Valve has announced that its Steam Deck handheld is on track to ship on time in February, following its previous delay late last year. Additionally, Valve is sending out more developer kits to studios to help test their games for Steam Deck.

"First and foremost, we’re on track to ship Steam Deck on time. Global pandemic, supply issues, and shipping issues notwithstanding, it looks like we'll be able to start getting these out the door by the end of February," Valve said in a statement.

The Steam Deck Verified program has already started and it allows players to know which games will be playable on Steam Deck. The list of Steam titles with the Deck Verified status will continue to grow as Valve has been approving more dev kits to send. Compatible games will have a green checkmark and will be playable on the Steam Deck right out of the box.

"It’s also important that we give developers the ability to test their games in order to get that nice green Verified check, so we’ve been sending developer kits out in quantity," said Valve. "We've been approving another wave of dev kits, and hundreds have been shipped out in the last month"

Happy January! We have a small update for you today - tl;dr - we're still on track to ship in February.

Check it out here: https://t.co/pQXC101JCV

— Steam Deck (@OnDeck) January 13, 2022

Valve also provided a picture of the first in-house units of Steam Decks to test and evaluate. Those who preordered the handheld will be able to check the status of their orders. The first wave of orders will go out in February, and the second wave will ship in Q2 2022.

There was reportedly a Half-Life game tailored towards the Steam Deck in the works, but Valve has confirmed that there won't be any exclusive titles for the handheld.

IGN was the first media outlet to get a hands-on with the Steam Deck. You can read our full hands-on preview here and our interview with Valve boss Gabe Newell about the philosophy and design of the Steam Deck.

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

Real Steel, the sci-fi classic starring Hugh Jackman, is getting its very own Disney+ show. According to Variety, a Real Steel adaptation is on its way, but it may be some time before we get to see it.

Variety reports that the potential series will be based on the 2011 film of the same name, which in turn was based on the short story ‘Steel’ by Richard Matheson.

It’s said that the project is still in the early stages of development at Disney+ and doesn’t yet have a writer attached. It’s also unclear whether the Real Steel show will follow on from the events of the film or start anew with new characters.

Either way, Real Steel fans are bound to be pleased.

The original film starred Hugh Jackman as a former boxing pro who turns to robot-boxing with his estranged son. Together, they fix up an obsolete model called Max, which they then get fighting fit to turn him into a true robot champion. Taking on the current robot-boxing champ, Zeus, it’s a heart-warming family film with some incredible robot-fighting action.

And it has its fair share of fans.

Alongside Hugh Jackman as Charlie Kenton, Dakoto Goyo starred as his son, Max, with Evangeline Lily as Bailey Tallet, a boxing gym owner, and daughter of Charlie’s former coach. They were joined by Anthony Mackie, Olga Fona, and Karl Yune.

It’s unknown whether any of the original movie’s stars will return for the TV show.

Real Steel director Shawn Levy will executive produce the series, along with Robert Zemeckis and Jack Rapke of Compari Entertainment, as well as Jacqueline Levine, as well as Susan Montford and Don Murphy of Angry Films.

Disney+ also recently announced many new major projects, including a new Marvel spin-off, Agatha: House of Harkness, and a Big Hero 6 show focussing on the loveable robot, Baymax.

As the project is still in the early stages, no broadcast date has yet been set.

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

PlatinumGames' Kenichi Sato announced Thursday that he is stepping down from his position as president and CEO of the Bayonetta and Nier: Automata studio, with veteran developer Atsushi Inaba rising to take his place.

"Currently I feel that PlatinumGames is ready to push forward towards more innovative forms of play, and so now is better a time than ever to hand the reigns to Inaba, who has led the initiative on building the company’s creative output for many years now," Sato said in a blog post.

Sato will continue to serve PlatinumGames as an advisor, "offering my help where needed." He served as president of the company for a little over five-and-a-half years.

As for Inaba, he got his start working as the CEO of Clover Studio, the team behind Viewtiful Joe, Okami, and God Hand. He co-founded Platinum in 2007 alongside Resident Evil/The Evil Within director Shinji Mikami, Bayonetta's Hideki Kamiya, and Tatsuya Minami, taking on the role of lead producer, which he'll keep alongside his new role as president and CEO.

Inaba elaborated on his design philosophy in a separate post on Platinum's official site, saying he believed in "approaching 'fun' with complete sincerity. I believe every one of our staff take pride that they are entertainers, always attempting the perfect balance between play and professionalism."

Inaba added that "our overarching goal for entering self-publishing has been unchanged since its conception: to invent something new and share it with the rest of the world – showing our sincerity towards creation every step of the way."

PlatinumGames' upcoming slate includes Bayonetta 3, due out on Switch this year. It's also got Babylon's Fall, Sol Cresta, and the teased Project GG in the works as its first self-published game.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer for IGN.

Logan Paul made headlines when he purchased a box of first-edition Pokemon Card booster packs. But following speculation that Paul may have spent millions on fake cards, the YouTuber went to verify his purchase and confirmed they are indeed fake.

Paul posted a new video today simply titled “I lost $3,500,000 On Fake Pokemon Cards,” which seems pretty self-explanatory. But the saga on how he got to this point is quite the roller-coaster.

There is currently a Pokemon card gold rush with first-edition cards hitting valuations well into the thousands of dollars. In December 2021, Paul — an avid Pokemon card collector who owns a $150,000 Charizard — announced he purchased a “sealed & authenticated” box of first-edition booster packs which could contain rare cards worth a small fortune.

However, Pokemon card experts began to question the veracity of Paul’s purchase. Observers noted that the box Paul purchased doesn’t resemble previous boxes for a similar set, and the original seller changed their story on how they acquired this valuable case at least three times in the past. The box first sold for $75,000, well below the auction price.

In response to the online speculation, Paul traveled to Chicago to verify his purchase with the Baseball Card Exchange (BBCE) — a previous owner of the set claimed the BBCE verified the legitimacy of the set before, but Paul set out to authenticate his purchase in person.

update on this: I’m flying to Chicago this weekend to verify the case with BBCE, the company who insured its authenticity

to be continued… https://t.co/grLMa92JCM

— Logan Paul (@LoganPaul) January 5, 2022

The findings were that while the exterior box showed signs of authenticity based on the aging of the case, once opened Paul, BBCE, and everyone else there discovered the Pokemon Card boxes were filled with G.I. Joe collectible cards. Paul reacts to the discovery angrily, and the owner of the BBCE says “we all got duped.”

Paul brought with him a card collector named Matt Allen who purchased the case for $2.7 million before selling them to Paul for $3.5 million. In the video, Allen says he never would’ve purchased the set if it wasn’t approved by the BBCE, and Allen says he will begin a new process to remedy the situation.

“I’m a super positive person, bro, and I’ll always be the one to look at the bright side. And I’m trying but this is very hard,” Paul says.

With the speculation for Pokemon Cards continuing at a fever pitch, forgeries and fakes are more common in the market, so exercise caution.

Matt T.M. Kim is IGN's News Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.

iPhone gamers haven't been able to access Fortnite for some time now after Apple banned Fortnite on the App Store, but that looks like it might be changing thanks to a new update from Nvidia's GeForce Now streaming service.

Epic Games and Nvidia have teamed up to put Fortnite on GeForce Now, streaming via the Safari browser on iOS, starting with a closed beta test sometime next week. The test will only be available to GeForce Now subscribers.

Nvidia has also worked with Epic Games to implement a new type of touch-based controls for Fortnite. Touch controls were previously part of Fortnite's mobile version, but, presumably, these new controls will be more friendly for streaming the game from the cloud.

Fortnite was previously removed from the iOS App Store in August 2020 after Epic sued Apple over its App Store policies, launching a protracted trial between the two companies. Apple later effectively banned Fortnite from the App Store for five years when it decided not to reinstate Epic's developer account on the platform.

Google similarly removed Fortnite from the Android Play Store, but players could still download the game via the Epic Games app.

We've reached out to Apple PR for comment and will update this story if we receive a response.

It's currently unclear if Apple will allow such a move by Epic Games and Nvidia, considering the high profile of the case and ensuing controversy between Epic and Apple, neither of which indicated an interest in reaching a compromise during legal proceedings.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer for IGN.

If the words "Avatar mobile MMORPG" excite you, boy do I have good news. Avatar: Reckoning is a new "multiplayer online role-playing shooter," based on Disney and James Cameron's Avatar franchise, and it's coming to iOS and Android this year.

Players will create their character (or Avatar avatar) and travel to never-before-seen parts of Pandora, meet new Na'vi clans, battle human troops from the RDA, and meet other alien creatures. Players will be able to do all this in either solo or multiplayer matches, level up their character, equip new gear, and complete single-player story missions, co-op missions, or PvP modes with touchscreen combat.

The game is also built using Unreal Engine 4.

Accompanying the announcement is a single piece of concept art, showing a Na'vi overlooking the horizon on Pandora while wielding an assault rifle and dressed in camo.

Avatar: Reckoning is being developed by Archosaur Games and produced by Tencent, Lightstorm Entertainment, and Disney. Archosaur is a Chinese mobile game studio, with previous games including Dragon Raja, World of Kings, and Novoland: The Castle in the Sky, and Naval Creed.

That's it for major details, but you can visit the official Avatar: Reckoning site to sign up for a beta test and receive news.

Meanwhile, over in movie land, we're finally getting some looks at what James Cameron's Avatar 2 will look like. We're also learning some plot details, like the fact that original protagonists Jake Sully and Neytiri now have a mixed species family, including an adopted human son.

If mobile games aren't your speed, there's always Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, the upcoming open-world adventure game from Ubisoft. It's using an updated version of Ubisoft's Snowdrop engine, which Ubisoft is using to add denser vegetation and more realistic clouds and other weather effects to improve the look of Pandora on next-gen systems.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/unobtanium for IGN.

Peacemaker showrunner James Gunn really wants you to watch the show’s intro.

During an interview with Polygon, the 55-year-old Peacemaker director explained why the 1980s rock intro on Peacemaker is so important.

“I really wanted to do a dance number where everybody was doing something incredibly ridiculous, and looked incredibly serious while they were doing it,” he said. Gunn explained that it was a way to “vanquish the skip forward button”, encouraging viewers to see the credits for people who worked on the show.

“I thought it was something that would, you know, be a signpost for people that this isn’t just your normal DC or Marvel TV show,” he added.

He’s right, of course. The insane, over-the-top intro really captures the essence of the show, which stars John Cena as The Suicide Squad character, Peacemaker. But it’s not just a bit of fun, either – it also gives us some insight into how the character ticks.

“I think that some of the rock ‘n’ roll stuff that he’s into has actually been a more positive influence on him than, say, his father has been,” said Gunn. Music has clearly been a huge influence on Peacemaker, and Gunn points out that during The Suicide Squad, his dance with Ratcatcher 2 “is the only moment he’s happy in the entire movie.”

Throughout Peacemaker’s debut season, it becomes clear that it’s a huge part of who he is.

“It’s just a part of the story, it’s a part of who the character is,” Gunn said. “I think that it’s just a part of his sort of secret joy that he has with him, you know, that he only practices by himself, for the most part, his relationship to music is a very private thing.”

It’s the same for series star John Cena, who wasn’t exactly thrilled at his musical interludes.

At the end of the show’s pilot episode, he’s forced to perform a dance number in his underwear, to the sound of “I Don’t Love You Anymore” by the Quireboys.

“I don’t dance,” explained Cena. “It’s something I’m not very comfortable with, even in a COVID, restricted environment watching you do your thing.”

“I think it’s more of an expression of him being happy or having a flash of fulfillment or meaning,” he added. “And that’s why it doesn’t need to take any shape or form, it can be off key. It shows a very human side to Peacemaker [...] and I appreciate James for trying to push me into that uncomfortable space because it doesn’t need to be anything more than it is; it’s just a freedom of being fulfilled.”

Thankfully, Cena was more comfortable filming the hilariously deadpan intro. And with the stage set for even more Suicide Squad members to get their own shows, this could be only the beginning.

Read more about Peacemaker with IGN’s spoiler-free review of the show’s premiere.

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

An enormous asteroid is expected to make its closest approach to Earth soon, but don't worry, it's still going to be more than a million miles away from us.

According to Space.com, the colossal space rock is estimated to measure around 3,400 feet, which is almost three times the height of the 102-story Empire State Building, and it will make its closest pass to our planet on January 18, per NASA's Near-Earth Object Studies. Nevertheless, Earth is in the clear as it's expected to be travelling at a distance of 1.2 million miles.

What makes this coming event significant is that the flight path of the asteriod, formally known as 7482 (1994 PC1), marks the closest approach the space rock will make to Earth within the next 200 years, says EarthSky, though it'll be gone almost as quickly as it arrives as it's anticipated to be flying past at a top speed of almost 12 miles per second (20 km/s).

Despite its far-off trajectory, the asteroid would qualify as a "Near-Earth object" (NEO) according to NASA, given that any asteroid or comet that comes closer than 1.3 astronomical units (120.9 million miles) is classified as such — and this is something that the agency continues to monitor, having used survey telescopes to find nearly 28,000 NEOs to date.

Scientists have even calculated the probability of the potentially hazardous Bennu asteroid hitting Earth between 2021 and 2300. Fortunately, Bennu's chances of hitting Earth are still very low, yet those living on Earth may consider getting closer to asteroids than ever before as an astrophysicist has explained how humans could inhabit a floating asteroid belt in space.

Before you consider relocating, you might want to take a closer look at an asteroid sample from space and find out more about an asteroid's interior to discover whether they contain water. It's worth noting these rocky objects don't come cheap either; one metallic asteroid between Mars and Jupiter was found to have an estimated value of $10,000 quadrillion.

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

Thumbnail image credit: NASA.

The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences has revealed the nominations for its 25th annual DICE awards, and Insomniac's Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart leads the pack with 9 nominations.

Arkane's Deathloop follows closely behind with 8 nominations, while inscryption and It Takes Two earn 6 each. All four of those games are up for Game of the Year, as well as Housemarque's Returnal – meaning three of the five GOTY contenders are PlayStation exclusives.

The awards will be held on February 24 in Las Vegas, and IGN will be the official media partner, meaning you'll be able to stream the entire event live right here with us.

You can check out the full list of nominees below:

Game of the Year

• Deathloop
• Inscryption
• It Takes Two
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Returnal

Outstanding Achievement in Animation

• Call of Duty: Vanguard
• Deathloop
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Resident Evil Village

Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction

• Call of Duty: Vanguard
• Deathloop
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Resident Evil Village

Outstanding Achievement in Character

• Deathloop – Colt Vahn
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits – Kena
• Life is Strange: True Colors – Alex Chen
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart – Rivet
• Resident Evil Village – Lady Dimitrescu

Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition

• Deathloop
• It Takes Two
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits
• Psychonauts 2
• Returnal

Outstanding Achievement in Audio Design

• Forza Horizon 5
• Halo Infinite
• It Takes Two
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Returnal

Outstanding Achievement in Story

• Before Your Eyes
• Inscryption
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• Psychonauts 2
• The Forgotten City

Outstanding Technical Achievement

• Battlefield 2042
• Forza Horizon 5
• Moncage
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Returnal

Action Game of the Year

• Deathloop
• Halo Infinite
• Metroid Dread
• Returnal
• The Ascent

Adventure Game of the Year

• Death's Door
• It Takes Two
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• Psychonauts 2
• Resident Evil Village

Family Game of the Year

• Animal Crossing: New Horizons - Happy Home Paradise
• Cozy Grove
• Mario Party Superstars
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Warioware: Get it Together

Fighting Game of the Year

• Guilty Gear Strive
• Melty Blood: Type Lumina
• Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl

Racing Game of the Year

• F1 2021
• Forza Horizon 5
• Hot Wheels Unleashed

Role-Playing Game of the Year

• Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker
• Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous
• Shin Megami Tensei V
• Tales of Arise
• Wildermyth

Sports Game of the Year

• FIFA 22
• Mario Golf: Super Rush
• NBA 2k22
• Riders Republic
• The Climb 2

Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year

• Age of Empires IV
• Gloomhaven
• Griftlands
• Inscryption
• Loop Hero

Immersive Reality Technical Achievement

• Lone Echo II
• Puzzling Places
• Resident Evil 4 VR
• Song in the Smoke
• Yuki

Immersive Reality Game of the Year

• Demeo
• I Expect You To Die 2
• Lone Echo II
• Resident Evil 4 VR
• Song in the Smoke

Outstanding Achievement for an Independent Game

• Death's Door
• Inscryption
• Loop Hero
• Sable
• Unpacking

Mobile Game of the Year

• Behind the Frame
• Fantasian
• League of Legends: Wild Rift
• Moncage
• Pokémon Unite

Online Game of the Year

• Back 4 Blood
• Call of Duty: Vanguard
• Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker
• Halo Infinite
• Knockout City

Outstanding Achievement in Game Design

• Deathloop
• Inscryption
• It Takes Two
• Loop Hero
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction

• Deathloop
• Inscryption
• It Takes Two
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• The Artful Escape

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.

IO Interactive has announced that the Hitman Trilogy Collection will be launching next week, and it's coming straight to Game Pass.

IO Interactive is combining all three of its Hitman games into one single package that fans will be able to get their hands on next week. Officially launching on January 20, the collection will be available for fans on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and on PC through Steam and the Epic Games Store.

However, that's not all. For those of you currently signed up for Xbox Game Pass, there will be no need to purchase the game separately, as the studio has also announced that the trilogy will be coming to the service on day one.

January 20 marks the first time that Hitman 3 has been made available to players on Steam. The game's Steam launch will include full support for the title's brand-new VR mode (which is set to launch the same day) as well as a number of other technical improvements coming to Hitman 3 on PC later this year including the likes of Ray Tracing as well as Variable Rate Shading to boost PC performance.

HITMAN Trilogy includes all three games from the World of Assassination. Available digitally on January 20 for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Epic Games Store. As well as Steam and Xbox Game Pass.

Watch the full @HITMAN 3 Year 2 reveal here: https://t.co/1SODjYBTQC pic.twitter.com/0o4gvAj7WK

— IO Interactive (@IOInteractive) January 13, 2022

As well as announcing the launch date for its Hitman Trilogy, IO has also shed further light on what's in store for Hitman 3 across the next twelve months. According to a press release from the studio, Year 2 content for the game will include two brand new modes and a new map, named Rocky, which will be revealed later this year.

The first of those two modes, Elusive Target Arcade, will take the game's Elusive Target concept to further heights by adding a number of new challenges and unlockable rewards to Hitman 3 - while a brand new Freelancer mode is also set to be introduced this year.

Launching this Spring, IO says that Hitman 3's new Freelancer mode will bring a brand new way to play the game as it introduces new roguelike elements, further strategic planning and a customizable safehouse into the fold.

For more from the world of Hitman, make sure to check out this article detailing how the game's developers are reportedly working on an Xbox fantasy game featuring dragons.

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