In a horrible confluence of fates, comedy-adventure game Journey to the Savage Planet was released for Stadia on the same day that Google shuttered its internal development studios – including Journey to the Savage Planet developer, Typhoon Studios. That coincidence has left behind a nasty after-effect – the Stadia version of Journey to the Savage Planet contains a major bug, but no one seems to know who can fix it. First pointed out on Reddit by user lordubuntu, Stadia's Journey to the Savage Planet launched with a nasty bug that causes freezes on the game's start screen, which seems to be occurring for a number of players based on the replies. With no local files to look through on a Stadia game, players can't work on fixes for themselves, meaning they have to turn to official support channels for help. With Typhoon no longer in existence, the game's developers can't implement that fix. As lordubuntu found out, it seems that's left both Google and Journey to the Savage Planet publisher 505 Games unsure who's responsible. Google support responses sent to lordubuntu ask them to contact 505 – but 505 support messages indicate that the company no longer has control of the game code, and say only Google would be able to implement a fix. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/google-id-software-and-bungie-named-in-lawsuit-against-stadia-ign-news"] On Reddit, a Stadia community manager has now said that Google is "actively working with our partners to identify a fix", but offered no update on who'd be responsible for that happening, or if it was possible. We've contacted 505 and Google for comment. The upshot is that some players have been left with a game they simply can't access, and with no current timeline for a fix. This would usually be routine work for a newly-released game – and it must be deeply unpleasant to be an ex-Typhoon developer knowing that you're unable to make your own hard work available to those who want to play it. Google shuttered its internal Stadia studios at the beginning of February 2021, impacting 150 employees. It's since promised that more than 100 third-party games will still arrive on the service this year. A class-action lawsuit has been filed against Google, Id Software, and Bungie for allegedly misleading customers on the platform's ability to display games at a 4K resolution. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joe Skrebels is IGN's Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Before he was Spider-Man, Tom Holland was apparently multiple auditions deep into a Star Wars role he thinks eventually went to John Boyega – but messed it up and didn't get the part. This audition story comes by way of Backstage in a new interview with the Spider-Man and Uncharted actor. Before becoming synonymous with Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and before nabbing the role of famed treasure hunter, Nathan Drake, Holland was apparently "four or five" auditions deep for a role in what we now know as Star Wars: The Force Awakens. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/08/alfred-molina-spotted-on-the-set-of-spider-man-3"] "I remember my audition for Star Wars," Holland told Backstage when asked about audition horror stories he had. "I was like four or five auditions in, and I think I was auditioning for John Boyega's role [Finn]. I remember doing this scene with this lady, bless her, and she was just a drone. So I was doing all of this, like, 'We gotta get back to the ship!' and she was going, 'Bleep, bloop bloop, bleep bloop." Holland said he couldn't stop laughing because of how funny he found it. He also felt really bad because it was clear the person was trying really hard to be a convincing android or drone. "I obviously didn't get the part," he continued. "That wasn't my best moment." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=uncharted-movie-images&captions=true"] It's a great story and it's not hard to imagine how that mess-up might have led us to the reality where Holland plays Peter Parker instead of Finn. Speaking of multiple timelines, check out this story about Holland denying that former Spider-Man actors Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield appear in the upcoming MCU Spider-Man sequel and then read about how he called the next Spider-Man movie the "most ambitious standalone superhero movie ever made." After that, check out the first image of Holland as Nathan Drake in the upcoming Uncharted film. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes. 

Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 has been delayed out of 2021, with developer Hardsuit Labs no longer leading the game's development. The news was revealed in publisher Paradox Interactive's 2020 year-end report. Paradox revealed it has "started a collaboration with a new studio partner to finish work on the game." In a statement issued by the Bloodlines 2 Twitter account, Paradox said that in order to meet its ambitions for the game, the publisher came to the conclusion that "a change is needed, and, as a result, more development time is required." Paradox thanked Hardsuit Labs for its work on the game so far. "The studio has done a tremendous job in laying the foundations for the game and we hope that you, the community, will also appreciate their contribution to Bloodlines 2." The year-end report indicates that the studio will "finish" work on the game, meaning this doesn't seem to be a full restart for development. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/07/vampire-the-masquerade-bloodlines-2-next-gen-announcement-trailer"] Bloodlines 2 was initially pegged to launch in Q1 2020, but was postponed in to later in the year, before being officially delayed into 2021 in August of 2020. This was just the start of the game's development troubles, as later that month, the game's Narrative lead and Creative Director were dropped from the project unexpectedly. The game's Senior Narrative Designer left shortly after in October. The publisher can no longer pin down a release date for the game due to the development reshuffle, so Paradox has also decided to stop taking pre-orders for Bloodlines 2. "As soon as we can, we'll let you know what the future development team of Bloodlines 2 will look like," the statement reads. We'll be sure to let you know more about the fate of the game as the project develops under a new, unannounced studio. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

Facebook has confirmed it will be restoring news to its user feeds in Australia after a series of amendments to Australia’s proposed News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code were introduced. These amendments are intended to “provide further clarity to digital platforms and news media businesses about the way the Code is intended to operate,” according to a joint release from Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Communications Minister Paul Fletcher. “After further discussions with the Australian government, we have come to an agreement that will allow us to support the publishers we choose to, including small and local publishers,” said Facebook global news partnerships VP Campbell Brown in a statement. “We’re restoring news on Facebook in Australia in the coming days.” “Going forward, the government has clarified we will retain the ability to decide if news appears on Facebook so that we won’t automatically be subject to a forced negotiation. It’s always been our intention to support journalism in Australia and around the world, and we’ll continue to invest in news globally and resist efforts by media conglomerates to advance regulatory frameworks that do not take account of the true value exchange between publishers and platforms like Facebook.” Facebook blocked all Australian and international news from the feeds of all Australian users late last week in response to a proposed new mandatory bargaining code that would force tech companies like Facebook and Google to pay for the journalism they display. Unfortunately, Facebook’s sudden news ban also resulted in the temporary muting of a large number of non-news organisations, including emergency services, government health departments, cancer charities, satirical comedy websites, video game publishers, and even a host of international sports teams. Several Australian news organisations have already brokered content deals with Google for their content to be displayed in Google’s News Showcase, reports the ABC. Facebook is yet to do so.

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Luke is Games Editor at IGN's Sydney office. You can find him on Twitter sporadically @MrLukeReilly.

It's been just days since NASA's latest Mars rover, Perseverance, landed on the Red Planet and now we know what it both sounds and looks like up there. Surprisingly, it doesn't sound like the intense metal of Mick Gordon's Doom soundtrack nor does it look the demon-filled hellscapes of the game either. That's because it actually just sounds like wind blowing by and looks like red-dirt hills and craters. Perseverance touched down last Friday and NASA has released nearly four minutes of footage from the rover's landing, including its first views of the Red Planet. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/23/nasas-perseverance-rover-touchdown-on-mars"] NASA has also released a ton of images from Perseverance and they range from bright red photos of the planet beneath the rover to images of pieces of the rover itself. You can check out a selection of those below. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=sights-and-sounds-of-mars-from-nasas-perseverance-rover&captions=true"] Perseverance is the first NASA Mars rover ever to be equipped with a microphone, which is why we're able to listen to the sounds of Mars now. It mostly picked up the sounds of itself moving around on the planet though. "This set of sounds from the surface of Mars were recorded by the microphone on the side of NASA's Perseverance Rover on Feb. 20, 2021," a post from NASA reads. "In the first set, sounds from the rover itself dominate. In the second set, the sound was filtered to make sounds from Mars more audible. You can hear a little wind in the second set." You can listen to the two clips of audio via NASA's post. As you'll hear, the original audio sounds mostly like a high-pitched buzz with just a touch of wind. NASA cleaned up the original audio to filter out the noise Perseverance is making, which is the high-pitched buzz, and it just sounds like wind blowing by the microphone. [caption id="attachment_2476886" align="alignnone" width="720"] An artist rendition of Perseverance on Mars, Photo Credit: NASA[/caption] Perseverance successfully landed on Mars last Friday and its mission is to seek signs of habitable conditions for life on Mars and to search for signs of past microbial life as well. It's not only equipped with a microphone to let NASA and the world know what it sounds like on Mars, but it's also equipped with a special drill that will collect core sample of rocks and soil on the Red Planet that will eventually be brought back to Earth in a future mission. Check out this story about Perseverance's landing last week, including a full timeline of how the mission went, and then read about how dust storms on Mars glow purple with electrical sparks. You may also want to check out this story about how researching are trying to turn the Red Planet green after that. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes. 

With iconic DJ duo Daft Punk having announced their break up, plenty of fans are asking what could have been. One such fan is Q Entertainment producer James Mielke, who took to Twitter to reflect on how the team almost got to make a Lumines music game with Daft Punk.

Originally pitched as “Daft Punk Lumines,” Mielke and Q Entertainment had managed to get the project greenlit by Ubisoft in 2010. By this time, Daft Punk had already become a household name in electronic music circles – and would only grow bigger with the release of the Tron Legacy soundtrack and Random Access Memories album.

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Mielke originally wrote about the project’s genesis in a 2012 Gamasutra blog post, describing how his journey to reboot the Lumines franchise (originally a PSP launch title) brought him into contact with Daft Punk.

“What I wanted to do was put the player in the cockpit of Daft Punk's pyramid-shaped DJ booth that they tour with, and – as Daft Punk – rock the crowd by performing big combos in Lumines,” Mielke wrote. “Everything in the game was going to be Daft Punkified, from the HUD, to the soundtrack, to the bassy aural ambience found on their 2007 Alive live album, to the special effects, real-time lighting, bouncing 3D crowd, etc.”

Despite having already met Q Entertainment creative director Tetsuya Mizuguchi (and being fans of Mizuguchi’s work on Rez), a few roadblocks kept Daft Punk from being able to commit to the project. According to Mielke, the DJs didn’t want to use old music, had just wrapped up production on Tron Legacy, and were beginning work on Random Access Memories in between Adidas and Star Wars collaborations. This forced Q Entertainment to move on in a different direction with what eventually became Lumines Electronic Symphony.

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"[Daft Punk] were big fans of Rez, so that basically gave us an "in" to talk to them," Mielkes told IGN. "Ubisoft was very active in engaging them, too, and the conversation was definitely friendly. Their manager at Daft Arts, Paul, informed us that while they were big fans of Mizuguchi-san's work, that they didn't want to do just any nostalgia trip. Of course had they wanted to, they surely could have done so by that point."

"But having met Mizuguchi-san, they were very open to a collaboration provided the timing worked for them and if the concept defied expectations. Unfortunately Q Entertainment didn't live long enough to see that to fruition. I'm glad to have even just had a conversation with them about a collaboration, though, even if it was by proxy. I could appreciate that then, and even moreso now. When you're as in demand as Daft Punk, why do just anything when you can do the most amazing things instead? If I had known this ahead of time, I would have designed something a lot crazier.

"I'm hopeful that they'll eventually reunite. I can already imagine how cool the teaser video would be. But thinking about how uncompromising they were in their career, I wouldn't be surprised if they disappear much like the old rave group The KLF once did."

For Mielke, Daft Punk's impact on music and culture goes way, way beyond simply making some bangin' tracks. "Maybe they were chipping away at stuff and just decided it wasn't interesting anymore," Mielkes said. "Deadmau5, Marshmello, even Squarepusher are all rocking helmets these days. When everyone starts doing what you've been doing for decades, maybe it just wasn't cool anymore, and if anything, Daft Punk were always cool." Despite the distinct lack of Daft Punk tracks, IGN gave Lumines Electronic Symphony a nine out of 10, calling it fun and addictive. Daft Punk didn't totally miss the video game train, though. The duo provided 11 original mixes of their catalog for 2009's DJ Hero. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2009/09/15/dj-hero-xbox-360-trailer-daft-punk-trailer"]

Oh, well. At least we’ll always have Derezzed.

[poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/human after all for IGN.

The Legend of Zelda celebrated its 35th anniversary on February 21, 2021, and many from across the world shared incredible and heartwarming memories of this beloved franchise. However, Nintendo itself was surprisingly quiet about Link's latest birthday. The Legend of Zelda released on the NES in Japan on February 21, 1986, and it began a series that many regard as one of the best in all of video games. As its 35th anniversary drew closer, many expected a big celebration for The Legend of Zelda in the same way that Nintendo celebrated Super Mario Bros. 35th anniversary. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/17/the-legend-of-zelda-skyward-sword-hd-nintendo-switch-announcement-trailer"] Last Wednesday, for the first time since September 4, 2019, we were treated to a proper Nintendo Direct. Many hoped and dreamed, especially with it occurring just four days before Zelda's 35th anniversary, that we would hear of Nintendo's plans to celebrate those who call Hyrule home. While we did get the exciting reveal that The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD and themed Joy-Con will be released on the Switch on July 16, the only other big Zelda news we received was that an update for Breath of the Wild 2 will hopefully arrive later this year and that Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity will be getting an expansion pass. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-ign-zelda-review-score&captions=true"] Nintendo's social feeds made no mention of The Legend of Zelda's 35th anniversary on Sunday, February 21, though that's not particularly unusual for the company. For context, while Nintendo also did not celebrate Metroid's 30th Anniversary on Twitter in 2016, it did celebrate Super Mario Bros. 35th anniversary on Twitter on the actual date. However, this didn't stop so many, including those from IGN (and me!), from sharing wonderful memories of how much Link, Zelda, and Hyrule mean to them.

Happy 35th, The Legend of Zelda, my favorite game series of all time! This overture was performed at E3 2011 for the 25th anniversary. It speaks volumes that the best game in the series hadn't even been dreamed up back then. Can't wait to see what's next! https://t.co/7ndZ2xbqp3

— Peer Schneider (@PeerIGN) February 21, 2021

Happy #Zelda35th! Let’s remember how happy we were when this Breath of the Wild trailer dropped and we realized the game was coming out in 2 months pic.twitter.com/q724MkaZsm

— Gene Park (@GenePark) February 21, 2021

Now, it's very important to remember that we are still in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and that plans have obviously been impacted by it. Another important thing/date to consider is March 31, 2021. This appears to be the date that the Super Mario Bros. 35th anniversary celebration will come to a close. This will also be the time that Super Mario 3D All-Stars will seemingly be removed from the Nintendo eShop and when Super Mario Bros. 35 becomes unplayable. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2017/03/02/the-legend-of-zelda-breath-of-the-wild-review"] It may very well be that Nintendo is waiting for Mario's party to end before jumping into one for The Legend of Zelda. That being said, it should also be mentioned that 2021 is the 35th anniversary of Metroid and the already teased 25th anniversary of Pokemon, which falls on February 27, 2021. Will we get a themed Nintendo Direct to celebrate Pokemon this week? Will we hear more of the much-anticipated Metroid Prime 4 this year? Only time will tell. If we look at Nintendo's past, it hasn't always celebrated a franchise's anniversary on the exact date. For example, The Legend of Zelda's 30th anniversary wasn't fully unveiled until around September 2016, when it was revealed that special Zelda amiibo were on the way and that Skyward Sword was available on the Wii U eShop. While we may yet not know Nintendo's full plans, or whether we've seen them already, The Legend of Zelda is obviously very important to them and remains so, given the anticipation for Breath of the Wild's sequel. But for now, everyone is celebrating The Legend of Zelda's meaningful anniversary, and we hope to celebrate 35 more years and beyond. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/06/11/zelda-breath-of-the-wild-sequel-reveal-trailer"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] 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.

Epic Games announced that any player who purchased its loot box (Loot Llamas in-game) in its PvE Fortnite: Save the World mode will receive 1,000 V-Bucks for free pending the approval of a class action settlement later this week. Before Fortnite took over the world with its free-to-play battle royale mode, Fortnite was a PvE multiplayer game later renamed Fortnite: Save the World. While Fortnite Battle Royale never added random loot boxes, opting instead for a battle pass system, Save the World sold optional Loot Llama blind boxes until 2019 when the system was phased out of the mode. But in response to a pending class action settlement, Epic announced that anyone who ever purchased a Loot Llama will receive 1,000 V-Bucks, worth around $8. As reported by The Verge, Epic says the V-Bucks should be automatically added to the accounts of applicable players in the coming days. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/19/fortnite-ryu-and-chun-li-trailer"] Although the settlement only applies to players located in the United States, Epic Games says it’s extending the 1,000 V-Bucks offer to players worldwide. So anyone who played Save the World and bought a loot box should see the V-Bucks in their account in the next few days. Rocket League players will also see 1,000 in-game credits sent to their accounts as part of the settlement. Epic Games acquired Rocket League developer Psyonix in 2019 and the studio was similarly dinged for loot boxes. Loot Boxes have come under fire in the past couple of years, particularly in Europe where individual legislatures investigated and sometimes banned the system. In recent years live-service games have transitioned to adopting battle pass systems that offer specific rewards in exchange for completing specific challenges or progressing to a specified level. Loot Boxes have been classified as gambling mechanics in some countries, and you can read about how these mechanics have impacted the lives of real people. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is News Editor at IGN.

If you missed out on pre-ordering Analogue’s Pocket gaming handheld, good news: Additional pre-orders are coming, and Analogue says it’s implementing bot and scalper protections to help ward off resellers.

In a new post, Analogue laid out their plans for 2021 pre-orders.

Analogue says they’re implementing “robust” bot protection, and all orders placed using bots will be cancelled and inventory will be reallocated to real customers. For human scalpers, Analogue says they’ll be working with eBay to monitor for accounts selling access to a pre-order, which is against eBay’s terms of service, and cancel them.

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“The current global state of affairs has resulted in consequences that have affected the worldwide supply chain and this has temporarily slowed our ability to keep many of our products in stock (Super Nt, Mega Sg) and reduced production capacity for Pocket,” Analogue stated. “We are aware that many users are frustrated that Pocket pre-orders sold out quickly and both Super Nt and Mega Sg are currently unavailable.”

Analogue says it’s also taking measures to avoid experiencing shipping calculator errors, which delayed some shipments and prevented some people from completing orders.

You can sign up for pre-order notifications on Analogue’s site.

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The Analogue Pocket is effectively a modern reimagining of the Nintendo Game Boy. Featuring a sleek, minimalist design (like a Game Boy as envisioned by a PS4 designer), the Pocket is compatible with 2,780 Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance cartridges. It also works with cartridge adaptors for Game Gear, Neo Geo Pocket, Atari Lynx, and others. Though it has 10 times the resolution of a Game Boy screen, the Pocket can also utilize an “Original Display Mode” to replicate the original game’s look. As if that weren’t enough, the Pocket also features its own music creation and game design software. You can read our full preview here.

The first wave of Analogue Pocket handhelds is due to start shipping in May 2021.

[poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/game boy for IGN.

Zack Snyder takes risks with what’s expected of a DC superhero story. His Superman famously killed in 2013’s Man of Steel. But one idea that never made it was an idea to romantically pair up Bruce Wayne and Lois Lane. In a new profile on Zack Snyder, Vanity Fair goes in-depth on the timeline leading up to the release of Zack Snyder’s Justice League on HBO Max. Including new details during the development of the Justice League in 2017 where Snyder apparently pitched an idea to romantically link Batman and Lois Lane. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/14/zack-snyders-justice-league-official-trailer"] “The intention was that Bruce fell in love with Lois and then realized that the only way to save the world was to bring Superman back to life,” says Snyder. This of course would lead to some internal conflict because Lois’s ex in the movies and historically, the comics, is Superman. “We had this beautiful speech where [Bruce] said to Alfred: ‘I never had a life outside the cave. I never imagined a world for me beyond this. But this woman makes me think that if I can get this group of gods together, then my job is done. I can quit. I can stop.’” This idea was ultimately axed by Warner Bros, who by all accounts were open to Snyder’s ideas for the DC universe. Even after WB appointed DC Entertainment creative chief Geoff Johns and WB co-production head Jon Berg as on-set overseers for Justice League, Snyder says “It didn’t bother me too much because they weren’t that threatening[,]” outside of injecting small amounts of humor into the film. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/08/22/justice-league-the-snyder-cut-trailer"] However, this relationship changed soon once Joss Whedon was brought on board to do rewrites. According to the report, Johns recruited Whedon for rewrites on the Justice League script before WB eventually gave the Avengers director more and more control over the project. Snyder, still recovering from the death of his daughter Autumn, quit the project shortly after. The officially titled Zack Snyder’s Justice League will however see the light of day in March through HBO Max. The Vanity Fair profile shared more details about the project’s rebirth, and check out IGN Fan Fest where we’ll interview Zack Snyder ourselves about the new Justice League. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a News Editor for IGN.