After months without a lot of major game releases in 2022, September came out swinging with six new games ranking in the top 20 best-selling games in the US, led by (of course) FIFA 23.

Madden NFL, which came out and topped the charts last month, held it's second place spot according to The NPD Group's monthly charts (which track by dollar sales). It was followed by four new releases: NBA 2K23, then Splatoon 3, The Last of Us Part 1 (the 2022 remake), and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection.

Saints Row, last month's No.2, came in at No.7 in September, and then new release JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle followed.

Despite all these new releases, the overall year-to-date top ten didn't change much, with Elden Ring still reigning as the best-selling game of the year thus far, followed by LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga. Madden moved up two spots, booting down Pokemon Legends: Arceus and Horizon 2, but that's it.

Overall, and again in spite of all the new games, content spending was down 7% in September from the prior year - subscriptions were up, but everything else was down. Meanwhile, hardware spending continues to improve thanks to increased PS5 supply, and the PS5 was the best-seller for the month in both unit and dollar sales. The Xbox Series was in second place for dollar sales, but the Switch was in second for unit sales. And both the PS5 and Xbox Series saw double-digit percentage growth.

Overall, the US spent $4.1 billion on video games, hardware, and accessories in September, down 4% from September 2021.

The following are the top 20 best-selling games for the month of September in the US in terms of dollar sales:

1. FIFA 23
2. Madden NFL 23
3. NBA 2K23
4. Splatoon 3
5. The Last of Us: Part I
6. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection
7. Saints Row (2022)
8. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle
9. Elden Ring
10. Mario Kart 8
11. Minecraft
12. Marvel's Spider-Man
13. LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
14. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
15. Call of Duty: Black Ops: Cold War
16. Horizon 2: Forbidden West
17. Call of Duty: Vanguard
18. Assassin's Creed: Valhalla
19. MLB: The Show 22
20. Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot

(Nintendo and Take-Two do not report digital sales, thus they are not factored in for any of their published games above).

Incidentally, we reviewed all six of these new September games here at IGN. You can check out our thoughts on FIFA 23, NBA 2K23, Splatoon 3 single-player and multiplayer, The Last of Us Part 1, TMNT Cowabunga Collection, and Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle - all of which (we think) are good to excellent games.

Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.

The Resident Evil series has experienced a huge REnaissance (or how about REvival?) in the last few years, with multiple new mainline entries and remakes.

With modern remakes of 2, 3, and 4 on the books, some RE fans are hoping to see a remake of Resident Evil: Code Veronica. According to Capcom, however, there are currently no plans to remake the 2000 Dreamcast title.

Speaking to Noisy Pixel, Resident Evil 4 producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi said Capcom's current focus is currently on Resident Evil 4, but if the "opportunity comes, maybe" the company will remake Code Veronica.

Code Veronica was originally released on the Sega Dreamcast in 2000. It was later ported to the PlayStation 2 and GameCube, and saw an HD release on the PS3 and Xbox 360.

The game follows Claire Redfield from Resident Evil 2 and Chris Redfield from the original Resident Evil. We were fans of the game in our original review, but called out its aging elements in each subsequent remaster, making the game a great candidate for a from-the-ground-up remake.

Capcom's modern remake era began with the Resident Evil 2 remake in 2019, and Resident Evil 3 followed shortly after in 2020. Both games earned amazing scores in our reviews. Resident Evil 4 is set to come out on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series, and PC on March 24.

We just went hands-on with the upcoming Resident Evil 4 remake. In our preview, we said the game "feels as if it’s trying to find that perfect balance between tribute and innovation." You can also check out our comparison of the original Resident Evil 4 and the remake.

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.

Everyone's favorite Space Santa, Xûr, is now live in Destiny 2 for the weekend until next week's reset. If you're looking to get your some shiny new Exotic armor or weapons for your Guardian, look no further.

Each week, Xûr has a random assortment of Exotic armor, one for each Guardian class, as well as a random Exotic Weapon and an Exotic Engram available for purchase. In addition to his Exotic wares, he's got a random collection of Legendary weapons and armor to deck out your Guardians.

We've rounded up all the info on Xûr for the week including where to find Xûr, which Exotic weapons and armor are available, as well as which Legendary weapons you should pick up, either for PvE or PvP.

Where Is Xûr Today?

Xûr's location can be found at Winding Cove in the EDZ on October 21 through October 25. To reach him, travel to the landing point at Winding Cove. When you arrive, make for the rock cliffs at the far end of the cove and look for a cave winding up to a platform next to some Fallen. There you'll find the freakish salesman we all adore.

What's Xûr Selling Today?

Exotic Engram

Arbalest - Linear Fusion Rifle

FR0ST-EE5 - Exotic Hunter Leg Armor

• 14 Mobility
• 9 Resilience
• 11 Recovery
• 2 Discipline
• 10 Intellect
• 21 Strength
• Total: 67

Ursa Furiosa - Exotic Titan Gauntlets

• 21 Mobility
• 4 Resilience
• 6 Recovery
• 14 Discipline
• 6 Intellect
• 11 Strength
• Total: 62

Karnstein Armlets - Exotic Warlock Gauntlets

• 24 Mobility
• 3 Resilience
• 7 Recovery
• 23 Discipline
• 8 Intellect
• 2 Strength
• Total: 67

Xur came to play this week with a sweet exotic weapon in Arbalest (which is very much a part of the meta), and two high-stat exotics in the Karnstein Armlets and FR0ST-EE5. Lots of love in the exotics this week! Scoop up what ya' can!

Exotic Weapons

Hawkmoon - Exotic Hand Cannon

• Paracausal Shot
• Chambered Compensator
• Alloy Magazine
• Hip-Fire Grip
• Heavy Grip

Dead Man's Tale - Exotic Scout Rifle

• Cranial Spike
• Extended Barrel
• Armor-Piercing Rounds
• Killing Wind
• Short-Action Stock

Hawkmoon and Dead Man's Tale are both great weapons, but the rolls this week are pretty mid-tier, in this Guardian's humble opinion. You could do worse though, so grab 'em if you need 'em.

Legendary Weapons

Chroma Rush - Auto Rifle

• Chambered Compensator/Polygonal Rifling
• Steady Rounds/Flared Magwell
• Feeding Frenzy
• Wellspring
• Reload Speed Masterwork

Whispering Slab - Combat Bow

• Elastic String/High Tension String
• Carbon Arrow Shaft/Helical Fletching
• Hip-Fire Grip
• Swashbuckler
• Accuracy Masterwork

Truthteller - Grenade Launcher

• Countermass/Linear Compensator
• High-velocity Rounds/Implosion Rounds
• Auto-Loading Holster
• Handling Masterwork

Seventh Seraph Saw - Machine Gun

• Fluted Barrel/Hammer-Forged Rifling
• High-Caliber Rounds/Ricochet Rounds
• Auto-Loading Holster
• Vorpal Weapon
• Reload Speed Masterwork

Gridskipper - Pulse Rifle

• Corkscrew Rifling/Polygonal Rifling
• Extended Mag/Alloy Magazine
• Tunnel Vision
• Frenzy
• Range Masterwork

Punching Out - Sidearm

• Fluted Barrel/Hammer-Forged Rifling
• Appended Mag/Flared Magwell
• Feeding Frenzy
• Unrelenting
• Vanguard's Vindication/Suros Synergy
• Handling Masterwork

Frozen Orbit - Sniper Rifle

• Chambered Compensator/Full Bore
• Alloy Magazine/Flared Magwell
• Auto-Loading Holster/Moving Target
• Opening Shot
• One Quiet Moment
• Range Masterwork

My top picks this week are the rolls for Seventh Seraph Saw, and Gridskipper, with an honorable mention for Frozen Orbit, which is perhaps the best roll we've seen Xûr sell for this seapon in awhile. Gridskipper's combo of Tunnel Vision and Frenzy could be quite deadly, while Seventh Seraph Saw will do extra boss damage and reload itself while you aren't using it -- both very useful perks.

Warlock Legendary Armor

For Warlocks, Xûr is selling the Righteous set which includes:

Righteous Gauntlets

• 15 Mobility
• 7 Resilience
• 9 Recovery
• 17 Discipline
• 9 Intellect
• 2 Strength
• Total: 59

Righteous Chest Armor

• 2 Mobility
• 14 Resilience
• 16 Recovery
• 7 Discipline
• 17 Intellect
• 6 Strength
• Total: 62

Righteous Helmet

• 15 Mobility
• 2 Resilience
• 12 Recovery
• 12 Discipline
• 8 Intellect
• 13 Strength
• Total: 62

Righteous Leg Armor

• 2 Mobility
• 20 Resilience
• 9 Recovery
• 16 Discipline
• 7 Intellect
• 6 Strength
• Total: 60

Righteous Bond

Sorry to say, but there's no good legendary Warlock armor this week!

Titan Legendary Armor

For Titans, Xûr is selling the Righteous set which includes:

Righteous Gauntlets

• 16 Mobility
• 2 Resilience
• 12 Recovery
• 23 Discipline
• 8 Intellect
• 2 Strength
• Total: 63

Righteous Chest Armor

• 6 Mobility
• 19 Resilience
• 6 Recovery
• 11 Discipline
• 19 Intellect
• 2 Strength
• Total: 63

Righteous Helmet

• 2 Mobility
• 10 Resilience
• 17 Recovery
• 2 Discipline
• 12 Intellect
• 15 Strength
• Total: 58

Righteous Leg Armor

• 10 Mobility
• 14 Resilience
• 6 Recovery
• 15 Discipline
• 15 Intellect
• 2 Strength
• Total: 62

Righteous Mark

There are a few decent rolls for Titans this week with the gauntlet and chest being pretty okay!

Hunter Legendary Armor

For Hunters, Xûr is selling the Righteous set which includes:

Righteous Gauntlets

• 2 Mobility
• 12 Resilience
• 18 Recovery
• 9 Discipline
• 12 Intellect
• 10 Strength
• Total: 63

Righteous Chest Armor

• 13 Mobility
• 2 Resilience
• 16 Recovery
• 17 Discipline
• 10 Intellect
• 2 Strength
• Total: 60

Righteous Helmet

• 13 Mobility
• 16 Resilience
• 2 Recovery
• 8 Discipline
• 20 Intellect
• 2 Strength
• Total: 61

Righteous Leg Armor

• 7 Mobility
• 14 Resilience
• 9 Recovery
• 8 Discipline
• 20 Intellect
• 2 Strength
• Total: 60

Righteous Cloak

One decent piece of armor for Hunters this week with the gauntlets, but nothing amazing.

That's a wrap on Xûr for this week, Guardians! Are you enjoying Festival of the Lost so far? I sure am not! Let us know in the comments! For more on Destiny, check out some of the new weapons and gear you can find in The Witch Queen and read about how Sony's purchase of Bungie fits into its larger plans.

Travis Northup is a writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @TieGuyTravis and read his games coverage here.

The season finale for House of the Dragon has seemingly leaked online, meaning it won't be long before spoilers begin making their way to social media.

As reported by social media users and verified by IGN, early streams of House of the Dragon's season 1 finale have made their way online. While we don't want to share any more details, consider this a warning in case you're hoping to go into Sunday's finale blind.

The season 1 finale will show how Rhaenyra and the Black Targaryen faction will respond to last weekend's coup by the Greens, who successfully crowned Aegon their king.

The episode was set to premiere this weekend, October 23, 2022 at 6 pm PT/9 pm ET. However, early versions of the episode are now online.

It's unclear exactly how these made it online as the press were not given review screeners beforehand making the origins of the leaked finale a bit of a mystery.

You can check out IGN's review of House of the Dragon episode 9 here before the finale's real air date this Sunday. In the meantime, mute any keywords if you're hoping to stay spoiler-free.

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

Netflix’s live-action Death Note series has found its writer.

According to Deadline, the upcoming Death Note adaptation has tapped Halia Abdel-Meguid to write the show’s script.

Abdel-Meguid is a long-time fan of the Death Note anime, as well as being a Japanese speaker, having spent time living in Tokyo.

Death Note tells the story of Light, a high-schooler who stumbles upon the Death Note – a mysterious notebook that kills anyone whose name is written inside. Previously owned by the death god Ryuk, the notebook is a powerful weapon that Light uses for good, killing hardened criminals using this mysterious force.

Meanwhile, a team of law enforcement officers tries to stop the unknown killer.

The original Manga was adapted into a live-action film in 2017 starring Nat Wolff as Light and Willem Dafoe as Ryuk. Notably, several producers of the 2017 film are also on board for the upcoming live-action series, including Dan Lin and Roy Lee as executive producers, with Jonathan Eirich and Miri Yoon as co-exec producers.

The upcoming live-action series is in production under The Duffer Brothers’ production company, Upside Down, as part of the filmmakers’ Netflix deal.

Abdel-Meguid recently wrote The Devil in the White City and has already partnered with The Duffer Brothers for their upcoming adaptation of Stephen King’s The Talisman.

IGN’s review of the Death Note movie gave it 7/10 and said: “Death Note adds more teenage melodrama and condenses the story of the original manga in a way that isn’t always satisfying to watch. While the leads falter, the supporting cast steps up in a big way to keep their parts in the movie grounded and entertaining. Willem Dafoe’s Ryuk was an absolutely inspired piece of casting, and he easily carried his scenes. If there is a sequel, bringing him back as Ryuk is a must.”

Want to read more about Death Note? Check out how the Death Note film alters the original story as well as which live-action anime films are in the works.

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

The Kerbal Space Program sequel is heading to early access in February next year.

The much-anticipated Kerbal Space Program 2 will launch into early access on February 24, 2023, available on Steam, Epic Games Store, and other PC storefronts.

“We are so excited to release Kerbal Space Program 2 in Early Access because it will allow Kerbal fans to see for themselves all the amazing progress we’ve made as we reach the final stages of development,” said creative director Nate Simpson. “At its heart, KSP2 is about exploration, discovery, and conquering the force of gravity by adding more boosters.”

A sequel to the beloved rocket-building sim, Kerbal Space Program 2 has been built from the ground up to teach the joy of rocket science to a new generation of players. New, fully interactive tutorials will teach players the basics, then it’s off to the completely revamped vehicle assembly interface to combine over 350 new and improved parts to build the rocket of your dreams.

Using a combination of engines, fuel tanks, procedural parts systems, and more, players can craft planes, rockets, rovers, and “other creations” to aid them on their adventures. Kerbal Space Program 2 also adds the ability to customize and paint your vehicles. That’s right – it’s time to boldly go where no Kerbal has gone before.

During early access, players will be able to explore the entire Kerbolar system – launching from Kerbin, exploring the “pockmarked and breathtaking” Mun, and catching a glimpse of the green clouds of Jool.

All these classic locations from the original Kerbal Space Program have been reimagined, with new levels of realism and complexity promised thanks to new terrain and atmosphere systems.

After releasing Kerbal Space Program 2 in early access, Intercept Games is already planning a number of updates, including:

• Future Technologies: Use new fuels and propulsion systems to travel far beyond the original Kerbolar system into uncharted space.
• Colonies: Build custom bases either planetside or in deep space, managing power and habitation to sustain life on a faraway planet.
• Multiplayer: Co-operate or compete with friends to see who makes the best rockets.

Additionally, Intercept Games is planning to add mod support, making the game even more mod-friendly than the original.

Want to read more about Kerbal Space Program 2? Check out the game’s original reveal trailer as well as what’s been in the works since 2019.

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

Black Adam producer Hiram Garcia isn’t happy that the film’s big cameo leaked.

Warning: This story contains spoilers for Black Adam.

During an interview with /Film, Garcia explained why it’s so frustrating to see details of Black Adam’s mid-credit scene - which reintroduces Henry Cavill's Superman to the DCEU - plastered all over social media.

“Oh my God, it is so frustrating,” he said. “You work so hard, but look, we understand that this ending and this dream, this family dream that we had to bring to life, we knew that it was going to have an effect on the fans that were just like, 'Oh my God!' We heard them begging for it for so long.”

Then again, he might want to have a word with star Dwayne Johnson. During press rounds for the film, the Black Adam star was… err… more than a little vocal about whether or not we would see any superhero cameos.

“Here’s what I can tell you,” he said. “The whole goal and initiative of Black Adam was to build out the DC universe by introducing not only Black Adam but the entire [Justice Society of America]. Five new superhero characters in one movie, and also - as I have been saying all along - there’s an ethos we at Seven Bucks have, and that is we always put the fans first. Audience comes first.”

He finished up by saying to Henry Cavill, simply: “Welcome home.”

Not exactly playing coy when it comes to that super-powered cameo. Still, it looks as though Garcia isn’t pinning anything on Johnson directly and skirts around the issue.

“We've been wanting it for so long,” said Garcia. “It's disappointing that it leaks. You hope that the fans that are so passionate about it really do their best to block it out so that they can go and get the movie and enjoy it.”

Of course, Johnson has been hinting at a clash with Superman for years, promising fans that they will “absolutely” fight in an upcoming movie. There’s no crossover film officially on the cards right now. 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, I get the feeling it won’t be too long.

Want to read more about Black Adam? Check out why Black Adam vs. Superman won’t be a “one fight” situation as well as what the superhero cameo means for the DCEU.

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

Twitter is bracing for layoffs as Elon Musk reportedly plans to cut 5,500 jobs in a move that has some worried about the social media giant's ability to prevent security crises and control harmful content.

Musk told prospective investors that he planned to cut the jobs, amounting to nearly 75% of Twitter's workforce, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post.

Edwin Chen, the company's former head of spam and health metrics, said this extent of cuts was "unimaginable" and would put users at risk of being hacked and exposed to offensive content.

"It would be a cascading effect, where you’d have services going down and the people remaining not having the institutional knowledge to get them back up," Chen said to the Post, "and being completely demoralized and wanting to leave themselves."

Cuts are expected regardless of Musk's purchasing of Twitter, as the documents also show that its management planned to reduce the payroll by around $800 million, alongside other cuts to Twitter's infrastructure such as the shutting down of data centres.

This was potentially why Twitter was so eager to receive Musk's offer in the first place, and also why it sued him once he tried to back out, eventually resulting in his purchasing of Twitter for $44 million. The deal is expected to close on October 28, and we'll only learn the extent of the cuts (and their impact on Twitter) afterwards.

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

Thumbnail image by PATRICK PLEUL/POOL/AFP via Getty Images.

Everyone knows if you make eye contact with another Pokémon trainer, you must battle them. At least, that has been the rule for generations... until now. In Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet, you’ll have to actively choose to talk to an NPC to battle them, and hear about how they like shorts because they’re comfy and easy to wear.

We had the chance to go hands-on with the upcoming Pokémon games (which we wrote about in our detailed Pokemon Scarlet and Violet hands-on preview) and in the session, learned more about some new mechanics, including the removal of mandatory trainer battles. To be clear, there may be areas where NPC battles are forced, but in general, that rule we’ve all grown accustomed to making memes about is no more in Scarlet and Violet.

When we first encountered an NPC in our hands-on session, the NPC did not initiate a battle or dialogue when we walked in front of them. The Nintendo rep specified that the icon above the trainer’s head signified they would battle us, but only if we initiated by talking to them first, and that's how it would be throughout the game.

This may seem like an astronomically small change, but it has big implications. Generally, a gauntlet of NPCs (and, in older games, random wild Pokémon encounters) increases the perceived difficulty of an area, forcing players to prepare for the slew of battles to come, or else retreat when their Pokémon became worse for wear.

Doing away with both mandatory trainer battles and random Pokémon encounters removes the barrier to exploration, which could well be seen as a positive among some fans.

Without the dread of repeated battles cluttering an otherwise enticing path, the world suddenly seems a lot more open and ripe for exploration. Considering Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are the first truly open-world Pokemon games, removing mandatory trainer battles may be a way to ensure players can go where they want, when they want to.

What do you think? Should forced trainer battles remain a tradition, or do you like the idea of not having to battle every trainer you cross paths with?

For more on Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, read about how some people think Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s latest new Pokemon is a Gold and Silver deep cut, and don’t miss the list of all new Pokemon revealed so far.

Casey DeFreitas is IGN's Deputy Editor of Guides as well as IGN's resident Pokémon master. Catch her on Twitter @ShinyCaseyD.

Bayonetta 3 voice actress Jennifer Hale has the developer’s “full support”, even while it thanks "contributors" to the series amid a debate about payment for game actors.

A statement from PlatinumGames via Twitter attempts to draw a line under the recent controversy, while also backing the new voice of Bayonetta.

“We at PlatinumGames offer our sincerest appreciation to everyone who has contributed to creating the Bayonetta series over the years, as well as the community that has served as its foundation,” it said. “We give our full support to Jennifer Hale as the new Bayonetta, and align with everything in her statement.”

A Message from PlatinumGames pic.twitter.com/5ym1JxtBBn

— PlatinumGames Inc. (@platinumgames) October 21, 2022

The controversy began when original voice actress Hellena Taylor hinted that she wouldn’t be back earlier in the year. Known as the voice of Bayonetta, Taylor was beloved by fans of the series, and when Jennifer Hale was cast in the role instead, the replacement wasn’t exactly met with enthusiasm.

“I understand the concerns some fans have about the voice change at this point in the series, but Jennifer’s performance was way beyond what we could have imagined,” said Platinum Games at the time. “I’m confident that her portrayal of Bayonetta will exceed our fans’ expectations.”

These concerns were amplified when Taylor claimed she was offered just $4000 to return, but this is where it all gets a bit messy.

“The Bayonetta franchise made an approximated $450 million, and that’s not including merchandise,” said Taylor. “As an actor, I trained for a total of seven and a half years – three years at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art Lambda with voice coach Barbara Berkery, and four and a half years with the legendary Larry Moss in Los Angeles. And what did they think this was worth? What did they offer to pay me? The final offer to do the whole game as a buyout, flat rate, was $4,000 USD.”

Taylor then called on Bayonetta fans to boycott the game, and while Hale was unable to comment on the situation, she did issue a response:

“As a longtime member of the voice-acting community, I support every actor's right to be paid well and have advocated consistently for this for years,” she said, adding that she was “not at liberty to speak regarding this situation,” but that she hopes “everyone involved may resolve their differences in an amicable and respectful way.”

The situation gets even more convoluted as a report appears to confirm that Taylor was actually offered $15,000 for her return – a significant increase on her pay for Bayonetta 2. Despite this, Platinum Games is clearly trying to draw a line under it all and has called upon fans to not disrespect either Hale or “other contributors” to the series.

“We ask people to please refrain from any further comments that would disrespect Jennifer or any of the other contributors to the series,” they said.

Bayonetta 3 is due to be released on October 28, 2022.

Want to read more about Bayonetta? Check out our hands-on preview of Bayonetta 3 as well as what comes with each of Bayonetta 3’s different editions.

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