Adi Shankar, the producer behind Netflix’s acclaimed Castlevania series and the recently announced Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix, has revealed some more details about his upcoming anime series based on Capcom’s Devil May Cry franchise.

“The season 1 scripts are done,” Shankar told IGN Japan in a new interview. “They are rad. I could not be more excited.”

The scripts have been written in collaboration with Alex Larsen, who wrote the screenplay for the feature film Bodied (produced by Shankar and Eminem, among others) and who has more recently written on the Netflix anime series Yasuke.

Shankar explained that Season 1 will include “eight episodes”, but that the story will not conclude there: Just as with Castlevania, he is planning a “multi-season arc”, meaning that it will unfold over multiple connected seasons.

While Shankar would not reveal specific story details, he confirmed that several DMC franchise favorite characters will appear. “I can confirm that Vergil is in it, as well as Lady, and of course Dante as well,” he said.

“I can also confirm that Chris Pratt won’t be voicing any of the characters,” Shankar joked. Pratt has recently been cast as the lead in high-profile animated movies based on both Super Mario and Garfield.

Shankar commented that working with Capcom on this project has been “a dream”.

“The entire team both from the management side and the creative side have been so incredibly supportive and gracious,” he said. He has been working directly with Hiroyuki Kobayashi, a veteran producer at Capcom who worked on the original DMC and Resident Evil games, as well as 2007’s DMC Devil May Cry: The Animated Series, produced by Japanese animation studio Madhouse.

“Kobayashi-san has been wonderful,” said Shankar. “It’s seriously a joy to work with Capcom. Their character library is unlike anything assembled.”

The DMC anime was first announced by Shankar during an interview with IGN in November 2018. He said then that he had acquired the animation rights for the DMC IP himself, “so that the jabronies in Hollywood can’t f**k this one up too”.

Shankar has maintained a fiercely fan-friendly approach across all of his projects to date, and Castlevania has been acclaimed by many (including IGN) as one of the best videogame adaptations of all time. When asked how he is able to protect the integrity of the games he adapts for TV, Shankar replied that it requires passion and an open mind, explaining, “Just like there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to adapting a book to a movie and just as there is not one right way to make a cover song, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to adapting, translating, or expanding games into another medium.”

In the case of Castlevania, he attributes part of his success to timing, as he feels the market was ripe for authentic adaptations of classic games – and indeed, the success of Castlevania has triggered a landslide in quality game-to-TV adaptations. He sees this as part of a cultural shift in which the public have demanded more faithful treatment of their favorite franchises, just as the cost of producing video content has fallen and the process has been democratized by digital distribution.

“Castlevania had a team of people top to bottom who were fans of the IP and wanted animation to be taken seriously as a medium and not just a genre,” said Shankar. “In 2017, when we launched Season 1, it felt like a fight to be noticed or even acknowledged by the mainstream. The fact that Castlevania has generated not only a spin-off but a has essentially sparked an entire vertical of adult oriented animated content for Netflix is insane. This is a case of right place right time, and I’m honored that I got to be a part of this ride.”

Shankar is also working on an animated series set in the PUBG universe. When asked for an update on the progress of that show’s production, he simply replied, “It’s being fast-tracked, lol”.

Shankar’s own Bootleg Universe has mixed a wide variety of renowned franchises (with and without permission) as his personal sandbox multiverse, and when he first announced his DMC series, he said that it would be a part of “Bootleg multiverse”, but gave no further details. Regarding his PUBG show, Shankar confirmed to IGN Japan that it will not cross over with any other franchises.

Another Shankar series currently in production is Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix, which is loosely based within Ubisoft’s synthwave-inspired Blood Dragon universe that originally stemmed from the Far Cry series. Shankar said during the announcement of Captain Laserhawk at Netflix Geeked Week 2021 that the show was partly influenced by 1980s cartoon show Captain N: The Game Master. Long before the MCU, Captain N was Nintendo’s own cinematic universe, featuring characters from NES hits of the day such as the Legend of Zelda, Metroid and Kid Icarus, as well as Konami’s Castlevania and Capcom’s Mega-Man.

“I loved Captain N as a kid,” said Shankar when asked how the classic show has influenced his approach to shared universes in general and on Captain Laserhawk specifically.

“I loved the concept of a kid getting sucked into a videogame world. There were a lot of parallels between Captain N and the Dungeons and Dragons cartoon of the same era. I guess, despite it being critically panned, Captain N was a success because it stuck with me and influenced me to create something with my memories of it.

“To be clear the final product of Captain Laserhawk that is being made by the fantastically creative folks over at Ubisoft and the dragon energy animation studio Bobby Pills will bear little resemblance to Captain N. I simply like to cite inspirations.”

Devil May Cry will reportedly go into production in early 2022, and no release date is yet confirmed.

Daniel Robson is the Chief Editor of IGN Japan. Follow him on Twitter right here.

Dwayne Johnson superhero movie Black Adam is apparently going to push the boundaries when it comes to its PG-13 certificate, with a "very high kill count".

During an interview with CBR, producer Hiram Garcia explained how Black Adam has more in common with The Dark Knight than other DC movies:

“Black Adam is edgy, right?” he said. “That's gonna be a PG-13 movie where it was very much like, say, The Dark Knight, where that pushed the edges of PG-13. I think we do that very much with Black Adam. We have a very high kill count in our movie.”

We recently got our first look at Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam movie in a teaser unveiled at DC FanDome 2021. As if to prove Garcia's point, that teaser includes a soldier being choked, turned to ash with lightning, and having his skull popped off.

Dwayne Johnson had been rumoured for the role of Black Adam for a number of years when the film was officially announced back in 2017. After spending years in development hell, the film finally got off the ground with the appointment of director Jaume Collet-Serra.

“Once we got Jaume on board to be our director, things really clicked in,” said Garcia.

Since then, Black Adam has added a number of additional cast members, including Aldis Hodge as Hawkman, Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher, Quintessa Swindell as Cyclone, Sarah Shahi as Adrianna Tomaz, Pierce Brosnan as Doctor Fate, and Marwan Kenzari, James Cusati-Moyer and Bodhi Sabongui in unknown roles.

As well as suiting up in Black Adam, star Dwayne Johnson will take on another DC comic book role – voicing Krypto the Super-Dog in the upcoming League of Super-Pets movie. But don’t expect a gritty style, here.

“Super Pets is a different tone, where it's just fun," said Garcia. "There's a lot of wish fulfilment. It's a lot of laughs. Ultimately, it's a really fun ride that gives you a perspective into the superhero world, especially when you're dealing with the Justice League, through the eyes of these pets, that are awesome.”

“Ultimately, I think so much of the world can relate to the love, the connection someone has with their pet," he added. “We really are able to tap into that when you consider that Krypto is Superman's best friend, and really, Krypto is the only other person on this planet that is from Krypton, like Superman. So, there's a special bond that goes even deeper between the two that we really have fun playing with.”

Originally meant to be part of DC’s Shazam! before that film was split in two, Black Adam has since been confirmed to take on the Justice Society of America.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Dwayne Johnson superhero movie Black Adam is apparently going to push the boundaries when it comes to its PG-13 certificate, with a "very high kill count".

During an interview with CBR, producer Hiram Garcia explained how Black Adam has more in common with The Dark Knight than other DC movies:

“Black Adam is edgy, right?” he said. “That's gonna be a PG-13 movie where it was very much like, say, The Dark Knight, where that pushed the edges of PG-13. I think we do that very much with Black Adam. We have a very high kill count in our movie.”

We recently got our first look at Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam movie in a teaser unveiled at DC FanDome 2021. As if to prove Garcia's point, that teaser includes a soldier being choked, turned to ash with lightning, and having his skull popped off.

Dwayne Johnson had been rumoured for the role of Black Adam for a number of years when the film was officially announced back in 2017. After spending years in development hell, the film finally got off the ground with the appointment of director Jaume Collet-Serra.

“Once we got Jaume on board to be our director, things really clicked in,” said Garcia.

Since then, Black Adam has added a number of additional cast members, including Aldis Hodge as Hawkman, Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher, Quintessa Swindell as Cyclone, Sarah Shahi as Adrianna Tomaz, Pierce Brosnan as Doctor Fate, and Marwan Kenzari, James Cusati-Moyer and Bodhi Sabongui in unknown roles.

As well as suiting up in Black Adam, star Dwayne Johnson will take on another DC comic book role – voicing Krypto the Super-Dog in the upcoming League of Super-Pets movie. But don’t expect a gritty style, here.

“Super Pets is a different tone, where it's just fun," said Garcia. "There's a lot of wish fulfilment. It's a lot of laughs. Ultimately, it's a really fun ride that gives you a perspective into the superhero world, especially when you're dealing with the Justice League, through the eyes of these pets, that are awesome.”

“Ultimately, I think so much of the world can relate to the love, the connection someone has with their pet," he added. “We really are able to tap into that when you consider that Krypto is Superman's best friend, and really, Krypto is the only other person on this planet that is from Krypton, like Superman. So, there's a special bond that goes even deeper between the two that we really have fun playing with.”

Originally meant to be part of DC’s Shazam! before that film was split in two, Black Adam has since been confirmed to take on the Justice Society of America.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Nintendo has said that it won't rule out acquiring new companies in the future, but has stated that it is currently prioritizing investment in its existing studios.

As part of a recently published Company Management briefing, Nintendo spoke about its investment strategies going forward and how it will look to spend in the future. The publisher noted that due to the success of the Nintendo Switch exceeding its expectations across the last few years, it has been left in a position where it is able to "reconsider how to most effectively utilize [its] cash in a variety of strategic and meaningful ways".

With money to invest, the company says that its mid-to-long term plan revolves around two broad areas: building software assets and developing ways to expand its relationships with consumers. Where those software assets include games, Nintendo has stated that its "first priority is to organically expand [its] own organization to continue Nintendo's creative culture." Despite a focus on developing its pre-existing studios, the publisher didn't fully rule out the possibility of purchasing further companies in the future explaining that it was "not dismissing the possibility of M&A [merger and acquisition] activities".

While rival publishers such as Sony have been increasingly active when it comes to buying up various smaller studios across the industry, Nintendo has opted to stay far more reserved in its approach. The company's most notable acquisition of late came back in January where it announced that it had purchased Luigi's Mansion 3 developer, Next Level Games.

A working relationship between Nintendo and Next Level Games spans back to 2005, where they worked together to release Super Mario Strikers for the Gamecube. Since then, Next Level Games has developed a number of further games for Nintendo consoles including the likes of Punch-Out!! for the Nintendo Wii and Metroid Prime: Federation Force for the Nintendo 3DS.

Elsewhere in the Company Management briefing, Nintendo detailed its plans to expand and improve on its Switch Online service as well as its recently released premium Expansion Pack. For more from Nintendo, take a look at this article detailing the Nintendo hacker who pled guilty to piracy charges.

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Nintendo has said that it won't rule out acquiring new companies in the future, but has stated that it is currently prioritizing investment in its existing studios.

As part of a recently published Company Management briefing, Nintendo spoke about its investment strategies going forward and how it will look to spend in the future. The publisher noted that due to the success of the Nintendo Switch exceeding its expectations across the last few years, it has been left in a position where it is able to "reconsider how to most effectively utilize [its] cash in a variety of strategic and meaningful ways".

With money to invest, the company says that its mid-to-long term plan revolves around two broad areas: building software assets and developing ways to expand its relationships with consumers. Where those software assets include games, Nintendo has stated that its "first priority is to organically expand [its] own organization to continue Nintendo's creative culture." Despite a focus on developing its pre-existing studios, the publisher didn't fully rule out the possibility of purchasing further companies in the future explaining that it was "not dismissing the possibility of M&A [merger and acquisition] activities".

While rival publishers such as Sony have been increasingly active when it comes to buying up various smaller studios across the industry, Nintendo has opted to stay far more reserved in its approach. The company's most notable acquisition of late came back in January where it announced that it had purchased Luigi's Mansion 3 developer, Next Level Games.

A working relationship between Nintendo and Next Level Games spans back to 2005, where they worked together to release Super Mario Strikers for the Gamecube. Since then, Next Level Games has developed a number of further games for Nintendo consoles including the likes of Punch-Out!! for the Nintendo Wii and Metroid Prime: Federation Force for the Nintendo 3DS.

Elsewhere in the Company Management briefing, Nintendo detailed its plans to expand and improve on its Switch Online service as well as its recently released premium Expansion Pack. For more from Nintendo, take a look at this article detailing the Nintendo hacker who pled guilty to piracy charges.

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Forza Horizon 5 contains a ton of wonderful accessibility features to help make the game as inclusive as possible, and a post-launch update will add another great one - an on-screen sign language interpreter that will sign either American Sign Language (ASL) and British Sign Language (BSL) during the game's cinematics.

As detailed in an Xbox Wire blogpost and an accompanying video about Forza Horizon 5's accessibility features, the interpreter will appear in a picture-in-picture display near the bottom of the screen and either ASL or BSL can be chosen depending on the player's preference.

This is a great addition to Forza Horizon 5, a game that we gave a rare 10/10 to and said is "the result of a racing studio at the peak of its craft and the best open-world racing game available." It is also one of the few games to feature sign language in such a prominent way.

There have been games like Oculus Quest and PlayStation VR's Moss that saw its main character use sign language to speak to the player, and hopefully Forza's decision to add it will have a ripple effect across the industry so more developers will think to include it, if they are able. As Microsoft has said in the past, "When everyone plays, we all win."

As previously mentioned, Forza Horizon 5 features a wide range of other accessibility options at launch. These options, as detailed by Microsoft, include;

• A Game Speed Modification setting that allows gamers to play Forza Horizon 5 at a reduced speed when playing offline; this feature is great for newcomers and those who would like more time to progress through the game.
• High Contrast mode that changes colors to make things such as menus and text easier to distinguish for gamers.
• Color Blindness mode that allows players with color blindness to better visualize game elements. Players can adjust color blind settings independently for the UI and the game visuals.
• For Subtitles, we know the importance of customization. With these, you’ll be able to:
  • Turn subtitles on or off
  • Adjust the font size
  • Adjust the background opacity
  • Ability to highlight key words
• Customize menu and gameplay font size.
• Screen reader narrator that reads text, buttons, and other elements aloud.
• Text-to-speech and speech-to-text options for players that want to participate in Voice Chat and either need to send synthesized voice or receive voice chat as synthesized text.
• Ability to disable moving backgrounds.
• Notification duration setting, which allows players to set how long notifications in the game appear.

For more on Forza Horizon 5, check out how you can play it early and our performance review of the game running on PC and all the available Xbox versions.

We also wanted to remind everyone that Forza Horizon 5 will be released on November 9 and it will be on Xbox Game Pass, so subscribers are able to try it out and see if it is not only for them, but if it is accessible enough. If something is missing, Forza Horizon 5 developer Playground Games has said, "these are just some of the accessibility features we’re building upon, and we're constantly listening to the community to make Forza Horizon 5 an inclusive experience for everyone to enjoy."

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.

Forza Horizon 5 contains a ton of wonderful accessibility features to help make the game as inclusive as possible, and a post-launch update will add another great one - an on-screen sign language interpreter that will sign either American Sign Language (ASL) and British Sign Language (BSL) during the game's cinematics.

As detailed in an Xbox Wire blogpost and an accompanying video about Forza Horizon 5's accessibility features, the interpreter will appear in a picture-in-picture display near the bottom of the screen and either ASL or BSL can be chosen depending on the player's preference.

This is a great addition to Forza Horizon 5, a game that we gave a rare 10/10 to and said is "the result of a racing studio at the peak of its craft and the best open-world racing game available." It is also one of the few games to feature sign language in such a prominent way.

There have been games like Oculus Quest and PlayStation VR's Moss that saw its main character use sign language to speak to the player, and hopefully Forza's decision to add it will have a ripple effect across the industry so more developers will think to include it, if they are able. As Microsoft has said in the past, "When everyone plays, we all win."

As previously mentioned, Forza Horizon 5 features a wide range of other accessibility options at launch. These options, as detailed by Microsoft, include;

• A Game Speed Modification setting that allows gamers to play Forza Horizon 5 at a reduced speed when playing offline; this feature is great for newcomers and those who would like more time to progress through the game.
• High Contrast mode that changes colors to make things such as menus and text easier to distinguish for gamers.
• Color Blindness mode that allows players with color blindness to better visualize game elements. Players can adjust color blind settings independently for the UI and the game visuals.
• For Subtitles, we know the importance of customization. With these, you’ll be able to:
  • Turn subtitles on or off
  • Adjust the font size
  • Adjust the background opacity
  • Ability to highlight key words
• Customize menu and gameplay font size.
• Screen reader narrator that reads text, buttons, and other elements aloud.
• Text-to-speech and speech-to-text options for players that want to participate in Voice Chat and either need to send synthesized voice or receive voice chat as synthesized text.
• Ability to disable moving backgrounds.
• Notification duration setting, which allows players to set how long notifications in the game appear.

For more on Forza Horizon 5, check out how you can play it early and our performance review of the game running on PC and all the available Xbox versions.

We also wanted to remind everyone that Forza Horizon 5 will be released on November 9 and it will be on Xbox Game Pass, so subscribers are able to try it out and see if it is not only for them, but if it is accessible enough. If something is missing, Forza Horizon 5 developer Playground Games has said, "these are just some of the accessibility features we’re building upon, and we're constantly listening to the community to make Forza Horizon 5 an inclusive experience for everyone to enjoy."

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.

Bethesda has finally revealed how much The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition will cost, alongside how much it will be to upgrade from Skyrim Special Edition on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC.

On digital storefronts, Skyrim Anniversary Edition will cost $49.99 / £47.99 on November 11, 2021. But, if you already own Skyrim Special Edition, the Anniversary Upgrade will instead cost $19.99 / £15.99.

In the brand new FAQ blogpost, Bethesda confirmed the pricepoint for yet another Skyrim re-release, something that fans have noted has been seemingly kept under wraps until now.

Both Skyrim Special Edition and Anniversary Edition are also getting free next-gen upgrades for PS5 Xbox Series X/S. All achievement progress is also set to transfer between Special and Anniversary Edition, but not if you upgrade the PS4 version of the game to the PS5 version.

Skyrim Anniversary Edition is set to include a host of new and existing Creation Club content for the game, from Morrowind armor, to quests involving Oblivion gates, new dungeons, and more.

On November 11 at 11am PT/ 2pm ET/ 6pm GMT, fans will also be treated to the Skyrim 10th Anniversary Concert, which will feature music from the game performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and London Voices.

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

Bethesda has finally revealed how much The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition will cost, alongside how much it will be to upgrade from Skyrim Special Edition on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC.

On digital storefronts, Skyrim Anniversary Edition will cost $49.99 / £47.99 on November 11, 2021. But, if you already own Skyrim Special Edition, the Anniversary Upgrade will instead cost $19.99 / £15.99.

In the brand new FAQ blogpost, Bethesda confirmed the pricepoint for yet another Skyrim re-release, something that fans have noted has been seemingly kept under wraps until now.

Both Skyrim Special Edition and Anniversary Edition are also getting free next-gen upgrades for PS5 Xbox Series X/S. All achievement progress is also set to transfer between Special and Anniversary Edition, but not if you upgrade the PS4 version of the game to the PS5 version.

Skyrim Anniversary Edition is set to include a host of new and existing Creation Club content for the game, from Morrowind armor, to quests involving Oblivion gates, new dungeons, and more.

On November 11 at 11am PT/ 2pm ET/ 6pm GMT, fans will also be treated to the Skyrim 10th Anniversary Concert, which will feature music from the game performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and London Voices.

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

After the release of The Batman’s gritty new trailer, it looked as though Bruce Wayne may have some anger issues, and an official story synopsis makes that very clear, saying that this Bruce Wayne, at least initially, is "no better than the ruthless serial killer he's hunting."

Warner Bros. has now released a synopsis for The Batman which explains that Robert Pattinson's Wayne is a “disillusioned, desperate vigilante” when we first meet him.

“The Batman is an edgy, action-packed thriller that depicts Batman in his early years, struggling to balance rage with righteousness as he investigates a disturbing mystery that has terrorized Gotham,” reads the official synopsis. “Robert Pattinson delivers a raw, intense portrayal of Batman as a disillusioned, desperate vigilante awakened by the realization that the anger consuming him makes him no better than the ruthless serial killer he's hunting.”

Famously, Christopher Nolan’s Batman films took the Caped Crusader into more serious territory, while Zack Snyder’s version of the Dark Knight followed suit. Now, it looks as though Matt Reeves is set to drag Bruce Wayne into even grittier realms.

Andy Serkis has previously said the movie will be darker than previous Batman films and our early looks at the move – which features a younger, seemingly more impulsive Batman than many depictions – already seems to confirm that he could be the craziest Dark Knight yet.

The Batman features an all-star cast, including Robert Pattinson as Batman, Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle, Andy Serkis as Alfred, Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon, Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot and Paul Dano as Edward Nashton.

Dano's Nashton is also known as The Riddler, and we've said that this Batman needs the classic villain as a foe. The Batman opens in theatres on March 4, 2022, and we've recently gotten a new trailer, behind-the-scenes feature, and even a look at upcoming statues.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.