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Devs React to Speedruns Returns This Weekend

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, IGN

Buckle up because one of IGN’s biggest original shows returns this Saturday!

If you’re not familiar with Devs React to Speedruns, let me fill you in! Devs React to Speedruns is an IGN show that celebrates speedruns in the best way we know how—by showcasing the incredible playthroughs completed by the speedrun community and presenting them to the developers of those games. There’s nothing quite like watching developers who have spent years working on a game witness it being completed in mere minutes.

In the upcoming season of Devs React to Speedruns, we’ve partnered with some of the biggest games and developers in the world to bring you a series of exciting episodes. It all kicks off this Saturday, April 12, at 8:30 AM PT with Larian Studios, where we’ll show them a sub-20-minute speedrun of Baldur’s Gate 3. Will it sadden them to learn that their game can be finished in just 20 minutes? You’ll have to watch to find out!

Following Baldur’s Gate 3, we’ll be releasing a brand-new episode every Saturday for the next couple of months—all at 8:30 AM PT. These new episodes will feature some of the most popular games from world-renowned studios, including Team ASOBI, MachineGames, Bloober Team, Shared Memory, Surgent Studios, and Megagon Industries.

If you’re not already familiar with Devs React to Speedruns, I highly encourage you to check out our extensive 100-episode library! Some highlights include Doom Eternal, Half-Life 2, The Outer Worlds (the very first episode of Devs React), and much, much more!

The 5 Best Big and Tall Gaming Chairs in 2025

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, IGN

Sometimes, even the best gaming chairs don’t offer sufficient room, support, or comfort if you’re bigger or taller. That means you need to find chairs designed with your size in mind, like the Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen XL. It’s a premium choice ready for gamers up to 6′ 9″ and 395lbs. Whether you’re on a budget, want an extra wide seat, or like the breathability of a mesh option, we’ve found great “oversized” gaming chairs for you to try out.

TL;DR – The Best Big and Tall Gaming Chairs:

A great seat is one of the best gaming accessories you can invest in, but the wealth of available gaming chairs is overwhelming, and many aren’t suited for larger-than-average gamers. You want to seek out wider seats, taller backs, higher load capacities, and solid ergonomics that ensure your ultimate comfort so you can focus on what matters: the game.

To help in the search, I’ve thoroughly tested and researched a range of seats that won’t come up short (literally!) no matter how long you’re gaming. Take a look at our favorite bigger chair options – and also see which XL gaming chairs are available now in the UK.

Additional contributions by Danielle Abraham

1. Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen XL

Best Big and Tall Gaming Chair

The Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen XL is the best gaming chair for big and tall gamers. It’s designed to offer next-level comfort and support, even if you find yourself on the tall side or tipping the scales beyond what the normal Evo Nanogen can handle. It features Secretlab’s new fabric and seat cushion and brings through all of the fan-favorite features of the standard Titan Evo. In a word, it’s great.

I reviewed most of the mainline gaming chairs that Secretlab has released over the last five years, and the Titan Evo Nanogen XL is easily the best among them. It features a new ultra-soft yet somehow more durable fabric that reminds me of Brisa, a so-called ultra-fabric used on high-end, uber-expensive furniture. This alone would have made a substantial upgrade. Sitting in it, the new material feels much nicer against the skin, and its improved softness and breathability is noticeable in a single gaming session.

Secretlab didn’t stop there, however. One of the biggest and most pervasive criticisms the company has gotten is that its cold-cure fabric, while durable over years of heavy use, is very firm out of the box. The Nanogen XL now features a dual-cushioned seat with a softer top layer on top of the traditional long-lasting cold-cure foam. This, alongside the fabric, makes it more comfortable and feel significantly closer to some of the luxury chairs costing hundreds of dollars more.

I reviewed the standard size, but the XL version is bigger and more robust than ever before. It’s able to hold a maximum weight of 395lbs and supports gamers up to 6’9″. It’s also compatible with Secretlab’s range of accessories, including its recliner add-on that turns the chair into a feet-up, head-back demonstration of PC gaming luxury.

2. AndaSeat Kaiser 3 XL

Best Budget Big and Tall Gaming Chair

The AndaSeat Kaiser 3 XL, which my colleague reviewed, is a spacious racing-style chair with all the quality-of-life features you could want without spending a ton of money. It offers solid lumbar support and adjustability so you can focus on your game instead of fiddling with your chair. Even though it’s affordable, it’s still very comfy.

The AndaSeat Kaiser 3 XL learns a lot of lessons from other successful chairs on the market. It offers quality lumbar support that’s adjustable using easy-to-control knobs. You can shift the back contour to make sure it matches your actual needs. It also includes 4D armrests, so you can count on support whether you’re hammering away on a keyboard or kicking back with a controller.

If you’re in need of a quick cat nap, the Kaiser XL offers a deep recline using a familiar car-based lever on the side. There’s no footrest, so you’ll still need an ottoman (or printer) under your desk. Still, its wide seat makes gaming in different postures easier than ever.

Despite the low cost and handy extras, the Kaiser 3 XL is still a throne meant for larger-than-average gamers with its tall back, along with a sturdy aluminum base and steel frame to hold up to 395lbs. The wide, heavily cushioned seat wrapped in durable PVC leather doesn’t have any of the metal bolsters seen in many racing chairs that often dig into the back of your thighs. It’s available in nine color options to match your space’s aesthetic.

3. Anthros Chair

Best Ergonomic Big and Tall Gaming Chair

The Anthros chair doesn’t look like a chair for big and tall gamers, but make no mistake – its unique approach to back support centered on the pelvis means that it’s able to cater to gamers and computer users of all sizes. It’s well made and super comfortable once you get used to its unique method of support. It looks a little alien, but in my review of the Anthros Chair, I found that after a couple days of use, it’s hard to go back to a normal lumbar-based desk chair.

Anthros got its start in the wheelchair business. The company is composed of a small team of health experts in designing chairs that people would be sitting in perpetuity. It developed a unique breadth of experience and insight into chair design that actually meets the needs of the human body.

In a meeting, one of Anthros’ representatives, a practicing physical therapist, revealed to me that they had trialed virtually all of the leading office chairs and found that just about all of them missed the mark on what is actually required to support positive posture and relieve back pain generated by a wide range of causes. By centering the design of the Anthros Chair on the actual mechanics of the human body and leveraging their deep understanding of its interconnected nature, the Anthros Chair was born.

What makes this chair special is that instead of focusing on lumbar support and thoracic support like the majority of other ergonomic chairs, it instead focuses on pelvic support right at the base of your sit bones. This positions your spine forward, naturally supporting the curvature of the spine.

At first, it does feel a little strange. But once it’s properly set up for your body and you’ve become acclimated to sitting with proper posture, it can feel downright refreshing to return to the Anthros after a traditional ergonomic chair, and especially a gaming chair. It also features one of the best seats I’ve ever used. It’s wide, thickly padded, and has internal cutouts to relieve tension on your sit bones, enhancing your comfort without even realizing that it’s doing anything differently in the moment.

There’s something magic about this chair, but don’t get confused. You should still be trying to stand regularly throughout the day. Even Anthros will say that no chair is a magic bullet. However, this is one that really does approach seating differently, and though very expensive, it clearly succeeds in its goals for postural support and all-day comfort.

4. Razer Iskur XL

Best Gaming Chair for Tall Gamers

If you’re tall tall, then you already know how difficult it can be to find a chair that’s big enough to match your body. Whether that height comes from your legs or your back, the Razer Iskur XL is your best bet and will elevate your PC gaming setup with one of the most recognizable backrests out there.

In our review of the original Razer Iskur (the non-XL version), we found it to be exceptionally comfortable, and all of that holds true with the XL version. It’s bigger, taller, wider, and able to hold significantly more than the standard Iskur, which means that a few extra inches won’t hold you back from the comfort and support you desire. It’s made for users up to 399lbs and up to 6’10”, so no matter how big you are, it’s probably going to work well for you.

Razer has also earned significant acclaim for its unique backrest trimmed in a snakeskin-like pattern. The lumbar is pronounced, working on a tension system to ensure it always matches the position of your back. It’s true that some users have found it to be too pronounced, but most people find that they adapt and very much come to like that added support after giving it enough time for their body to acclimate. Once you do, you’ll find you can sit for extended gaming sessions completely pain-free.

While its aesthetics won’t be for everyone, I find that it delivers where it counts. For any gamer on the tall side, it’s definitely worth a closer look.

5. Razer Fujin Pro

Best Mesh Big and Tall Chair

The Razer Fujin Pro has it all: style, substance, and comfort. With its mesh design, you can happily sink into this chair day or night. While it doesn’t necessarily look the usual part you’d expect from Razer – ditching the big branding and heavy gamer style – you’ll still get your money’s worth with breathable mesh that will serve you well in all seasons, a comfortable waterfall seat edge, adjustable lumbar support, and overall ergonomic comfort.

If you spend a lot of time at your desk, the investment is definitely worthwhile. It offers a wide range of ergonomic adjustments to ensure that it will properly support your body through long gaming sessions. It’s an outstanding gaming chair that offers plenty of luxury across its understated frame, providing the support you need whenever you’re sitting.

When I reviewed the Razer Fujin Pro, I described it as “Razer, all grown up” and it’s true. Razer describes this as a chair for gamers that may want something that will fit just as easily into an office as their gaming space but don’t want to sacrifice ergonomics along the way. We definitely think it achieved its goal, and in doing so delivered a competitor to legendary ergonomic chairs like the Herman-Miller Aeron. It will serve you well for years to come, thanks to its unique balance between a productivity and gaming chair.

Where to Get the Best Big and Tall Gaming Chairs in the UK

How We Chose the Best Gaming Chairs for Big and Tall Gamers

In deciding which gaming chairs to include on this list, my first consideration is always which chairs I’ve personally tested and know are worth including from first-hand experience. I, and my colleagues, test a lot of gaming chairs, so drawing on that experience is critical to the process. I strive to recommend only chairs I’ve personally tested and when that’s not possible, do extensive research to find real user feedback on any other compelling options that might exist. For the Best Big and Tall category, I’m looking for three key things: size, support, and durability. Any recommendation I make here is made to last, is known to be supportive, and is big enough to match a wide range of gamers.

What to Look for in a Big and Tall Gaming Chair

Strength and weight capacity: One of the first and easiest things to make sure you’re getting is a sturdy chair. Check the max load capacity to ensure it’s strong enough to hold you up. It’s a good idea to get one that offers a bit of a buffer so the chair’s not always operating near its limit.

Seat width: Many racing chairs have bucket seats that have lightly padded metal bolsters at either side. If that seat is too narrow, the bolsters are going to dig into your thighs and hips. Checking to ensure that a chair’s listed width doesn’t include those bolsters is essential (which we looked out for on the chairs that made this list). Better still, you can find some big and tall gaming chairs that don’t have these bolsters, and that’s a good sign the chair maker knows who they’re building for.

Dimensions and adjustments (seat depth, height, backrest): Your vertical adjustments are going to play a big part in your overall comfort. You’re going to want to ensure the seat is deep enough to come close to the backs of your knees (without pressing into them), tall enough to let your lower legs drop straight to the floor while still touching it, and with a long enough backrest to support your spine. A short backrest may seem like a small problem at first, but if the lumbar and neck pillows, as well as the curves of the seatback, don’t line up with the curve of your spine and shoulder, it will impact your posture.

Ergonomics: If you want to ensure you’re going to get good ergonomics, you may want to also check that the height range from the floor to the top of the armrests overlaps with the height of your desk, as this keeps your arms level with your mouse and keyboard. (This is less of a concern if you’re playing with a controller, though.)

Big and Tall Gaming Chairs FAQ

Should you get a gaming chair or an office chair?

The seats themselves are one of the biggest differences between gaming chairs and office chairs. The ones designed specifically for gaming often come with a long back and a headrest to better support your back and shoulders than a short office chair. Extra lumbar and neck pillows on gaming chairs help keep you sitting straighter, while office chairs often offer more effective lumbar support and better seat adjustability.

Depending on your needs outside of PC gaming, you may also want to explore some XL bean bag chair options you can find within our top bean bag gaming chairs list. We also have our favorite selections of rocking gaming chairs in 2025 which may be interesting to try out as a segue from your couch to a somewhat casual gaming seat.

How does a gaming chair help with gaming?

The biggest thing any gaming chair needs to do is provide you with the support your body needs to game in comfort for extended periods. Beyond that, gaming chairs often come with extra features and bolder designs than traditional office chairs. Their armrests are usually more adjustable to support gaming with a controllers as well as mouse and keyboard. Likewise, the backrests usually offer an extended recline range similar to what you might find in a car. Simply put, the best gaming chairs offer the versatility you need to play games in the position that’s most comfortable in the moment and look good doing it.

Are expensive gaming chairs worth it?

As the saying goes, you get what you pay for. If all you want is a chair that looks good on stream, then the added features of a premium chair aren’t as important. Paying a little more can get you important upgrades, like improved cushioning, greater adjustments, and better materials. With that in mind, gaming chairs are like anything else: There are diminishing returns the higher in price you go. If you care about comfort, it’s best not to cheap out, but you don’t need to lay out $500+ for a quality gaming chair.

Are gaming chairs good for your back?

Lumbar support varies from chair to chair, but it’s true that some gaming chairs put looks ahead of support. Many gaming chairs have completely flat backrests flanked by bolsters that hold you in a single position. These are what we call “bad gaming chairs.” Thankfully, it’s no longer true that all gaming chairs have poor back support. In fact, there are many that are quite good, like the Razer Iskur XL. When shopping for a gaming chair, be sure to look at the backrest from multiple angles if possible and read up on what lumbar features it actually offers.

Christopher Coke has been covering all things tech for IGN since 2019. He has reviewed more chairs than most people own in a lifetime from brands big and small, gaming to ergo, and more.

Image Credit: Annalee Tsujino is a multi disciplinary designer and illustrator. Check them out on Instagram @antsu_illustrations.

Gremlins: The Wild Batch Review

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, IGN

Eventually, a movie will attempt to reboot or continue the story of Gremlins, the Joe Dante horror comedy that hit big in 1984 and had a less profitable but even funnier cult classic spring from its back in 1990. But the lower-stakes animated Gremlins series that’s been quietly streaming on Max makes the case that sometimes a weird Saturday morning-style spinoff is more rewarding than a splashy legacyquel attempting to recapture an old movie’s old magic.

To be fair, Gremlins: The Wild Batch is more ambitious than most movie-related cartoons from the original Gremlins era. (The same goes for its predecessor/first season, which went under the title Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai.) Set in the 1920s, the show follows future curiosity-shop owner Sam Wing (Izaac Wang, recently seen in the affecting Didi) in the early days of his custody of the cuddly, apparently centuries-old Mogwai Gizmo. The first season was set in and around Sam’s native Shanghai, which was eventually, inevitably overrun by Gizmo’s accidental spawn: more mischievous Mogwai with a destructive drive to eat after midnight and transform into meaner, toothier gremlins. These antics adapt surprisingly well to a kid-targeted, TV-PG cartoon, where the violence is less explicit, but plenty of chattering beasts can still be squished into green goo, aided by 3D animation with its own cutely caricatured style. At times it’s almost like a Gremlins version of a DreamWorks fantasy cartoon.

The Wild Batch follows Sam, his reformed-thief pal Elle (Gabrielle Nevaeh Green), his adventure-minded grandfather (James Hong), and the ever-adorable Gizmo on an extended trip to the United States, where a ship full of gremlins fled at the end of the first season. This second season has been split in half, which seems unnecessary for a total of only 10 22-minute episodes. But the two batches of five (one dropped last fall, with the rest premiering on Max this week) do make sense as mini-seasons, moving from San Francisco to the fading American West for the final five.

While the first season started out building its characters before unleashing plenty of gremlins mayhem in its later episodes, The Wild Batch evidently feels comfortable enough to make the creatures almost secondary in some episodes. The main storyline involves Elle’s attempt to free her sort-of dead mother Margot (Yael Grobglas) from the clutches of Kung-Kung, the Water God. The whole season entwines Chinese mythology with American iconography, and the final five episodes go especially heavy on this technique, with a ghostly cowboy (Keith David) serving as a prominent supporting character. At times, these elaborations threaten to overwhelm the simple urban-legend appeal of the original movies. It’s almost as if the show’s creators had a whole other idea for an animated fantasy-adventure series and have been forced to figure out what available franchise could possibly accommodate it.

On the other hand, Gremlins is as rich and relatively untapped a world as any, and who can resist Timothy Olyphant voicing the ghost of Johnny Appleseed running a casino populated by spirits and trickster animals? Even as The Wild Batch goes lighter on the anarchic Looney Tunes energy that powered Gremlins 2: The New Batch, it maintains a certain try-anything spirit that feels compatible with that movie. (There’s even a direct homage to a pair of prominent, desert-appropriate Warner Bros. cartoon characters.) The only non-Gizmo Mogwai to carry over from last season is also a New Batch homage: a talking gremlin nicknamed Noggin (George Takei) cleary meant to evoke Tony Randall’s “brain” gremlin from that movie. While some killer instinct remains, Noggin also does a stint as a benevolent crime boss and a psychological counselor for Gizmo, who feels stirrings of his wilder side in these episodes.

That subplot gets a little repetitive, but The Wild Batch makes enough weird detours – gremlins at Alcatraz! A haunted house connected to the ancestors of Gremlins 2 villain Daniel Clamp! Magical travel portals! – that it doesn’t matter too much when the season’s second half takes its time in unleashing the inevitable mayhem. So many spin-offs go heavy on the lore out of some misguided sense of fandom obligation. Gremlins: The Wild Batch does it with true-believer conviction.

12 Coolest Things We Saw at Universal Epic Universe

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, IGN

The grand opening of Universal Orlando Resort’s newest theme park, Universal Epic Universe, is on the horizon, and IGN got the exciting chance to experience the entire park in the lead-up. I spent a whole nine hours exploring Epic Universe’s five worlds and rode just about every ride–here are my first impressions of the park and some of the coolest things I experienced.

Before I dive into the coolest things, here’s some background information on Epic Universe. The park consists of five uniquely themed worlds: Celestial Park, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic, How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk, Dark Universe (a gothic world of Universal Monsters featuring Darkmoor Village and the Frankenstein Manor), and Super Nintendo World, which also includes Donkey Kong Country.

It’s a clever premise. From the loosely space-themed Celestial Park, the “heart” of the park, you’ll find four portals to the other worlds (and the on-site Helios Grand Hotel). Though lacking the hyper-immersive theming of the other worlds, the original Celestial Park has dazzling bright fountains, statues, and well-manicured gardens, making it nice enough to stroll through between portals, and it’s smartly laid out to make it easy to get to wherever you’re trying to go.

I loved the portal idea and it’s executed superbly. Walking through each of the portals for it to open up into a completely immersive new world was incredible, each world unique and spectacular on its own.

It’s a dense park with tons to see and interact with, not even counting the rides. Though I spent nine hours there and skipped every line while on the media tour, I feel like I barely scratched the surface of everything that Epic Universe has to offer. This is with only a one-hour lunch break and around 45 minutes of “free” time. I didn’t even get to play with the interactive spots that utilize the Harry Potter wands in the Ministry of Magic or the power bands in Super Nintendo World (both, admittedly, at an extra cost.) I also didn’t get to meet Toothless, which I was pretty sad about. That’ll be a next-trip goal.

Now that you’re primed on what Epic Universe is, here are my favorite things I noticed or experienced that sparked a unique sort of joy, in a completely arbituary order.

1. The Intense Stardust Racers Coaster

Sure, a little cliche to include the park’s “signature” coaster, but it really was so memorable. I grew up in Florida, so I’ve been on a lot of coasters at all the parks in the sunshine state (bar the more recently launched Jurassic World VelociCoaster, unfortunately), and I can say this is easily the most intense roller coaster I’ve ever ridden–and my media group member’s agreed it was more intense than the VelociCoaster, too. I don’t want to “spoil” the experience for anyone, so I’ll just tell you this: it starts with the intensity of a shooting star and maintains it with barely a single moment of reprieve but with a variety of movements that kept me surprised. Add on the dueling coaster aspect, where the other coaster train is right there, and you have a star of a ride, even if the lead-up to it in the line is a tad under-themed compared to the elaborate set-ups many of the other rides at the park have.

2. All the Dragons

Okay, I love dragons, so the Isle of Berk was absolutely my jam. There are moving dragons, big and small (and sheep!), all around the How to Train Your Dragon-themed world, and I love them all too much to pick just one. If you’re lucky, you’ll see an impressive little robot of Dart, one of Toothless’ and Light Fury’s children, being escorted around the park, too. There’s also a special meet and greet with Toothless and Hiccup you can wait in line for, and occasionally you’ll see Astrid and her dragon Stormfly (who is a person in a suit, not a robot, but still cool!)

3. This Donkey Kong Themed Float (and Mug)

My tour ended just thirty minutes before the park closed, and with my free time, I backtracked to Donkey Kong Country to cop one of the fancy floats I saw at The Bubbly Barrel, a snack stand next to the Minecart Madness ride entrance. The line was long, but it moved fairly quickly and was worth the wait. The DK Crush Float includes pineapple soda with banana and pineapple Dole Whip, topped with toffee and chocolate caramel corn, surrounded by a fresh waffle cone. (Quick note, I’ve never seen Banana Dole Whip?) I opted to get it served in this souvenir DK Barrel Cup, which should probably be used to hold plastic cups like in this instance rather than be used straight up. The tasty concoction hit the spot and left me $19 poorer, but the souvenir mug is cool enough to justify it for me. I enjoyed my treat sitting beside the Mine-Cart Madness ride with the DK theme playing in the background as the sun began to set–not a bad way to end a long day!

4. One of The Longest Most Intricate Queues for a Ride I’ve Ever Seen

The Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry of Magic ride has a line that took about 1,300 steps to get through–which is about a half-mile–but the entire thing is decked out to the nines to look exactly like the to-scale inside of the British Ministry of Magic. I have a whole separate article about how the Battle at the Ministry of Magic’s line is half a mile long, going over the “magic” of this place, but be prepared to be impressed and, hopefully, entertained enough as you wait for this attraction.

5. These Custom Coca-Cola Freestyle Machines

Okay, I’m sure not everyone will be absolutely stunned by the styling of the interior of a restaurant, but I’m a nerd who appreciates William Morris and loved the American craftsman (or “arts and crafts”) vibe of the Oak & Star Tavern in Celestial Park. It even had custom Cocoa-Cola Freestyles to match the crafty, woodland-inspired theming. The whole restaurant had me wanting to live there, which is insane, but you like what you like, right? I wish I had been able to visit any of the other restaurants because, by the look of this one, I assume they must be well put together at the least. May I also add, that the BBQ at the Oak & Star was incredible–I highly recommend the brisket and the mac and cheese.

6. This Little Guy Messing with a Lock

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic world is mostly set in the 1920s “wizarding Paris” from the Fantastic Beasts films, and it does a great job at tricking you into thinking you really are in a city where there are plenty of cafes to try and window shopping to indulge in. One of these windows included piles of ornate locks, and inside was a moving Bowtruckle. This cute little guy made adorable sounds as it worked at picking a lock, something Bowtruckles are adept at. It’s discovering tiny, missable details like this that greatly enhance immersiveness and little moments of joy.

7. Pikmin!

It’s called Super Nintendo World, but this world is clearly Super Mario World that leads to Donkey Kong Country. Stepping through the initial green warp-pipe portal leads you to the parlor of Princess Peach’s Castle, and just outside, the bright colors and many moving parts of the Mushroom Kingdom greet you, complete with Question Blocks, Piranha Plants, Goomba, and even Bowser’s Castle. Turn a corner down the stairs, and you’ll see the clear entrance to Donkey Kong Country–but to the left are a few red Pikmin on the wall! What are you doing here, little guys? What a delightful little discovery.

8. Captain Toad Repeatedly Saying, “Thanks to you, We Found the Golden Egg” in His Silly Toad Voice

The Yoshi’s Adventure ride in Super Nintendo World is definitely a slow-moving “kiddie ride,” but it’s highly produced, plays nostalgic music from familiar games throughout, and tasks you with finding three colored eggs during the ride by pressing their corresponding buttons when you see them. At the end, if you found them all, Captain Toad enthusiastically thanks you for the help. Well, since this is the end of the ride, we were a little backed up, and hearing him say this repeatedly in the silly Toad voice had me and my ride partner (The Nerdist’s lovely Rotem Rusak), cracking up.

9. Fragrant Gardenias in Celestial Park

I admit this is a little silly to include on a “coolest” list, but something about the moment the lush scent of gardenias hit me while I took in the views around the statue of Luna, the Goddess of the Moon, stuck with me. I grew up with the fragrant white flowers in my small yard, so it’s a nostalgic scent for me. When I commented on them, our tour guide said Celestial Park is designed to put the “park” back in “theme park,” and this little moment that encouraged me to stop and smell the “roses” definitely backed that sentiment up.

10. An Intimidating Vampiress with a Violin

Dark Universe is a spooky, gothic town with a foreboding castle as its centerpiece and monstrous denizens that inhabit it. I only got to very briefly see two of these characters–The Invisible Man, who menacingly said something along the lines of, “I remember what we talked about,” to our tour guide before stomping away, and a violin-playing vampiress. The vampire stood on a short balcony, telling us we’re only alive because they allow us to be, before aggressively playing her violin and walking away. These characters seem like they’d be so fun to interact with, and I heard there are many, many more to find around the park.

11. The Underwater-Themed Super Mario Bathroom

Everything in Epic Universe is themed, some more heavily than others, but you can bet that even the bathrooms match wherever they’re placed. No boring, bland, beige bathrooms here (at least of what I saw!) Though not the fanciest, my favorite was probably the Super Nintendo World bathroom that not only had this cute underwater theme but played the Underwater Theme from Super Mario Bros., too.

12. Getting Spit on By the Wolf Man

Okay, look, hear me out. Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment was an incredible ride with huge production value and the coolest effects. To board the ride, you sit down on seats that are moving on a conveyor belt of sorts. As I approached, I noticed the seats were wet, so I asked the cast member why. He said with a mischievous smile, “Don’t worry about it,” then followed up with, “don’t you know this goes underwater?” Okay, cheeky, I didn’t worry about it. But I was still surprised that the reason those seats were wet was because when the Wolf Man ferociously snarls at you during the ride, his drool slings all over you. Gross. But also, cool.

Universal Epic Universe will officially open on May 22 in Orlando, Florida. What are you most looking forward to experiencing at this immersive, ambitious theme park? Let us know in the comments below.

Casey DeFreitas is a deputy editor of guides at IGN and is the team’s resident Floridian. Catch her on social media @ShinyCaseyD

Nintendo Switch 2 Bundles Are On Auction Sites for $300+ Above Recommended Retail Prices, But Fans Are Fighting Back

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, IGN

Nintendo fans in the U.S. may be feeling pretty hard done by now as the rest of the world fights for a Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order, but some are fighting back by challenging and reporting every Nintendo Switch 2 auction listing they can find.

On eBay.com, Nintendo Switch 2 consoles are, at the time of writing, listed from anywhere between $468 to $855, with a lot listing Buy It Now prices of around $700-$750 — that’s $300 over the recommended retail price.

United in their frustrations both about the pre-order delay and the preponderance of over-priced pre-orders on eBay, however, players are working to take scalpers down together.

“If anyone wants to do their bit for society, go on eBay and report the scalpers,” said one Redditor. “I’ve had about 15 listings removed, spent literally minutes reporting them.”

“Reminder that preselling an eBay item is not allowed unless it will be shipping within 40 days of purchasing off eBay, (impossible for the Switch!), at least in the UK anyways,” said another, racking up almost 6,000 upvotes. The image attached showed a long list of confirmation emails from eBay stating that the content they had reported was removed.

Another jumped on Reddit to confirm they’d had “15 more scalpers removed from eBay,” while another player posted to say their actions saw 20 Switch pre-order listings scrubbed from the site.

I have gotten over 20 switch 2 pre-order listings removed off of ebay
byu/MrJava- inNintendoSwitch2

So, just why are players having so much luck combating scalpers this time around? Well, that has to do with eBay’s very own terms and conditions concerning pre-sale items, which say “pre-sale listings must clearly state that they are ‘presale’ in the title and description, and guarantee shipment within 40 business days of purchase.”

“You’re not allowed to sell pre-orders on eBay because the seller doesn’t have, and it’s possible they will never actually get, the item they’re selling,” explained rmajor86 on a post that’s also been upvoted hundreds of time. “Just report the listing, and eBay will remove it.”

That said, things may change soon. As formerlyDylan pointed out, June 5 is 40 business days from today, April 10 (excluding Easter), and eBay’s terms and conditions state pre-sale items must “guarantee shipment within 40 business days of purchase.”

While this means scalpers may soon be able to legitimately list their pre-orders for sale across parts of the world where the console will release on June 5, fans may be able to continue to fight scalpers across the U.S. and Canada right up until those countries have a shipping date.

Nintendo Switch 2 arrives on June 5, 2025, with prices starting at $449.99, but the Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order was delayed in the United States after import tariffs enacted by President Trump sent financial markets spiraling. Just a few days later, the issue spread across the border, with Nintendo Canada also confirming pre-orders would now be delayed there, too.

The tariff uncertainty and greedy scalpers have left some Nintendo fans concerned they may be priced out of the next-generation if the company goes even higher than the already controversial prices for the Switch 2 and its games, such as the $79.99 Mario Kart World.

Missed the Nintendo Direct presentation? Worry not — you can catch up on everything shown at the Nintendo Direct right here, and here’s a handy list for every game confirmed for Nintendo Switch 2.

Vikki Blake is a reporter, critic, columnist, and consultant. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

The Original Lilo & Stitch Is Releasing on 4K UHD: Here’s Where to Preorder

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, IGN

The original Lilo & Stitch is getting the 4K treatment in the form of an Ultimate Collector’s Edition (see here at Amazon). This new edition is set to release on May 6 – ahead of the live action adaptation that’s set to hit theaters on May 23 – and is currently listed for $40.99. If you’re a Disney fan, this one is definitely worth picking up for your collection.

Preorder Lilo & Stitch: Ultimate Collector’s Edition

Head to the links above to get your preorders in today. We’ve also broken down what special features you can expect to see in this Ultimate Collector’s Edition below.

Lilo & Stitch: Ultimate Collector’s Edition Bonus Features

There are quite a few bonus features to enjoy with this Ultimate Collector’s Edition, from deleted scenes to an audio commentary. Per Disney’s press release, here all of the bonus features included on the Lilo & Stitch: Ultimate Collector’s Edition 4K:

  • Deleted Scenes
  • Hula Lesson
  • Animating The Hula
  • Audio Commentary
  • DisneyPedia: The Islands – Explore Hawaiʽi, Oʽahu, Maui, Kauaʽi, Lǡnaʽi and Molokaʽi
  • 2 Music Videos and a Behind-The-Music Featurette
  • A Stitch in Time: Follow Stitch Through The Disney Years

Lilo & Stitch 2025 Live Action Adaptation Trailer

If you’re interested in seeing the brand new live-action adaptation of Lilo & Stitch after watching the original, you won’t have to wait too long for its official release on May 23. If you haven’t seen the official trailer for the film yet, you can check it out below.

There are so many more 4K and Blu-ray releases coming out soon that are worth picking up alongside this one, too. In our roundup of upcoming 4K UHD and Blu-ray release dates, you can see a variety of films and TV shows that are set to release in a physical format over the next few months. And if you’re on the hunt for a nice TV to play these on, the 2025 Samsung Neo QLED and OLED smart TVs are available now and worth a look.

More Disney Classics for Your Collection

Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.

PS5 Pro and Slim Disc Drive Is Back in Stock at PS Direct

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, IGN

Back on the digital shelves at PlayStation Direct, you can finally grab a PS5 disc drive for $79.99 in the US and £99.99 in the UK. While these aren’t as rare as they were back when the PS5 Pro was announced, it’s still surprising to find these from all retailers at the standard list price.

Since these are the only way PS5 Pro or digital edition PS5 Slim owners can play physical games and films, or series on Blu-ray with their console, this add-on can be an essential one depending on your needs. However, both in the UK and the US, PS5 disc drives at other stores are either out of stock or have a costly price markup.

Amazon, for example, has only used disc drives from $106.81 in the US. While Amazon UK does have new ones in stock, you’ll have to hand over £117.00. There are still some exceptions, as PS5 disc drives are also still available at Best Buy, Walmart, and GameStop, thankfully at the base $79.99 price tag.

Among other UK stores, though, stock at the lower price is limited—Very being the only other besides PS Direct selling the physical media players for £99.99. Meanwhile, PS5 disc drives are unavailable at Currys while being out of stock at Argos, Smyths, and ShopTo—the latter of which was selling them at a higher £109.85 anyway.

While stock has gladly stabilised more since the Pro hit the market, it’s highly likely we still won’t be seeing disc drives for the PS5 going down for quite some time, since demand is still currently outweighing the supply.

If you’re still waiting for the right time to buy or upgrade to a PS5 Pro—so you can enjoy enhanced versions of games like Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33—we’d recommend you may as well pull the trigger right now.

Since $79.99/£99.99 is the best price you’re going to get, and we don’t know how quickly stocks will be replenished. That’s especially in the UK, where availability is the most limited.

Ben Williams – IGN freelance contributor with over 10 years of experience covering gaming, tech, film, TV, and anime. Follow him on Twitter/X @BenLevelTen.

Survivor Soulslike Ember and Blade Announced for PC

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, IGN

Ember and Blade is a new action game for PC that’s ready to prove that survivor and Soulslike are flavors that go together like peanut butter and jelly. The exclusive announcement trailer above introduces us to hero Fenrix Haven, a demon hunter who makes a deal with an angel for immortality, and the hordes of foes he’ll have to slice and dice to prevent the resurrection of an ancient and pesky archdemon.

Combat looks heavily inspired by Hades, and there are ranged weapons, melee attacks and special attacks called Celestial Blessings. In the trailer we also get a glimpse of some of the other mechanics that will aid Fenrix on his journey, from a skill tree called The Grace of the Arbor to artifacts like a magically levitating hoverboard called the Jelly Engine. Weapons like silver-infused hammers, swords and a darkness cleaving shadow dagger can all be unlocked in the Magic Forge. This kit should come in handy when facing bosses – called Sealed Tyrants – as well as the Archdemon Asmodeus’s army of minions.

The game can be wishlisted on Steam now ahead of its 2026 release, and developer Line Games is promising a playable demo in the second half of this year.

Rachel Weber is the Senior Editorial Director of Games at IGN and an elder millennial. She’s been a professional nerd since 2006 when she got her start on Official PlayStation Magazine in the UK, and has since worked for GamesIndustry.Biz, Rolling Stone and GamesRadar. She loves horror, horror movies, horror games, and French Bulldogs. Those extra wrinkles on her face are thanks to going time blind and staying up too late finishing every sidequest in RPGs like Fallout and Witcher 3.

How to Watch the Masters Live: Where to Stream the Golf Tournament Online Today

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, IGN

The Masters is one of the biggest golf events of the year and it’s finally arrived for 2025. As one of the four major championships in golf, The Masters has rich a history dating all the way back to 1934 when the Augusta National tournament first began. The event has influenced golf with its traditions over the years, including the idea of the winner getting a special jacket (just like in Happy Gilmore). Now in 2025 those traditions are still going strong, with the added benefit of being able to stream the whole thing online.

The Masters as an event technically began on Monday this week, but the actual tournament actually begins today. The first round of The Masters kicks off today and will continue on through Sunday. If you’re looking for a way to watch the golf tournament live today, we’ve got you covered with everything you need to know below.

Where to Stream The Masters Online

The overall best way to watch the Masters online is via Paramount+. This is the overall best sports streaming service if you’re looking to watch PGA golf specifically. They also offer a free trial you can take advantage of if you’re a new subscriber. The tournament will also be shown live on CBS (which is owned by paramount), so you just watch it on live TV if you have access to your local channels. All you need is a good TV antenna to do so.

The Masters 2025 TV Schedule

For a full breakdown of the streaming schedule of the tournament, you can check out all of the details on the Masters website. We’ve broken down the daily live Paramount+ and CBS coverage times below as well.

Round 1 – Thursday, April 10

  • Featured Groups – 9:15 am – 3:30 pm ET
  • Amen Corner – 10:45 am – 6 pm ET
  • Holes 15 and 16 – 11:45 am – 7 pm ET

Round 2 – Friday, April 11

  • Featured Groups – 9:15 am – 3:30 pm ET
  • Amen Corner – 10:45 am – 6 pm ET
  • Holes 15 and 16 – 11:45 am – 7 pm ET

Round 3 – Saturday, April 12

  • Featured Groups – 10:15 am – 7 pm ET
  • Amen Corner – 11:45 am – 6 pm ET
  • Holes 15 and 16 – 12:30 pm – 6:30 pm ET

Round 4 – Sunday, April 13

  • Featured Groups – 10:15 am – 7 pm ET
  • Amen Corner – 11:45 am – 6 pm ET
  • Holes 15 and 16 – 12:30 pm – 6:30 pm ET
  • Green Jacket Ceremony – 7 pm

How to Play a Round at Augusta National at Home

If you’re a fan of golf and want to play the Augusta National course yourself, you may have trouble actually booking a teetime at the real life course itself. But if you’re a gamer, you still have options. EA Sports PGA Tour came out back in 2023 and lets you play the course as part of the Road to the Masters Deluxe Edition. This game is available on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation consoles right now.

Alternatively, if you happen to have your own golf simulator at home, there are some ways to play the course from there. Here’s a quick guide on how to set that up.

Path of Exile 2 Dev Announces More Emergency Changes as Recent Steam User Reviews Hit ‘Mostly Negative’

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, IGN

Path of Exile 2 developer Grinding Gear Games has issued more emergency changes to the action role-playing game amid a backlash to the nerf-heavy Dawn of the Hunt update that has caused recent Steam user reviews to plummet to ‘mostly negative.’

Dawn of the Hunt launched earlier this month and quickly sparked a backlash among the Path of Exile community. The expansion added the new Huntress class, a Spear and Buckler user specialising in hybrid melee and ranged combat. Elsewhere, there are five new ascension classes: the Ritualist, Amazon, Smith of Kitava, Tactician, and Lich. And along with all that are mechanical overhauls, over one hundred new unique items as well as significantly expanded crafting options.

What should have been a hugely positive moment for Path of Exile 2, its developers and its players became something else entirely, however, as the community complained that GGG had slowed the pace of the game down to the point where it became a “total slog.”

The ‘most helpful’ review of the last 30 days on Steam is a negative one that outlines the current problems with the game:

Every boss fight is incredibly longer than it needs to be. Most of the skills do little to no damage. I understand they said they wanted to slow gameplay down, but I don’t think I will even make it more than one week in this league at this point. It just feels incredibly awful right now, IF you can even get the game to run and be stable. That is a HUGE if.

“If you’re a masochist who enjoys being punished for little to no reward, this game is for you,” reads another negative review. “If you’re not, it’s likely that you won’t enjoy the game.

“The release version (0.1) already had a lot of issues in relation to the size of the areas (too large), the slow movement (which makes those large areas feel even worse) and forced combo gameplay (which was optional thanks to some “unintended” build options found by players).

“However, in this new version (0.2 – Dawn of the Hunt), just as many other reviewers have mentioned, the game was slowed down considerably.

“The loot, which wasn’t too common in 0.1, but acceptable, was nerfed by quite a lot, to the point where you kill a rare monster or boss and get no rare items or crafting currencies.

“The forced combo gameplay is back in full force, with the developers wanting to pigeonhole us into this type of gameplay, which is in direct contrast to what an ARPG of this kind is supposed to be. You’re supposed to have freedom to make your build how you like to play it and not be forced to play only the way the developers have intended.

“Players keep complaining about the map size and slow movement and the developers largely ignored these comments until the community backlash was too much to keep ignoring.

“I have 5k hours in PoE 1 and it’s my favorite game of all time. I love GGG but honestly, I cannot recommend this game to almost anyone as it is now.

“Hopefully they will be able to fix these issues in the future and make the game more enjoyable.”

In response, GGG had already outlined a list of changes, but it has now revealed more coming as part of the 0.2.0e due out tomorrow, April 11.

The question for Path of Exile 2 players now is, are these changes meaningful enough to stem the tide of complaints and get the game back into a positive setting? It’s worth noting that Path of Exile 2 has been a hugely successful release for GGG, to the point where it struggled to cope with the sheer number of players at launch. But this success has brought with it additional problems that have even impacted the development of Path of Exile 1, which retains a sizeable and loyal audience.

Path of Exile 2 update 0.2.0e patch notes:

Monster Speed Changes

Many players have been reported being overwhelmed by monsters. The cause of this is a variety of factors and we are addressing them on a case by case basis. We have listed monster changes act by act below, but we also made the following changes more generally.

Many human monsters including the Cultists in Freythorn, the Faridun and the Tribal Humans in Act Three have behaviour where they can interrupt their melee attacks if the player moves too far out of range during the attack, especially for attacks that have multiple hits like a swipe left into swipe right. These interrupt events have been primarily removed especially on things that were attacking very fast as it caused the monsters to be relentlessly able to pursue and attack you giving you no time to engage or use skills between their attacks.

The Haste Aura monster modifier no longer appears on monsters that are already fast.

Act 1

Werewolf Prowlers and Tendril Prowlers now will enter a walking stance (as opposed to running) after performing a melee action, they will only begin running again if you get a certain distance away from them. This behaviour has been applied to many faster monsters.

Hungering Stalkers now have 12% less Life and Damage, they were already relatively weak but we have lowered it a bit further to account for their high movement speed and attack speed. They are intended to engage and attack quickly, but be weak and die fast.

Reduced the number of Bloom Serpents in The Red Vale.

Halved the number of Venomous Crabs in the Hunting Grounds.

The Cultists in Freythorn no longer have interrupt events on their attacks as described above.

The Cultists in Freythorn wielding Axes and Maces in Freythorn now walk after performing a Melee Action, only running again once you exit a certain distance.

Blood Cretins on death Blood Pools have had their duration decreased from 6 seconds to 4 seconds, and fixed the area of effect to match the visual more closely.

Reduced the overall density of more challenging monsters in Ogham Manor.

Act 2

The Boulder Ants in Titan Valley have been replaced by Risen Maraketh, as the area had too many monsters that had irritating movement.

The Faridun have all been modified to remove the interrupt events on their attacks as described above..

Act 3

Diretusk Boar and Antlion Charger’s are now more likely to push you to the side instead of pushing you along with them when they charge you.

The Lost City monster pack composition has been adjusted to result in less ranged monsters

Massively adjusted the Azak Bog, firstly by the aforementioned changes to interrupt events, but also changed the monster composition of the area to have less Ranged and Elite monsters.

Fixed an issue where the Slitherspitter’s poison spray in Venom Crypts was dealing Chaos Damage instead of Physical Damage unintentionally.

We have also identified another issue that affects some areas in which potential monster spawn locations have inconsistent density in different rooms. This leads to situations where some rooms are much denser with monsters than others in an unintended way. We have a fix for this problem but it did not make it into this patch, and will be deployed in a later patch.

These are not the only changes that we will be making to monsters. Further changes will come in later updates. Some changes we didn’t get time to make today, and others require new animations that will take a little longer.

Boss Changes

Viper Napuatzi is one of the more challenging bosses for players, so we made the following change.

Lowered the amount and size of Chaos Rains (the purple ones) in the Viper Napuatzi fight, and cleaned up the visual left afterwards faster to make the following drop locations more obvious.

Uxmal had various quirks that made him somewhat annoying to fight. We have made a few changes.

Reduced the number of times Uxmal changes locations through the fight

Uxmal can no longer recharge Energy Shield while in the air.

Uxmal uses his Flame Breath less often

Xyclucian had some issues with visibility of his effects

The arena of Xyclucian has had its ground foliage removed in order to make his effects more visible

Player Minion Changes

We have changed the way that minion revive timers work. When your first minion dies, it sets the revive timer to 7.5 seconds as before, but each successive minion that dies increases it by less and less (still capped to a max of 7.5 seconds). This should heavily mitigate the situation where most of your minions are dead, but the revive timer keeps resetting to 7.5 seconds over and over.

Disenchanting a Bind Spectre or Tame Beast gem will unbind them, allowing you to use them again.

Tamed beasts can now fit through gaps of the same size that the player can.

Other Player Balance

We don’t have a lot of other player balance changes on top of the ones described yesterday, but we did manage to sneak in the following additional changes:

Rally support is no longer restricted to Strikes or Slams, and can now support any Melee Attack you use yourself.

Glory (Used by Hammer of the Gods and Spear of Solaris) is now no longer consumed if you are interrupted while using the skill.

Fixed a bug where Blood Boils from the Ritualist ascendancy didn’t propagate if the monster exploded on death, such as when using Herald of Blood.

Crafting Changes

We have now finished adding all of the mods to runes for caster weapons. Desert, Glacial, Storm, Iron, Body, Mind, Rebirth, Inspiration, Stone and Vision runes all now work on Wands and Staves, with their own set of modifiers.

Renly’s abandoned shop in the Burning Village now also has a Blank rune which Renly can forge into any elemental rune of your choosing in case you didn’t find any up to that point. As mentioned yesterday, 12 Artificers Orb’s now drop at fixed locations through the campaign in addition to the random drops and salvageable ones.

Performance Improvements

The ground foliage in many areas has had an optimisation pass to improve performance.

0.2.0E Deployment Timeline

And that’s all that made it for 0.2.0E. The patch will be deployed at around 10AM NZT. We have also made some more changes internally, but they didn’t make it in time for the patch.

The following lists the changes that will be deployed after the weekend. These are not the only changes that will be in that patch. These are just the changes that we already have.

Charm Changes

Charms are a system that we never adequately expanded on, and have had several problems that we will finally be addressing. Overall we want charms to be more useful, and for you to be more easily able to use more of them.

First, the changes to charm slots

Charm slots on belts are now granted by implicit mods that are added to belts depending on the level of the area that dropped them. The number of slots is random up to a cap depending on how high level the belt is. You can use a Divine Orb to reroll the number of slots.

Belts have 1 charm slot until level 32, up to 2 until level 64 and up to 3 from level 65 and onwards.

Unique Belts can always have up to 3 charm slots.

For now, Unique Belts with mods that increase the number of charms will still be capped to 3, later on we will remove the cap.

Then changes to the charms themselves.

Several charms were not protecting you from the hit that activated them, these cases have been fixed to work properly.

We have also done a pass on Charm mods to make them more powerful and rewarding.

Stash Tab Affinities

We are adding Stash Tab Affinities for the following categories of items

Socketables

Fragments [Which includes Tablets and Trial Keys]

Breach

Expedition

Ritual

We will also be allowing Charms to go in the Flask stash tab or any tab with the Flask affinity.

Atlas Bookmarks

We have added the ability to bookmark locations on your atlas to find them easily later.

Right clicking a node will allow you create a bookmark by picking an icon and optionally adding a label you can type in.

You can have up to 16 bookmarks at a time.

They will appear as icons around the outside of the screen with a direction allowing you to scroll to them easily, or you can click on them to instantly take you there

You can also view a list of bookmarks under the legend and click them to go there.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

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