American Gods has been canceled at Starz, just a week after the TV adaptation of Neil Gaiman's bestselling novel concluded its third season. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the network announced on Monday that the show would not be renewed for a fourth season, though sources have said that Starz is in talks with producers at Fremantle for "a potential event series or movie that would wrap up the story," which derives from Gaiman's fantasy novel of the same name. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/10/american-gods-season-3-official-trailer-nycc-2020"] "American Gods will not return for a fourth season. Everyone at Starz is grateful to the dedicated cast and crew, and our partners at Fremantle who brought author and executive producer Neil Gaiman's ever-relevant story to life that speaks to the cultural climate of our country," Starz said in a statement to THR on Monday, confirming the show's cancelation. Sources say that the decision to cancel the series was agreed upon amid declining ratings, as viewership across multiple platforms reportedly dropped by 65 percent from American Gods' first season to its third season. The axing of the show comes just over a week after the third season finale, which premiered on Starz on March 21. In our review of the S3 finale, we acknowledged that "over the course of its three seasons thus far, American Gods has had a complicated time, feeling a sort of Frankenstein's monster of a story rather than one focused vision," and unfortunately we felt that the latest season-capper was "no different," with the majority of the hour feeling "a bit too filler-y for such a vital part of American Gods' arc." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=american-gods-season-3-photos&captions=true"] American Gods joins a growing list of TV shows that have been canceled or announced to be ending in 2021, including BBC's Peaky Blinders, which announced in advance of its sixth season that it would be ending, allowing the show to go out on its own terms and hopefully craft a satisfying conclusion, though showrunner Steven Knight has already told Deadline that the series will return "in another form." [poilib element="accentDivider"] Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.

Niantic, the creator of Pokémon Go, has announced that it's begun testing for its Pikmin AR game in Singapore. The game, which was only teased for the first time last week, will be released this year globally, but Singaporean players will be the first in the world to try it. No matter where you are, you can pre-register to test the game in when it comes to your region.

We're excited to announce that, in partnership with @Nintendo, we've begun testing our Pikmin-based mobile app in Singapore! Register now to participate in this all-new Pikmin walking experience. https://t.co/mdA6zRTAgj

— Niantic, Inc. (@NianticLabs) March 30, 2021

At time of writing, exactly how the game works is still unknown, with Singaporean player Elias Chew explaining on Twitter that the game displays confidentiality notices when played. Chew did explain to another Twitter user that the game uses a Google Fit step count to grow Pikmin as you walk.

Niantic hasn't said when the game will be coming to other countries, although it has previously soft-launched both Pokémon Go and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite in Australia and New Zealand, so it wouldn't be surprising to see it hit those regions earlier than full release. The Pikmin game is the start of a new partnership between Niantic and Nintendo, who will "jointly develop mobile titles" using Niantic's AR technology and Nintendo's characters. The news comes a day after Niantic CEO John Hanke seemed to tease that the company was creating AR glasses to help aid its games. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/star-wars-director-rian-johnsons-pokemon-trailer-pokemon-go-fest-2020"] [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.

As American audiences await the imminent duel of Godzilla vs. Kong, the monster movie's director has begun work on his next project. Adam Wingard is set to helm a feature film adaptation of the animated television series ThunderCats, per Deadline. An early script has been written by David Coggeshall. Wingard and his frequent collaborator Simon Barrett are tackling the project together. Barrett has writing credit on several of Wingard's previous films, including The Guest, You're Next and the 2016 horror sequel Blair Witch. "ThunderCats is a dream project for me," Wingard told Deadline. "Nobody on this planet knows or has thought as much about ThunderCats as I have. They gave me the reins. I saw this as an opportunity to do a new type of fantasy sci-fi spectacle film that people have never seen before." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/05/24/godzilla-kong-in-5-minutes"] Wingard went on to explain that he doesn't want to tone down the '80s aesthetic of the original property, aiming for a film that "bridges the gap between cartoon and CGI." He then added a caveat that he doesn't plan on making a movie that resembles the 2019 adaptation of Cats. ThunderCats follows a group of cat-like aliens. The original series ran from 1985 to 1989, spawning numerous comic book and video game adaptations of the property. A second rebooted series premiered in 2011. A film adaptation was announced in 2007 with video game art director Jerry O'Flaherty attached to direct before the project fell by the wayside. Wingard is the first director to sign a deal with Warner Bros. since its parent company WarnerMedia announced it would be releasing the studio's entire 2021 theatrical slate on HBO Max simultaneous to its box office debut. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=godzilla-vs-kong-whos-who-the-human-cast-and-characters&captions=true"] Wingard also has a sequel to John Woo's action classic Face/Off in the works. Last month, the director stated that his and Barrett's script for the project was nearing completion. Godzilla vs. Kong will hit theaters in the United States on Wednesday, with a simultaneous debut on WarnerMedia's streaming service HBO Max. The film has already grossed $123 million overseas, the biggest international debut for a Hollywood film in over a year. In our review of Godzilla vs. Kong, IGN gave the film a 7, calling it "a glorious love letter to these iconic characters’ collective histories." [poilib element="accentDivider"] J. Kim Murphy is a freelance entertainment writer. (Photo by Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for SXSW)

Niantic founder and CEO John Hanke shared a small teaser of what looks to be a pair of AR or XR glasses from Niantic. The Pokemon Go developer has been looking into AR heavily, and this could be the next step for Niantic games beyond just the smartphone. In a short tweet, Hanke says progress is being made on "new kinds of devices" that leverage Niantic's AR platform. He also shared an image of the stem of what appear to be glasses, with some kind of strap with the Niantic logo. The glasses stem is also thicker and appears to feature some kind of speaker, possibly.

Exciting to see the progress we’re making to enable new kinds of devices that leverage our platform... pic.twitter.com/yYglk4q89G

— John Hanke (@johnhanke) March 29, 2021

Niantic's interest in AR glasses technology goes a long way back. In 2019, Niantic announced a collaboration with Qualcomm on an XR platform that combines XR, 5G, and AI along with Niantic's AR platform. This is the same AR platform that Niantic uses for games like Pokemon Go and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite. Niantic also demoed a version of Pokemon Go on Microsoft's HoloLens 2 and Microsoft Mesh platform. AR glasses it seems will allow players to see Pokemon out in the world, though at the time Hanke says its HoloLens demo was not intended for consumer use, according to The Verge. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2017/03/24/pokemon-go-official-pokemon-go-plus-trailer"] The AR glasses space is heating up recently after years of VR goggles dominating the gaming space. Apple is reportedly working on an expensive, $3,000 VR headset with 8K displays as a trial product before launching a more consumer-friendly AR device. The Niantic-powered AR glasses could help take games like Pokemon Go and maybe the newly announced Pikmin game from Niantic to the next level. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is IGN's News Editor. Photo credit: Niantic

Call of Duty fans have had a rough time managing their hard drives thanks to Modern Warfare and Black Ops: Cold War’s ridiculous, astonishing, positively gobsmacking file sizes. If you wanted both games on your 500 GB PS4, you might have to get tricky and delete your other games. Thankfully, a new upcoming update will reduce the file size of both Modern Warfare and Warzone.

Starting March 30 at 11 PM EST, when Call of Duty’s Season Two Reloaded update goes live, thanks to “data optimization and streamlining content packs needed for individual game modes.”

“This will come after a larger than usual, one-time update for Season Two Reloaded, which will include these optimizations and is necessary in order to reduce the overall footprint,” the Call of Duty blog states. “Future patch sizes for Modern Warfare and Warzone are expected to be smaller than the one set to release on March 30 at 11PM PST.”

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/03/10/call-of-duty-black-ops-cold-war-and-warzone-season-two-combat-pack-trailer"]

How much of a difference is the update making? The Call of Duty blog states that, depending on your platform of choice, the update will reduce your Warzone file size between 10.9 GB and 14.2 GB, while the Modern Warfare file size will be reduced between 30.6 GB and 33.6 GB. A full readout can be found near the end of Call of Duty’s blog post.

If you still want to play any of Modern Warfare’s modes, you’ll also need to reinstall the optimized content packs, which are set to release “shortly after the Season Two Reloaded update.”

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/25/call-of-duty-cold-war-zombies-outbreak-golovia-map-gameplay"]

The update should (hopefully) assuage some Call of Duty players’ longrunning issues with the game’s immense hard drive hogging. Modern Warfare launched at 60 GB on the PS4 in 2019, but eventually ballooned to 200 GB.

In addition to the file size reduction, Activision detailed a ton of new content for Season Two Reloaded, including a new zombie mode in Warzone, multiplayer maps, operators, weapons, and more.

Wondering why giant games like Call of Duty and Destiny 2 take up so much space? Read our feature on hard drive hogging that explains all the technical know-how you need to play everything at once. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/bought unlimited data solely because of COD...for IGN.

Russell Crowe is set to join the growing list of actors who have appeared in both the MCU and DCEU. Deadline reports Crowe has joined the cast of Thor: Love and Thunder. Deadline describes Crowe's role as a "fun cameo," one Marvel Studios had intended to keep a secret until the film's release. However, with Crowe being spotted with the rest of the film's cast in Australia, it seems that secret is out. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=marvel-cinematic-universe-every-upcoming-movie-and-tv-show&captions=true"] Crowe is one of several celebrities playing small roles in the sequel. Love and Thunder is reportedly bringing back Matt Damon, Sam Neill and Luke Hemsworth, who are again playing dramatized versions of Loki, Odin and Thor, respectively. Melissa McCarthy is also said to be joining the trio as faux-Hela. Given that we can expect the sequel to present a comical reenactment of the events of Thor Ragnarok, it's probably a safe bet Crowe is playing a fake version of a villain like Surtur, The Grandmaster or Thanos. However, it's always possible Crowe's cameo is in a completely different part of the movie. With how much Love and Thunder seems to be drawing from Jason Aaron's Thor comics, it's always possible Crowe could be playing the elderly King Thor from the future. Thor: Love and Thunder is directed by Taikia Waititi. The ensemble cast includes Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Chris Pratt, Tessa Thompson, and Christian Bale as the villainous Gorr the God Butcher. Waititi will also once again voice Thor's alien pal Korg in the movie, which is currently slated for release on May 6, 2022. It will follow Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and many more in the MCU's Phase 4. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/07/24/thor-can-love-and-thunder-redeem-jane-foster-the-way-ragnarok-did-thor"] For more on the studio's future slate of projects and releases, read our breakdown of the biggest and most noteworthy developments in the MCU, on Disney+ and in Marvel's comics this year. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

A 28-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly using a rope to descend into a Japanese store and stealing Pokémon cards and cash, according to a report from Mainichi (via Kotaku).

Tokyo resident Kensuke Nakanishi is suspected of descending from a six-story rooftop and into a top-floor store in the Higashi-Ikebukuro district around 5 A.M. on March 23. Nakanishi allegedly made off initially with 1 million yen (approximately $9,100 USD) worth of Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokémon cards, as well as 260,000 yen ($2,370 USD) in cash from the store office.

Nakanishi later reportedly told authorities that he committed the act to pay off a debt. Ikebukuro police approached Nakanishi as a suspect after he was identified thanks to security camera footage.

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/26/pokemon-brilliant-diamond-shining-pearl-official-trailer"]

Evidently, Nakanishi wasn’t terribly out of his element during the robbery, reportedly telling police "I was in the rock climbing club in high school, so I wasn't afraid of heights."

Nakanishi really only had to climb five meters (~16 feet) from the top of the six-story building to a window on the sixth floor, which he reportedly broke through using an unidentified tool.

Decades after debuting across the globe, Pokémon trading cards are still pulling impressive resale values. In 2019, collectors offered a $1,000 reward for information leading to a $60,000 Pokémon card. More recently, McDonald's Pokemon cards sold as part of Happy Meals have been scooped up by scalpers. If you're wondering if your old Pokemon cards are worth any money, check out our value guide. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/trainer for IGN.

Sony has confirmed that it will be shutting down the PlayStation Store for PlayStation 3 and PSP on July 2, 2021, and the PSN Store for the Vita on August 27, 2021. This is according to an email sent out to PlayStation customers, including IGN staffers. According to a PlayStation Support blog, customers will still be able to re-download and play previously purchased games and video, and still redeem games and PlayStation Plus vouchers. However, new PS3, Vita, and PSP purchases will cease, and players can no longer make in-game purchases or redeem PSN wallet funds on PS3, Vita, or PSP once the stores close. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=confirmed-playstation-5-games&captions=true"] In an email sent to PlayStation customers, the company says it's closing the respective PlayStation stores "in an effort to focus our resources for PlayStation Store on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, which will enable us to enhance the customer experience even further. We thank you for your support on these platforms throughout the years." Owned content will be accessible through the Download List on respective devices; but given the new deadlines, if anyone wants a game for the PS3, Vita, or PSP that they do not currently own then players will need to purchase those titles before the July and August shutdown dates. News of Sony's impending store closures for PS3, Vita, and PSP were reported earlier this month by TheGamer, but Sony has remained tight-lipped on the situation. The news was met with dismay from video game preservation advocates after knowing many legacy games from the PS1 and PSP era will no longer be available after a certain date. There are many digital-only PlayStation games that now effectively have an expiration date. So if anyone wants to play some PlayStation 1 Classics, now's the time to get them on some legacy PlayStation consoles. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is IGN's News Editor.

Sony has confirmed that it will be shutting down the PlayStation Store for PlayStation 3 and PSP on July 2, 2021, and the PSN Store for the Vita on August 27, 2021. This is according to an email sent out to PlayStation customers, including IGN staffers. According to a PlayStation Support blog, customers will still be able to re-download and play previously purchased games and video, and still redeem games and PlayStation Plus vouchers. However, new PS3, Vita, and PSP purchases will cease, and players can no longer make in-game purchases or redeem PSN wallet funds on PS3, Vita, or PSP once the stores close. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=confirmed-playstation-5-games&captions=true"] In an email sent to PlayStation customers, the company says it's closing the respective PlayStation stores "in an effort to focus our resources for PlayStation Store on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, which will enable us to enhance the customer experience even further. We thank you for your support on these platforms throughout the years." Owned content will be accessible through the Download List on respective devices; but given the new deadlines, if anyone wants a game for the PS3, Vita, or PSP that they do not currently own then players will need to purchase those titles before the July and August shutdown dates. News of Sony's impending store closures for PS3, Vita, and PSP were reported earlier this month by TheGamer, but Sony has remained tight-lipped on the situation. The news was met with dismay from video game preservation advocates after knowing many legacy games from the PS1 and PSP era will no longer be available after a certain date. There are many digital-only PlayStation games that now effectively have an expiration date. So if anyone wants to play some PlayStation 1 Classics, now's the time to get them on some legacy PlayStation consoles. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is IGN's News Editor.

2016's Ratchet & Clank will be getting a new update in April 2021 that will make it playable in 60 FPS on PS5. Insomniac Games announced the news on Twitter, while also reminding fans that Ratchet & Clank is available for free for PS4 and PS5 owners through the end of March via its Play at Home initiative. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2016/04/11/ratchet-clank-video-review"] Sony announced the return of its Play at Home initiative last month, and shared that fans could expect four months of free offers for PlayStation games and entertainment. These free games are available for all, even those who do not subscribe to PlayStation Plus. Furthermore, the game is yours forever once you redeem it. This 60 FPS patch will give fans a small taste as to what Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart will feel like running on the PS5 when it is released on PS5 on June 11, 2021, albeit without the upgraded graphics and effects. In our review of 2016's Ratchet & Clank, we said, "is a culmination of everything Insomniac has done with the series over the past 14 years. It takes the characters that we fell in love with long ago, and sets them off on their most gorgeous quest yet. The deep and rewarding weapon system, beautiful and varied worlds, and charming-as-heck story make it an adventure that anyone with a PlayStation 4 should strap in for." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/11/ratchet-clank-rift-apart-release-date-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.