digital Deluxe Items
• How to Disarm Traps
• How to Dye Armor and Clothing
• How to Prepare and Change Spells
• How to Change Party Members
• Ritual Spells (these can be cast outside of combat without using a spell slot!)

For explanations for some especially under explained mechanics, read (or watch!) 20 Things Baldur's Gate 3 Doesn't Tell You.

How Baldur's Gate 3 Combat Works

For the Baldur’s Gate 3 players who are new to D&D or CRPGs in general, the combat system and action economy can be difficult to adjust to. In the Dungeons and Dragons 5th edition ruleset that Baldur’s Gate 3 emulates, each full round of combat encompasses six real-time seconds. A round being one full rotation through the Initiative Order (in which every character has one turn). Keep that thought in mind when in combat scenarios, as it can help you understand why some of your actions and abilities are limited in the way they are.

You can watch the video above or head to our comprehensive Baldur's Gate 3 Combat Guide and Tips page for a detailed break down, but here's a quick summary of what you can do in combat:

• Initiative is determined by a 20-sided dice roll plus your Dexterity Ability Modifier added as a bonus. The higher your roll, the sooner your turn will be.
• Actions are generally limited by one per turn unless your character has special features. These actions include weapon attacks and spells, as well as general abilities Dash, Disengage, Throw, and Hide. Rogues can perform some of these actions as a Bonus Action! Actions are noted by a green circle.
• Bonus Actions are smaller abilities that can be done in the same turn as an Action. These include the general Jump, Shove, and Dip (dipping a weapon into an affected surface like poison); but can also include certain spells like Healing Word or class abilities like Barbarians Rage.
• Reactions like Opportunity Attacks or certain spells occur when triggered by another event. It's pretty self-explanatory, but each one is unique, so read what their trigger is. You only get one Reaction per round though, so use them carefully. Opportunity Attacks may be toggled to happen automatically, so check your settings if you want to be prompted before performing a Reaction.
• Movement is just the distance your character moves in a turn. You can move, do something, and move again, but the total distance you can cover in a turn is determined by your Race and any bonuses you may have activated. The most common movement speed is 30 feet.

Keep in mind you can "set up" for combat before initiating it by strategically placing your characters!

Advanced Baldur's Gate 3 Tips

Okay, you understand the basics, but you want more. We've got you - watch the video above for a quick-hit list of 44 advanced tips you probably don't know!

If all else fails, we have a Baldur's Gate 3 Main Story Walkthrough plus guides for any Baldur's Gate 3 Side Quests you may encounter. Some of our most popular guides so far include how to deal with Auntie Ethel and how to complete the Gauntlet of Shar Trials, so maybe keep those bookmarked for later.

This was a lot, but you can always return to refresh later. May your dice always roll in your favor.

Casey DeFreitas is IGN's deputy editor of guides and loves D&D. Catch her on Twitter @ShinyCaseyD

Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 Is Back With a New Developer and Release Window

Paradox Interactive has announced that Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 is back in development with Everybody's Gone to the Rapture and Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs' The Chinese Room.

The news was announced at PAX West, and it was also confirmed Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 will be getting a gameplay reveal in January 2024 and a release date in Fall 2024.

Bloodlines 2 is the sequel to the original game from 2004 and Paradox provided a description of the game to tease the bloody adventure that lies ahead.

"Bloodlines 2 takes players to the dark underbelly of Seattle, where vampires struggle for survival and supremacy," the official description reads. "As an Elder vampire, players meet compelling characters, maneuver complex political relationships, stalk the city streets for prey, and engage in intense combat while balancing the need for blood.

"Throughout the game, players must always be mindful of their surroundings or risk breaking the Masquerade – the absolute law of secrecy that keeps vampire society hidden from humanity."

Bloodlines 2 re-emerged in June 2023 for the first time in quite a while after it let go of the game's original developer, Hardsuit Labs. In addition to announcing we'd learn more about the game this month, it also promised to offer refunds to those who pre-ordered any edition of the game.

The sequel was planned to have a release date in Q1 2020, but development troubles started popping up. Hopefully, this news means it's back on the right track.

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.

Starfield Includes a Tribute to a Bethesda Fan Who Passed Away Before Launch

Bethesda Game Studios added a sweet tribute in Starfield dedicated to a fan who passed away before the game's release.

As reported by PC Gamer, redditor HunterWorld posted on the Starfield subreddit their discovery of "Alex Hay's Note", which says: "To all my friends and fellow explorers. I'm always with you, out there in the starfield. Love Always, Alex Hay."

If you are unfamiliar with Alex Hay, he was a fan of Starfield who passed away earlier this year from cancer. When Bethesda announced in early March it had delayed Starfield to September, Hay went on the game's subreddit to express his disappointment in Starfield getting pushed back, stating he would not be able to play the game.

Hay said he eagerly awaited its original November 11, 2022 release date as he had stopped his treatment for cancer months prior and was looking forward to playing Starfield "as a distraction".

In May, fans requested that Bethesda Game Studios add a tribute to Hay after he passed away, as the developer has made similar moves in the past. In Fallout 4, the developer paid tribute to a fan by adding an NPC character in the game's final expansion, Nuka World.

A few years back, the developer said it would "look into" adding a tribute to Skyrim fan Colton "Colt" Meredith, who passed away, in addition to having Shirley "Skyrim Grandma" Curry as an NPC in the upcoming entry The Elder Scrolls 6.

Starfield is out now for players who purchased specific versions of the game, with its full launch happening on September 6. If you started your journey into the Settled Systems yesterday or this coming weekend, check out our guide on the first things you should do when starting, the best traits and backgrounds to pick, and 22 things Starfield doesn't tell you when you start.

In our 7/10 review, IGN said: "Starfield has a lot of forces working against it, but eventually, the allure of its expansive roleplaying quests and respectable combat make its gravitational pull difficult to resist."

Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.

Bethesda Exec Defends Starfield's Bugs: 'We Embrace Chaos'

Bethesda games like Skyrim and Fallout are known for being epic open world RPGs and for being a bit buggy, but these smaller issues in Starfield also allowed the game to be so grand according to one developer.

Speaking to GI.biz, head of global publishing Pete Hines said making a smaller, cleaner game is always an option for Bethesda but the studio instead chooses to push the limits of what's possible, accepting the game might burst at the seams a little as a result.

"We embrace chaos," Hines said. "We could make a safer, less buggy, less risky game if we wanted to. But what we try to lean into is player freedom.

"Yes, there's going to be some little things here and there where your companion might stand a little too close to you sometimes. Yet the freedom you get, and the things that happen because of that, we absolutely love and embrace.

"Of course there are bugs. But does it take away from your experience? Or do you have a consistent, fun game that you just can't stop playing and experimenting with?"

Starfield launched into early access today, September 1, ahead of its full launch on September 6. The game does run well on all platforms, including the Xbox Series S, but lacks some features like DLSS support and a field of view slider (that players have already modded in).

In our 7/10 review, IGN said: "Starfield has a lot of forces working against it, but eventually the allure of its expansive roleplaying quests and respectable combat make its gravitational pull difficult to resist."

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.