Monthly Archives: March 2021
Ant-Man 3: Rapper T.I. Reportedly Not Returning for the Marvel Sequel
Aliens: Fireteam Is a Co-Op PvE Shooter Coming to PC, PlayStation, and Xbox
Harry Potter RPG Hogwarts Legacy Will Allow for Transgender Characters
Sony to Discontinue PlayStation Store Movie and TV Purchases and Rentals
Netflix’s Dota 2 Anime Has a Hidden Teaser
The 15-second video unleashes Terrorblade, the Demon trapped in Foulfell, with an ominous voiceover claiming "all you have to do is let me in" before the screen shatters like a mirror and reveals Terrorblade's official character poster. This brief teaser comes shortly after the official story trailer was released for the first season of DOTA: Dragon's Blood, coming to Netflix on March 25, 2021. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/03/02/dota-dragons-blood-official-season-1-trailer-2021"] The upcoming animated series will tell the story of Davion, a renowned Dragon Knight devoted to wiping the scourge from the face of the world. Following encounters with a powerful, ancient eldwurm as well as the noble Princess Mirana on a secret mission of her own, Davion will find himself embroiled in events much larger than he could have ever imagined. The 8-episode anime series is based in the fantasy world of the hugely successful DOTA video-game franchise by Valve. The animation is being handled by Studio MIR, the South Korean company responsible for The Legend of Korra, Voltron: Legendary Defender, Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts, and Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-most-addictive-online-games&captions=true"] IGN previously credited DOTA 2 for being one of the most addictive online games, as well as one of the top 25 modern PC games of all time. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.All you have to do is ... #DragonsBlood #Dota2 #Netflix pic.twitter.com/gzjLw6MT20
— Wykrhm Reddy (@wykrhm) March 2, 2021
PS5 DualSense Controller Drift: Everything You Need to Know
If you own or intend to own a PlayStation 5 at some point, you might have recently found reason to ask yourself an important question: how often am I going to have to drop $70 on new controllers because my old ones started drifting for no reason?
Ideally, if you're budgeting for a new controller, the ideal situation is because you want... well, another controller! As in, one more than you had before. But recently, numerous user-reported issues with DualSense controllers have made it clear that at least with the PS5, you might have reason to consider replacing the ones you have more often than expected. As more reports come in about DualSense drift and a class action lawsuit looms, you may be wondering how it is this problem will impact you, and what to do if you encounter it.
What is DualSense drift?
What's essentially happening is pretty straightforward: something is going wrong with some DualSense controllers where the controller is registering left or right stick inputs that are not actually being put in by the player. This Reddit thread from November 26 -- just a few weeks after the console's US launch -- shows off the problem pretty obviously in Destiny 2. The first-person camera is rotating around on its own, despite the player not touching the right stick at all.
The issue is neither limited to Destiny 2, nor to the right stick. Other users have posted about issues in Call of Duty, Immortals: Phoenix Rising, Watch Dogs: Legion, Apex Legends, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and (in the comments of many of those posts) Cyberpunk 2077. A few have also mentioned that the issue also impacts the left analog stick as well as the right. These are just a handful of examples, but for months since the PS5 launch people have been posting on social platforms about the same problem. Some have posited that it might be an issue with a particular game (a non-zero number of drift issues with Cyberpunk 2077 seem to have been specific to that game's roster of bugs at launch) or that it might be connected to a console update. But generally, the consensus is that the issue is one internal to the PS5 controller hardware and isn't easily solved by swapping games, downloading a patch, or uninstalling something already downloaded. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/11/06/ps5-dualsense-controller-review"]Who is getting DualSense drift?
DualSense drift is not at all a new problem, despite only recently cropping up in headlines due to the class-action lawsuit. The above examples of reported drift date back to around the time the console first came out, with numerous more posts on the PlayStation and PS5 subreddits complaining of the issue ever since.
So far, DualSense drift doesn't seem quite as widespread as Nintendo's Joy-Con drift problem -- in an IGN poll in February, 10% of those who replied said they'd experienced DualSense drift, while a similar poll in May 2020 saw a huge 72% of respondants say they'd experienced Joy-Con drift. Nevertheless, it is significant enough that meaningful numbers of people are taking to social media -- which implies there are plenty more experiencing it who have not posted about it on the internet. And it's very possible that, like with Joy-Cons, we see the DualSense drift problem become more widespread with time -- a recent iFixit teardown estimated that the controller's parts could begin wearing down after 400 hours of play. It's a reasonable possibility that your average PS5 owner could encounter it with at least one controller at some point in the console's lifespan.Can DualSense drift be fixed?
Specifically, drift appears to be connected to the same problems that plague other video game controllers that have also had drift issues, including previous PlayStation controllers, Xbox controllers (including, yes, the Elite Series 2), and Nintendo's Joy-Cons. Drift, experts say, is not a matter of a specific manufacturer or controller maker shipping sub-standard tech, but appears to be a problem specific to how modern controller hardware in general is designed. Teardowns have suggested that the problem could be connected to the controller's potentiometers, internal springs, or internal contaminants. So what can be done to fix DualSense drift? On the off-chance the drift is a quirk of dust or software problems, you can follow the steps here to see if that solves the problem. Barring that, a number of users have reported going to Sony tech support. At this time, Sony is willing to repair or replace the controllers as long as they are still under warranty, but owners will have to pay shipping to get the controller to Sony for that repair, as well as provide the box -- and it may take a few weeks to ship it there, have them repair it, and get it back. For now, any DualSense controller out there bought new should be covered under warranty -- but eventually, this won't be the case anymore. There is currently no established procedure for what to do about DualSense drift if your warranty has expired, nor is there a protocol for what to do if you purchase a used controller with drift unless the store you purchased it from has a return policy it's covered under.Will Sony do anything about DualSense drift?
Pressure from pending lawsuits may eventually impact how users experience DualSense drift in the future. A class action lawsuit filed against Sony earlier this month over this problem lambasts Sony for allegedly releasing the controller knowing this was an issue, and not providing a more effective repair process for the issue. Notably, agreeing to Sony's terms and conditions during PS5 set-up incidentally compels PS5 owners to settle issues such as this with arbitration rather than a legal battle, but the recent class-action has been made possible by a plaintiff sending a letter to Sony opting out of arbitration, which seems to have worked. The forced arbitration clause may make it more challenging to get people on board for further lawsuits, but as awareness of it spreads, we may see more challenges -- especially given how many lawsuits Nintendo is facing over the same issue nearly four years after the Switch's launch.
It's also worth noting that drift may not be Sony's only controller issue. Some users are reporting that their DualSense's adaptive triggers have broken, with users describing either a "snap" that results in an unresponsive trigger, or decreased sensitivity over repeated use. This issue also appears to covered under warranty and thus is subject to the same process as drift, but depending on how widespread it becomes over time it's possible we see this escalate to courts alongside drift.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/23/ps5-controller-teardown-points-to-reason-for-dualsense-drift-ign-daily-fix"]
Given that both drift problems and adaptive trigger malfunctioning seem to be intrinsically tied with current controller technology, it seems unlikely that Sony is just sitting on a magical solution it's refusing to implement. Far more likely is that it's simply too costly to manufacture controllers with whatever secret sauce they need to prevent drift entirely -- a cost that would inevitably be passed onto customers. It's potentially more profitable to simply handle lawsuits as they come and, apparently, discourage most of them with arbitration clauses.
However, with enough pressure Sony may eventually need to set up a more streamlined process for fixing, repairing, or replacing controllers. It took Nintendo over two years to set up such a process, but in the US it will now replace or repair drifting Joy-Cons completely for free (including shipping) within just a few weeks. Nintendo even implemented an online queue system when COVID-19 slowed down its repair center operations, essentially letting customers hold onto their controllers for as long as possible before the company was ready to take them in and turn them over in a timely manner. Microsoft, meanwhile, extended the warranty on its Elite Series 2 controllers from 90 days to one year in response to concerns about drift in its own controllers, bringing it into line with the one-year warranty Sony offers.
Given the circumstances, it seems likely Sony will set up a more convenient process in less time than Nintendo, simply by virtue of complaints about drift already being so widespread across multiple controllers. For now, simply handling issues under warranty has been sufficient for Sony to get by, but what happens in a year when and if problems are widespread enough that consumers are complaining about having to spend $70 per year, per controller, just to have a functioning device? After all, that was one of the reasons Nintendo has borne the brunt of bad press for drift for so long: the problem was widespread, but also echoed across two controllers per system instead of just one, meaning expensive replacements for unignorable amounts of Switch owners each year.
Ultimately, what games companies opt to do about controller drift is likely to be decided over a long period of time, based on pressure from user complaints, the courts, and the financial viability of repairing or replacing controllers that have issues. For now, if you own a PS5, your best bets for mitigating expensive controller replacements are to opt out of Sony's arbitration clause as soon as possible, report any controller issues through Sony tech support as soon as you notice them to take advantage of any repair or replacement services they offer, and make sure to test or check the refund policy for any used controllers you might purchase in the future.
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Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.BAFTA Games Awards 2021 Nominations Announced
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Best Game
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Hades
- Half-Life: Alyx
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- The Last of Us Part II
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for British Game
- Dreams
- F1 2020
- Fall Guys
- Röki
- Sackboy: A Big Adventure
- The Last Campfire
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Animation
- Doom Eternal
- Final Fantasy VII Remake
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- Ori and the Will of the Wisps
- Spiritfarer
- The Last of Us Part II
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Artistic Achievement
- Cyberpunk 2077
- Dreams
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Hades
- Half-Life: Alyx
- The Last of Us Part II
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Audio Achievement
- Astro's Playroom
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Hades
- Half-Life: Alyx
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- The Last of Us Part II
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Debut Game
- Airborne Kingdom
- Call of the Sea
- Carrion
- Factorio
- Röki
- The Falconeer
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Evolving Game
- Destiny 2: Beyond Light
- Dreams
- Fall Guys
- Fortnite
- No Man's Sky
- Sea of Thieves
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Family Game
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- Astro's Playroom
- Dreams
- Fall Guys
- Minecraft Dungeons
- Sackboy: A Big Adventure
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Game Beyond Entertainment
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- Before I Forget
- Dreams
- Spiritfarer
- Tell Me Why
- The Last of Us Part II
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Game Design
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- Astro's Playroom
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Hades
- Half-Life: Alyx
- The Last of Us Part II
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Multiplayer Game
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- Deep Rock Galactic
- Fall Guys
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Sackboy: A Big Adventure
- Valorant
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Music
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Hades
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- Ori and the Will of the Wisps
- Sackboy: A Big Adventure
- The Last of Us Part II
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Narrative
- Assassin's Creed: Valhalla
- Cyberpunk 2077
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Hades
- Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Original Property
- Carrion
- Fall Guys
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Hades
- Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition
- Spiritfarer
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Performer in a Leading Role
- Ashley Johnson as Ellie in The Last of Us Part II
- Cherami Leigh as Female V in Cyberpunk 2077
- Cody Christian as Cloud Strife in Final Fantasy VII Remake
- Daisuke Tsuji as Jin Sakai in Ghost of Tsushima
- Laura Bailey as Abby in The Last of Us Part II
- Nadji Jeter as Miles Morales in Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Performer in a Supporting Role
- Carla Tassara as Judy Alvarez in Cyberpunk 2077
- Jeffrey Pierce as Tommy in The Last of Us Part II
- Logan Cunningham as Hades, Achilles, Poseidon, Asterius, Charon, and the Storyteller in Hades
- Patrick Gallagher as Khotun Khan in Ghost of Tsushima
- Shannon Woodward as Dina in The Last of Us Part II
- Troy Baker as Joel in The Last of Us Part II
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for Technical Achievement
- Demon's Souls
- Doom Eternal
- Dreams
- Flight Simulator
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- The Last of Us Part II
BAFTA 2021 Nominees for EE Game of the Year
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- Call of Duty: Warzone
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Hades
- The Last of Us Part II
- Valorant
People Are Loving a Destiny 2 Glitch That Adds 12-Person Raids
What's perhaps most striking about the response, however, is how many players are keen to see the glitch stay after having so much fun with this unintended new mode. "12 man raids were the most fun I've had in Destiny in quite sometime," said stump161, while HunterWarlord93 wrote, "Just did a 12 man raid on Destiny 2. Most fun experience ever. So much laughs so much joy". Many are asking for the mode to become official, and some are suggesting how that could be done without skewing the game's existing balance. "This 12 man raid thing has just got me thinking how cool it would be to have 'private' raids in @DestinyTheGame", wrote Rob Schlick. "Up to 12 people, able to set modifiers, and no drops (do it for fun). Let people play in these sandboxes once they’ve been out for at least a season or two." Times_owner suggested a more in-built, lore-based solution: "Can we actually get 12 man raids at some point ? Would be a fun addition and have some lore involvement showing the immense strength of a boss (e.g: a 'world level threat' that we needed a huge amount of people to take part because of their strength)".Guardians: *find a glitch that allows them to go in raids as a squad of 12*
The raid enemies: pic.twitter.com/I4SppgSWDU — pants person strikes back (@destiny_thememe) February 27, 2021
Bungie's Senior Community Manager tweeted "Twelve what now," as the popularity of the glitch surged. The studio clearly has its eye on this glitch-turned-feature, but whether it will close the loophole it or adapt it into a new mode is anyone's guess. Naturally, it makes it easier to complete raids with double the players, so some balancing will be in order if Bungie wants to keep it going. We've contacted Bungie for comment.@DestinyTheGame @A_dmg04 Please don’t take away 12 man raids....it’s beautiful pic.twitter.com/hsiW5trRZL
— Z 3 R Ø (@Z_3_R0) February 28, 2021
In other Destiny 2 news, developer Bungie has been named as a defendant in a class-action lawsuit, alongside Google Stadia. The studio recently expanded its headquarters, with a facility built to focus on creating games that aren't Destiny-related. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2017/09/15/destiny-2-review"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.Twelve what now
— dmg04 (@A_dmg04) February 27, 2021