Activision and Infinity Ward have revealed a number of new features coming to multiplayer in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, including a third-person playlist and a 3v3 Raid mode.

While Modern Warfare 2 will primarily be a first-person shooter, there will be “third person playlists” designed to offer “a new tactical way to play multiplayer”. Third person perspective offers a much larger field of view and thus better vision of your surroundings, something that could be a big change for COD’s classic multiplayer.

Another new mode is Raid, a 3v3 mode with a focus on team communication and coordination. This mode will not be available at launch, but is coming before the end of 2022.

Special Ops, the two-player co-op mode, is being revamped with “large-scale hot zones”. Infinity Ward has yet to elaborate on any other changes being made, but hopefully it expands the mode beyond what was delivered in 2019’s Modern Warfare (as it was arguably the weakest part of the package).

Gunsmith, the weapon customisation system, has been improved to allow “unprecedented opportunities for customization”. The interface will also allow smoother swaps between weapons, so hopefully that means we won’t be cycling through five different menus just to apply a silencer.

Finally, the Ricochet anti-cheat system that protects Call of Duty has been built on a new unified security platform, which Activision says will allow the team to update the system more frequently.

The upcoming open beta, which begins on September 16 on PlayStation and September 22 on Xbox and PC, will offer the first look at Modern Warfare 2’s core 6v6 multiplayer across a variety of maps and modes. Featured will be the Spain-set Valderas Museum, a shoothouse-style map called Farm 18, and the marketplace inspired Mercado Las Almas. Team Deathmatch and Domination will both be present, but two new 6v6 modes will also be available to sample: Knockout, a no-respawns game type where you must hold a package to win, and Prisoner Rescue, a hostage-style mode similar to those seen in Rainbow Six Siege and Counter-Strike.

Ground War-scale maps will also be available in the beta, with support for 32v32 player counts. Invasion mode will see Deathmatch played at this scale, with additional AI combatants alongside regular players. Sarrif Bay, a map set in the Republic’s main port, will be the setting for the beta’s biggest matches.

To see how the game is shaping up, you’ll want to jump into this weekend’s Modern Warfare 2 multiplayer open beta. And if you’re excited for the single-player, digital pre-orders get access to the campaign a week early.

Matt Purslow is IGN's UK News and Features Editor.

Yakuza Ishin was first released in 2014, but it isn't until 2023 that western audiences will finally get to play the Yakuza spinoff. That's because the positive reception surrounding Sucker Punch’s Ghost of Tsushima gave Ryu Ga Gotoku the confidence to finally release Like a Dragon: Ishin to international audiences.

In an interview with Fanbyte, executive producer Masayoshi Yokoyama said, “We saw how well Ghost of Tsushima did, and how it was about this very Japanese setting made by Americans, so that gave us confidence Ishin could do well in America too.”

Yokoyama also noted that the success of Yakuza: Like a Dragon introduced the franchise to a new audience. The timing was just right as well. Many players never got to play the original version of Ishin back in 2014 when it was released on PlayStation 3 and 4 as it didn’t get localized outside of Japan.

The developers thought that the game’s traditional Japanese setting in the 1860s would’ve felt alien to international audiences, so they focused on localizing Yakuza 5 and Yakuza 0 instead. Ishin follows Sakamoto Ryoma, who is portrayed by series protagonist Kazuma Kiryu.

However, the Yakuza series, now going by the original Japanese title, Like a Dragon, has exploded in popularity, breathing new life into it. Due to Ghost of Tsushima’s success, Ryu Ga Gotoku decided to bring the Like a Dragon: Ishin remake to the west.

The game is set to release on February 21, 2023, for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.

George Yang is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @yinyangfooey

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority has recommended beginning a second-phase investigation into Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, as it believes it could stifle competition in the video game industry in the region. Sony has responded that it welcomes the announcement of further investigation.

"By giving Microsoft control of Activision games like Call of Duty, this deal would have major negative implications for gamers and the future of the gaming industry," Sony said in a statement to GamesIndustry.biz. "We want to guarantee PlayStation gamers continue to have the highest quality gaming experience, and we appreciate the CMA’s focus on protecting gamers."

This comes after PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan called Xbox’s offer to extend Call of Duty’s availability on PlayStation platforms “inadequate” last week. Ryan says that the extension only would have lasted for three additional years after existing agreements expired. There is reportedly three Call of Duty games left to release on PlayStation under current contracts, which include this year’s Modern Warfare 2.

Xbox’s Phil Spencer noted that he still wanted to keep Call of Duty a multiplatform franchise, but it was unknown whether it’d be indefinitely. Xbox’s extension offer to PlayStation indicates that the franchise could become exclusive to Microsoft’s ecosystem eventually should the acquisition go through.

Spencer has also confirmed that future Call of Duty games would also come to Xbox Game Pass on the same day that they launch on PlayStation. This way, he argues, Call of Duty will be available to more gamers.

Despite the investigation, the Call of Duty series marches on as Activision is holding a Call of Duty Next event later today to reveal more about this year's release. You can watch the stream on IGN.

George Yang is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @yinyangfooey

Star Wars Eclipse will “keep the fundamentals” of Quantic Dream games, despite being an action-adventure at heart.

During an interview with IGN Japan, Quantic Dream CEO Guillaume de Fondaumiere confirmed that the studio’s upcoming Star Wars game woill retain what we've come to expect from the studio.

“I think with each new title we try to innovate, we try to explore new ground,” he explained. “With Star Wars Eclipse we're certainly going to keep the fundamental elements of a Quantic Dream game; very strong story, very strong characters, multiple playable characters, and of course, giving the players the possibility to change, through their actions and decisions, how the story unfolds.”

Star Wars: Eclipse was officially announced at The Game Awards 2021, with the game promising “action-adventure, multiple-character branching narrative game set in the High Republic era of the iconic Star Wars galaxy.”

However, Quantum Dream is better known for its story-driven fare, including Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls, and Detroit: Become Human. A first look at Star Wars: Eclipse featured lightsaber combat and some iconic Star Wars locations. However, it won’t just be a Star Wars twist on Quantic Dream’s formula.

“Where the formula is changing, we said very clearly we are doing an action-adventure, so the action elements are also going to be very important,” said de Fondaumiere. “This is something we'll be able to speak about in the future, but keep in mind, it's an action-adventure.”

Whether that means it’ll be losing those trademark quick-time events remains to be seen. Since the game’s announcement, little else has been revealed. However, delay rumors were quickly refuted – largely because a release date had never been announced.

“When we met with [Lucasfilm], we met with them because it was Star Wars,” said de Fondaumiere. “And because with David [Cage], we really wanted to do a Star Wars game, that particular franchise with whom we grew, we discovered, and were in awe of as children.”

“When we had the opportunity to work on Star Wars we said yes immediately because we were drawn to it,” added de Fondaumiere. “But we will continue to do what we do best, which is passionately work, craft our game with a lot of attention to detail, and with Star Wars Eclipse, we want to bring a whole new original story to the Star Wars universe.”

What that story will be, remains to be seen… and the recent trailer is our only glimpse of it so far. Want to read more about Star Wars: Eclipse? Check out the Star Wars: Eclipse cinematic trailer and find out what else was announced at The Game Awards 2021.

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

Amazon has announced Blade Runner 2099, a live-action TV sequel to the sci-fi classic, Blade Runner.

Per its title, the upcoming Blade Runner show will take place 50 years after the recent sequel, Blade Runner 2049, with showrunner Silka Luisa (Shining Girls) at the helm. Blade Runner director Ridley Scott and Blade Runner 2049 writer Michael Green will serve as executive producers. Tom Spezialy (The Leftovers) is the first to join the writer's room and will also executive produce.

“We are honored to be able to present this continuation of the Blade Runner franchise, and are confident that by teaming up with Ridley, Alcon Entertainment, Scott Free Productions, and the remarkably talented Silka Luisa, Blade Runner 2099 will uphold the intellect, themes, and spirit of its film predecessors,” said Amazon Studios head of global television, Vernon Sanders.

“We are beyond excited to continue to extend the Blade Runner canon into a new realm with the provocative storyline that Silka has created,” said Alcon Entertainment co-CEOs and co-founders Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson. "Audiences first discovered Ridley Scott’s brilliant vision for Blade Runner 40 years ago, and since then, it has become one of the most influential science-fiction films of all time. Denis Villeneuve’s follow-up sequel, Blade Runner 2049, then became one of the best-reviewed sequels of all time. So, we recognize that we have a very high bar to meet with this next installment. Together with Silka and our partners at Amazon, and Scott Free Productions, we hope that we can live up to that standard and delight audiences with the next generation of Blade Runner.”

Based on the 1982 sci-fi classic, Blade Runner 2099 will continue to expand the universe first created by Ridley Scott in Blade Runner. Starring Harrison Ford as Deckard, the titular Blade Runner, the film follows one man’s efforts to hunt down a gang of deadly replicants, while also facing questions about his own humanity.

Blade Runner 2099 has been on the cards for a while, with Ridley Scott previously confirming that a full plot outline had been written for the show.

“We have already written the pilot for Blade Runner and the bible,” he said late last year. “So, we’re already presenting Blade Runner as a TV show, probably the first 10 hours.”

Although an animated TV show, Blade Runner: Black Lotus, launched back last year, this project is the first live-action Blade Runner TV show. It’s currently unknown whether any characters from either Blade Runner or Blade Runner 2049 will return.

Want to read more about Blade Runner 2099? Check out Ridley Scott teasing the upcoming TV project and whether or not Dennis Villeneuve would make another Blade Runner sequel.

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

Players eager to get their hands on Street Fighter 6 may not have to wait too long as Capcom has announced the game is getting a closed beta in October.

Revealed during the publisher’s Tokyo Game Show presentation, players on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam can join the closed beta taking place from October 7 to 10.

Only a limited number of players can sign up and, while Capcom didn't share details on how many or how to do so, it did say that details would soon follow on Street Fighter 6's official website.

The beta appears to be pretty extensive, featuring a ton of modes including Ranked Match, Casual Match, Battle Hub Match, Open Tournament, the new Extreme Battle, Game Center, and Training Mode.

Tokyo Game Show has featured a ton of reveals so far, with Capcom also announcing that Ken, Blanka, Dhalsim, and E. Honda would be returning in Street Fighter 6.

The game was announced back in February, with new bits of information being released slowly but surely since. A gameplay trailer showed Chun-Li and Ryu in action alongside newcomer Luke, and Capcom later showed a way to mentally battle your opponents before the match.

Jamie and Guile were also confirmed to feature, and at EVO 2022 Capcom announced the return of Juri and first appearance of Kimberly, who comes with a moveset focused on fast-paced jabs and aerial kicks.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding creator Hideo Kojima is playing mind games once more, this time seeming to tease actress Elle Fanning's appearance in... something.

The tease is incredibly vague, however. The Kojima Productions website now has a page that hosts a single image of a shadowy figure, with the question "Who Am I?" posted on top.

The Game Awards host Geoff Keighley tweeted the mysterious image, and Twitter user José Mellinas (below) appears to have deduced that the person behind it is Maleficent: Mistress of Evil actress Elle Fanning.

pic.twitter.com/R6I36pr96b

— José Mellinas ❗ (@JoseMellinas_) September 15, 2022

That covers the who, but the where, what, when, and why are still anyone's guess. Kojima isn't shy when it comes to sharing bizarre and obscure teasers for his games, so we'll just have to wait and see what this one is in relation to.

Tokyo Game Show is underway at the moment, but Kojima Productions made clear on Twitter that "no game titles will be displayed" at the show. The developer is currently working on a new game with Xbox and seemingly Death Stranding 2. There's also the matter of the seemingly leaked horror title, Overdose.

There's always the chance this isn't a tease for a game at all. After all, Kojima Productions has opened a division to work on movies, TV, and music as well. Alongside all this, Kojima is keeping himself busy otherwise, having recently launched a podcast called Brain Structure, that promises "a deep dive into his brain and shed light on his creative process".

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

Capcom has unveiled a ton of new details about Street Fighter 6 including character customisation and the return of Ken, Blanka, Dhalsim, and E. Honda.

Revealed during the publisher’s Tokyo Game Show presentation, Capcom didn't waste time in flashing through a quick gameplay reel of all four of the new (returning) fighters.

Character customisation was also shown off, with a ton of different options available to players to change their appearance - from cheek bulge to jaw length to eyelash colour and lots more - plus update their outfit by visiting clothing stories in-game.

This customisable avatar will be the player's main character who travels the world battling fighting masters to become stronger and stronger. There even appears to be some player choice here, as you can seemingly choose which fighters you learn from, whether it be Blanka or Ryu or whoever else, and gain skills specific to them.

A handful of modes were confirmed for Street Fighter 6 too, including a brand new one called Extreme Battle. It appears to add even more customisation as players can choose any rules, gimmicks, and battle requirements they like to create a unique fighting experience tailored to them.

The Battle Hub is another new addition. Walking around in what appears to be a connected online space akin to The Tower in Destiny, players can sit down and play a game of Street Fighter within Street Fighter. Also a new addition to Street Fighter 6, Scrap Heap mode lets players beat up an old truck - and that appears to be it.

Capcom also announced a closed beta at the event, meaning players eager to get their hands on Street Fighter 6 have a chance to as early as next month.

Ken, Blanka, Dhalsim, and E. Honda will join the seven characters previously confirmed by Capcom, though given that Street Fighter 6 won’t be released until next year, there’s plenty of time for more and more fighters to join the roster.

Street Fighter classics Ryu and Chun-Li were among the first characters confirmed to feature, and newcomer Luke also appears to be a main character as he was part of the game’s announcement back in February.

Jamie and Guile were announced for Street Fighter not long after, and at EVO 2022 Capcom announced the return of Juri and first appearance of Kimberly, who comes with a moveset focused on fast-paced jabs and aerial kicks.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

The upcoming remake of Resident Evil 4 is unexpectedly headed to PS4 as well as new-gen consoles.

Announced during a Capcom showcase at Tokyo Game Show, producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi explained that the game was now in development for the last-gen PlayStation, but did not mention any Xbox One or Switch version.

Hirabayashi added that more details about the game would arrive in next month's Resident Evil Showcase.

Resident Evil 4 Remake was initially announced for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC ahead of a release next year. The game will seemingly make some fundamental changes to the original's gameplay, and appears to connect to Resident Evil Village.

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.

Netflix has released the trailer for its upcoming documentary series, Eat the Rich: The GameStop Saga, which is set to debut on the streaming giant globally on September 28, 2022.

Here's how Netflix describes the series: "Eat the Rich: The GameStop Saga captures the wild ride of a group of misfits who banded together online to rescue GameStop, a company they loved when they were kids. Coalescing on Reddit, TikTok and Discord, they capitalized on a new age of investing with their thumbs to thwart Wall Street’s cynical ploy to burn the company down. By sending shares “to the moon,” these millennials felt they could stick it to the man, once and for all. But can 'the little guy' ever truly win against Wall Street?"

IGN can exclusively debut the trailer in the video below or at the top of the page:

The series is helmed by director Theo Love and executive producer Dan Cogan. Love informed IGN that while the real-world financial aspects of the story are more serious, he wanted this documentary series to have a lighter, more comedic tone.

"The Gamestop saga made us laugh and think," Love explained. "Those are the stories that I like to tell. While the real-world financial stakes couldn't be more serious, I wanted the tone of our documentary to mirror the funny memes that drove the narrative. My crew and I had the privilege of interviewing some of the top economists, lawmakers, law enforcement, investors, fin-fluencers, and architects of our modern financial system, while the online investing community was a treasure trove of amazing characters who had bet big on the short squeeze. It was our goal to combine and contrast these perspectives in the most entertaining way, using the tools of compelling storytelling to help our viewers understand the promises and pitfalls of this ubiquitous system that impacts their lives so deeply."

Executive producer Dan Cogan of Story Syndicate also shared his passion for the project:

"We live for stories with high drama, high stakes, memorable characters, and something to say about the world we live in," Cogan said. "The GameStop saga has it all in spades. It was a flashpoint moment when everyday investors, the new world of social media, and big money Wall Street all collided — driving the stock of a dying brick-and-mortar company into the stratosphere and back to earth again over the course of a few memorable days."

What did you think of the trailer? Let us know in the comments. And for more on the world of entertainment, check out our reviews of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Season 1, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, and Cobra Kai Season 5.

David Griffin is the Senior Editor, Features and Content Partnerships for IGN. Say hi on Twitter.