Xbox Game Pass and the Xbox Series consoles could go up in price at some point according to Phil Spencer, but the increase won't happen this holiday period.

As reported by The Verge's Tom Warren on Twitter (below), during The Wall Street Journal's WSJ Live event the Xbox boss said that Microsoft won't be able to hold off on a price increase for its products forever.

"I do think at some point we'll have to raise the prices on certain things, but going into this holiday we thought it was important to maintain the prices," Spencer said. "We've held price on our console, we've held price on games, and our subscription. I don't think we'll be able to do that forever. I do think at some point we'll have to raise some prices on certain things."

Phil Spencer hints at future Xbox Game Pass or console price increases at WSJ Live

"I do think at some point we'll have to raise the prices on certain things, but going into this holiday we thought it was important to maintain the prices."

— Tom Warren (@tomwarren) October 26, 2022

That's not to say there are currently plans or timings in place to increase the prices, however, at least for consoles, as Spencer said in September that Microsoft currently has no plans to increase the price of the Xbox Series X or S.

Spencer had first said the Xbox's price wouldn't increase after Sony announced a price hike on August 25. Citing "high global inflation rates as well as adverse currency trends," Sony said it would be raising the price of the PlayStation 5 in Europe, the UK, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Canada.

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

Marvel's Midnight Suns will be getting post-launch content and a Season Pass that adds Deadpool, Venom, Morbius, and Storm as playable characters.

Though publisher 2K didn't share when the DLC packs will be released, each one is centred around one character and contains new story missions, a new upgrade for hub area The Abbey, and new skins and outfits.

Deadpool arrives first, and 2K has already hinted at the foulmouthed mercenary having fourth-wall breaking moments. Venom is next, and though he features as one of the main game's bosses, Spider-Man's nemesis abandons his villainy to become a new playable hero.

Morbius, who is one of the original Midnight Suns in the Marvel comics, is the third DLC character, while the X-Men's Storm rounds out the DLC as the fourth and final hero.

The Season Pass - which is available as part of the Legendary Edition or as a standalone - also grants immediate access to the Legendary Premium Pack which includes 23 skins including Blade’s Blade 1602 skin, Captain America’s Future Soldier skin, Iron Man’s Iron Knight skin and Spider-Man’s Demon Spider skin.

Marvel's Midnight Suns was originally expected to be released on October 7 but 2K delayed the game to its current release date of December 2. The player takes on the role of the Midnight Suns in XCOM style, tactical RPG gameplay, featuring characters including Spider-Man, Wolverine, Doctor Strange, and more.

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

Henry Cavill has spoken about the "powerful moment" he had when he put the Superman suit back on, and why he chose the Man of Steel costume for his Black Adam cameo.

Cavill's post-credits cameo in Black Adam shows him wearing Superman's iconic blue and red suit. Speaking on Josh Horowitz's Happy Sad Confused podcast, per Variety, the actor explained why he opted to wear the Man of Steel gear for his return, as he opened up about the emotional resonance of the outfit and how he felt when he put it on again for the first time.

"It was a very powerful moment for me. I wasn't sure how I would feel… whether it would be something very emotionally connective because I put the Man of Steel suit back on," Cavill said. "I chose that one in particular because of the nostalgia attached to the suit. It was important for me to be standing there and enjoying that moment. That is one of the top moments in my career. It feels great to have the opportunity to wear it again."

According to recent reports, it won't be long before he's potentially stepping out in the suit again, as a Superman sequel starring Cavill is already in development. The actor also officially announced his return to the DCEU on Instagram, promising fans that their support and patience would be "rewarded." He has since discussed the character's "bright future."

"The character means so much to me. It's been five years now. I never gave up hope," Cavill said of the half-decade he spent waiting for news about playing Superman again. "It's amazing to be here now talking about it again. There is such a bright future ahead for the character. I'm so excited to tell a story with an enormously joyful Superman."

Dwayne Johnson has been hinting at a clash with Superman for years, assuring fans that they will "absolutely" fight in an upcoming movie. There's no crossover film officially on the cards just yet, so exactly when that super-powered clash will end up on the big screen remains to be seen, but if Black Adam performs well at the box office, it might not be too far off.

IGN felt that Black Adam was unfortunately underdeveloped and many ideas seemed half-baked in our review. But Johnson's all-in attitude should mean we'll see more from him again.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Elon Musk's purchase of Twitter may now be complete after the Tesla CEO walked into its HQ with a sink, captioned with the joke: "Let that sink in."

Musk also updated his Twitter bio to say "chief twit" alongside publishing the short clip of himself (below) walking into the building carrying a porcelain white sink.

He also replied to himself, saying he's "meeting a lot of cool people at Twitter today", again suggesting that his forced $44 billion buyout of the social media giant has been completed. Not completing the deal by October 28 would force Musk to go to trial as a result of his committing and then backing out of the purchase.

Entering Twitter HQ – let that sink in! pic.twitter.com/D68z4K2wq7

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 26, 2022

Some of these "cool people" may be about to lose their jobs, however, as Musk reportedly plans to cut 5,500 jobs - nearly 75% of its workforce - in a move that has some worried about the social media giant's ability to prevent security crises and control harmful content.

Cuts were expected regardless, which is perhaps why Twitter was so eager to receive Musk's offer in the first place, but an expert called the extent of layoffs "unimaginable", saying it would put users at risk of being hacked and exposed to offensive content.

Image credit: JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

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

Marvel boss Kevin Feige has spoken up about James Gunn's new role as DC Studios' co-CEO, saying, "I'll be first in line to see anything he does."

Speaking to Deadline at the premiere of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Feige briefly spoke on the megaton announcement that Gunn, alongside producer Peter Safran, would be in control of the future of Superman, Batman, and the rest of the DC heroes and villains.

Kevin Feige on James Gunn joining DC: “I’ll be first in line to see anything he does” pic.twitter.com/spptngC2jF

— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) October 27, 2022

He also joked that he's not quite done with Marvel yet, as he still has The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 on the horizon.

"Well, he's got a lot of work to do for Marvel between now and May, which he is well aware of, but after that, I'll be first in line to see anything he does," Feige said.

Gunn had been working for Marvel since the first Guardians of the Galaxy film and was fired from the third Guardians film after controversial tweets of his resurfaced from 2008 and 2009. Following his firing, he apologized, saw huge support from fans and co-workers, and switched to DC to write and direct The Suicide Squad.

He was then reinstated as the director of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and now his path will take him back to DC for good after telling that final story of Star-Lord and the rest of the Guardians.

Gunn will be in charge of the creative side of DC Studios while Safran will handle business and production elements. Gunn and Safran will continue to direct and produce, respectively, and will both report to WB Discovery CEO David Zaslav.

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.

Marvel boss Kevin Feige has spoken up about James Gunn's new role as DC Studios' co-CEO, saying, "I'll be first in line to see anything he does."

Speaking to Deadline at the premiere of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Feige briefly spoke on the megaton announcement that Gunn, alongside producer Peter Safran, would be in control of the future of Superman, Batman, and the rest of the DC heroes and villains.

Kevin Feige on James Gunn joining DC: “I’ll be first in line to see anything he does” pic.twitter.com/spptngC2jF

— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) October 27, 2022

He also joked that he's not quite done with Marvel yet, as he still has The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 on the horizon.

"Well, he's got a lot of work to do for Marvel between now and May, which he is well aware of, but after that, I'll be first in line to see anything he does," Feige said.

Gunn had been working for Marvel since the first Guardians of the Galaxy film and was fired from the third Guardians film after controversial tweets of his resurfaced from 2008 and 2009. Following his firing, he apologized, saw huge support from fans and co-workers, and switched to DC to write and direct The Suicide Squad.

He was then reinstated as the director of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and now his path will take him back to DC for good after telling that final story of Star-Lord and the rest of the Guardians.

Gunn will be in charge of the creative side of DC Studios while Safran will handle business and production elements. Gunn and Safran will continue to direct and produce, respectively, and will both report to WB Discovery CEO David Zaslav.

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.

Rieko Kodama, the pioneering developer behind Sega classics including Phantasy Star and Skies of Arcadia, has died. She was 58.

The rumors began after a memorial message to Kodama was spotted in the credits of Mega Drive Mini 2. Asked whether the message was indeed intended to indicate that Kodama had died, Sega producer Yosuke Oskunari said that she had.

Finally, the staff credits include a memorial message for Rieko Kodama. She started as an artist on games such as Alex Kidd In Miracle World, Phantasy Star and Sonic The Hedgehog, and was the producer for Skies Of Arcadia, 7th Dragon and most recently the Switch Sega Ages games. pic.twitter.com/v6xk8oUNYO

— Nick Thorpe (@HKT3030) October 26, 2022

"As you understand it," Okunari wrote. "We respected her."

Sega subsequently confirmed that Kodama died in May, but was unable to share any further details out of respect for the privacy of her family.

Sega of Japan added, “We pray that the deceased will rest in peace, and we offer our gratitude for her enormous contributions to Sega.” [Translation by IGN Japan]

A pioneering woman in the games industry

Known as Phoenix Rie in her early works, Kodama broke into the games industry in the mid-1980s, where she served as a graphic designer and then later as a producer and director. Her credits include Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Skies of Arcadia, but she is best-known for her work as one of the creative leads of the Phantasy Star series, serving as the director of Phantasy Star IV.

Though lauded as a pioneer in an industry dominated by men, Kodama was famously averse to the spotlight, deflecting credit to the rest of her team when she was awarded a Pioneer Award at the Game Developers Choice Awards.

As you understand it. We respected her.

— Yosuke Okunari /奥成洋輔 (@okunari) October 27, 2022

"I’m not sure if it’s because of Sega’s corporate culture or what, but I’ve never felt that I was at a disadvantage just because I’m a woman. I’ve been working on various things related to game development for over 30 years now, and since joining Sega I haven’t been treated any differently from men," Kodama said in an interview.

In another interview, she said that she didn't think it was that unusual for women to play games, observing that girls often gravitate toward RPGs. One of her most notable works, Phantasy Star, stood out because it was one of the very few games with a female protagonist.

"As I'm a woman myself, when I make games, I try not to just have them be male fantasy figures, as people needing to be rescued. I like to make female characters people of both genders can relate to. But we are seeing more strong-willed women in games geared towards female audiences," Kodama said at the time.

Kodama remained active in the games industry through the 2010s, continuing to work on games incuding 7th Dragon and Sega Ages. She leaves behind a legacy as one of the foremost female developers in gaming history, her 35-year career in the industry serving as inspiration for many women to follow.

Thumbnail photo credit: Game Developers Conference

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.

Rieko Kodama, the pioneering developer behind Sega classics including Phantasy Star and Skies of Arcadia, has died. She was 58.

The rumors began after a memorial message to Kodama was spotted in the credits of Mega Drive Mini 2. Asked whether the message was indeed intended to indicate that Kodama had died, Sega producer Yosuke Oskunari said that she had.

Finally, the staff credits include a memorial message for Rieko Kodama. She started as an artist on games such as Alex Kidd In Miracle World, Phantasy Star and Sonic The Hedgehog, and was the producer for Skies Of Arcadia, 7th Dragon and most recently the Switch Sega Ages games. pic.twitter.com/v6xk8oUNYO

— Nick Thorpe (@HKT3030) October 26, 2022

"As you understand it," Okunari wrote. "We respected her."

Sega subsequently confirmed that Kodama died in May, but was unable to share any further details out of respect for the privacy of her family.

Sega of Japan added, “We pray that the deceased will rest in peace, and we offer our gratitude for her enormous contributions to Sega.” [Translation by IGN Japan]

A pioneering woman in the games industry

Known as Phoenix Rie in her early works, Kodama broke into the games industry in the mid-1980s, where she served as a graphic designer and then later as a producer and director. Her credits include Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Skies of Arcadia, but she is best-known for her work as one of the creative leads of the Phantasy Star series, serving as the director of Phantasy Star IV.

Though lauded as a pioneer in an industry dominated by men, Kodama was famously averse to the spotlight, deflecting credit to the rest of her team when she was awarded a Pioneer Award at the Game Developers Choice Awards.

As you understand it. We respected her.

— Yosuke Okunari /奥成洋輔 (@okunari) October 27, 2022

"I’m not sure if it’s because of Sega’s corporate culture or what, but I’ve never felt that I was at a disadvantage just because I’m a woman. I’ve been working on various things related to game development for over 30 years now, and since joining Sega I haven’t been treated any differently from men," Kodama said in an interview.

In another interview, she said that she didn't think it was that unusual for women to play games, observing that girls often gravitate toward RPGs. One of her most notable works, Phantasy Star, stood out because it was one of the very few games with a female protagonist.

"As I'm a woman myself, when I make games, I try not to just have them be male fantasy figures, as people needing to be rescued. I like to make female characters people of both genders can relate to. But we are seeing more strong-willed women in games geared towards female audiences," Kodama said at the time.

Kodama remained active in the games industry through the 2010s, continuing to work on games incuding 7th Dragon and Sega Ages. She leaves behind a legacy as one of the foremost female developers in gaming history, her 35-year career in the industry serving as inspiration for many women to follow.

Thumbnail photo credit: Game Developers Conference

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.

Fallout: New Vegas definitely stands on its own as a full game, but it was originally conceptualized as a huge expansion for Fallout 3. In a Fallout retrospective video posted by Bethesda, Bethesda executive producer and Fallout 3 director Todd Howard explained how New Vegas came to be.

Fallout 3 comes out and it's a really, really big hit for the company, and they're like, 'Okay so what's the followup?', and I was like, 'Well we're doing Skyrim, so [then] it'll be Fallout 4, and there was a push like... 'We shoud do a big expansion pack or something like that. Are there companies that we could have do it?' and we knew the folks at Obsidian, and there was sort of this immediate [thought that] there's only one group we would really want to do this. And it actually started as a big expansion pack for Fallout 3, and I felt really strongly it should be its own game.

Fallout fans are definitely glad the project turned into a full game, as Fallout: New Vegas is one of the greatest open world games of all time. Microsoft now owns New Vegas developer Obsidian, making a potential follow-up a possibility. However, just last week, Obsidian CEO Feargus Urquhart said the studio isn't working on a Fallout game right now, but "there's not a question" about doing it if the opportunity arose.

Instead, Obsidian is preparing to release Pentiment, a 16th century mystery game set in Bavaria. The game is coming to Xbox and PC on November 15. If you're interested, you can check out our interview with Obsidian developer Josh Sawyer.

Meanwhile, Howard and Bethesda Game Studios are currently busy with Starfield, but we already know the studio is planning Fallout 5... After Elder Scrolls 6, that is.

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN covering video game and entertainment news. He has over six years of experience in the gaming industry with bylines at IGN, Nintendo Wire, Switch Player Magazine, and Lifewire. Find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.

Fallout: New Vegas definitely stands on its own as a full game, but it was originally conceptualized as a huge expansion for Fallout 3. In a Fallout retrospective video posted by Bethesda, Bethesda executive producer and Fallout 3 director Todd Howard explained how New Vegas came to be.

Fallout 3 comes out and it's a really, really big hit for the company, and they're like, 'Okay so what's the followup?', and I was like, 'Well we're doing Skyrim, so [then] it'll be Fallout 4, and there was a push like... 'We shoud do a big expansion pack or something like that. Are there companies that we could have do it?' and we knew the folks at Obsidian, and there was sort of this immediate [thought that] there's only one group we would really want to do this. And it actually started as a big expansion pack for Fallout 3, and I felt really strongly it should be its own game.

Fallout fans are definitely glad the project turned into a full game, as Fallout: New Vegas is one of the greatest open world games of all time. Microsoft now owns New Vegas developer Obsidian, making a potential follow-up a possibility. However, just last week, Obsidian CEO Feargus Urquhart said the studio isn't working on a Fallout game right now, but "there's not a question" about doing it if the opportunity arose.

Instead, Obsidian is preparing to release Pentiment, a 16th century mystery game set in Bavaria. The game is coming to Xbox and PC on November 15. If you're interested, you can check out our interview with Obsidian developer Josh Sawyer.

Meanwhile, Howard and Bethesda Game Studios are currently busy with Starfield, but we already know the studio is planning Fallout 5... After Elder Scrolls 6, that is.

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN covering video game and entertainment news. He has over six years of experience in the gaming industry with bylines at IGN, Nintendo Wire, Switch Player Magazine, and Lifewire. Find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.