In Scarlet Nexus – Bandai Namco’s anticipated title that is being developed for current-gen and next-gen consoles as well as PC – players will slay over-the-top monsters by combining sword attacks with extra-sensory powers in an insane SF “brain-punk” world. In IGN’s Gamescom preview, we called it a “stylish, flashy, and edgy action-RPG”. However, during IGN Japan’s Tokyo Game Show 2020 interview with producer Keita Iizuka and director Kenji Anabuki, we learned that there might be more to the RPG side of Scarlet Nexus than meets the eye. With Anabuki having worked on the Tales series for many years, this might not come as a surprise, and Iizuka says that while the game’s setting and battle system are completely new, he believes that Scarlet Nexus will be highly enjoyable for fans of the RPG genre. “Until now, we have mainly shown the game’s action parts, but of course there is also a rich story and you will be fighting along with other party members in typical RPG fashion.” [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/08/28/scarlet-nexus-the-first-preview"] “Since my origins as a developer lie in the RPG genre, I wanted to make sure to implement elements that I am experienced and confident with. So you can expect to enjoy story, character customization, communication between characters and such as well,” Anabuki told IGN Japan. Furthermore, Anabuki explains that the game will also incorporate exploration elements in which protagonist Yuito Sumeragi has to put his psychokinesis into practice outside of battle as well. All of this doesn’t change the fact that Scarlet Nexus’ battle system is fast-paced real-time action, but Anabuki mentions that it is balanced so that even players not used to playing action games should be able to enjoy and beat the game. You won’t be able to completely customize your own party, but you will be able to decide which party members you want to learn more about. By communicating with these characters, you can learn their backstories while they will obtain new abilities, which Yuito Sumeragi can use himself as well through a system called “brain link”. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=scarlet-nexus-preview-screenshots-and-art&captions=true"] During IGN Japan’s TGS live show, Iizuka and Anabuki also explained how Yuito Sumeragi’s psychokinesis allows the player to smash objects as big as a bus into your enemy, how the creepy looking monsters called the Others came to be, why they wanted to create a game that incorporates supernatural powers in the first place, and much more. Scarlet Nexus is in development for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and PC. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Esra Krabbe is an editor at IGN Japan. Follow him on Twitter here!

During a Cyberpunk 2077 livestream at Tokyo Game Show 2020, Hiroshi Sakakibara, Environment City Coordinator at CD Projekt Red, shed some light on the design behind the game’s principal location, Night City. Sakakibara is responsible for the visual appearance of Night City as part of the Environment Art team at CDPR, which he said is a somewhat large team of dozens of people that builds the game equivalent of what would be sets and props in a movie. The team is subdivided into three smaller groups – the quest location team which is in charge of creating locations for quests together with the game designers, a team that creates smaller scale items, like furniture and garbage cans, that dot the environments, and the city team led by Sakakibara, which brings Night City to life by designing the streets, buildings and more that you will see in this vibrant city. When asked for his favorite spot in Night City, Sakakibara said that while just picking one location is difficult, his favorite area would have to be Japantown, an area that can be reached by crossing the canal from Retro China, the area in which protagonist V resides. “Japantown is a vibrant downtown area with many towering buildings, and while walking through the narrow alleys in the area these skyscrapers make it feel like you are walking through a futuristic valley,” he said. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/cyberpunk-2077-night-city-wire-episode-3"] According to Sakakibara, entering one of the skyscrapers in the area and then randomly getting off the elevator halfway, and walking the stairs from there is a truly dynamic experience. “You will see details like terrace seating, kiosks and other shops, people hanging out their clothes, somebody sitting at a balcony, a drone carrying goods and more.” Sakakibara said that looking down at the streets or up at the little bit of sky you can see between the skyscrapers is an enthralling experience which will make players realize that they have truly come to a cyberpunk mega city. But what is it that makes cyberpunk such a unique genre? Sakakibara said that Cyberpunk 2077’s director Adam Badowski repeatedly reminded the team that “an environment filled with things that look futuristic is not cyberpunk, but simply science fiction”. What makes the cyberpunk style special is how it combines retro and futuristic aspects. “For example, you could have a run down building with an old wooden door, but an LED light might be attached to that door, which could be a part of a high-tech security system,” he said. “Or maybe an old-fashioned diner could have a modern device that allows its customers to make orders.” According to Sakakibara, the team has mixed futuristic elements together with more familiar aspects in order to create an atmosphere that could only be described as cyberpunk. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=cyberpunk-2077-25-new-night-city-images&captions=true"] As for inspiration sources, Sakakibara mentioned that since Night City is located in California, the team looked at cities in California, especially their suburbs. Blade Runner, which Sakakibara called “the bible of all cyberpunk”, has been another obvious source of inspiration, while he mentioned the team has also learned from Japanese anime and manga in the genre, such as Akira and the Ghost in the Shell series. Regarding Night City’s buildings, Brutalist architecture, an architectural style that uses bricks and concrete which emerged in the 1950s, has played an important role in creating Night City as well. The rough and violent style of Brutalist architecture was something that the team saw as a good match with Night City’s suppressed nature, since the city is ruled by a mega corporation. Sakakibara said that “all the artists have put their everything into each single street and building you can see in Night City, so I hope you will enjoy exploring everything the city has to offer”. We don’t have much longer to wait – Cyberpunk 2077 releases on November 19 2019 for consoles and PC. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Esra Krabbe is an editor at IGN Japan. Follow him on Twitter here.

During a Cyberpunk 2077 livestream at Tokyo Game Show 2020, Hiroshi Sakakibara, Environment City Coordinator at CD Projekt Red, shed some light on the design behind the game’s principal location, Night City. Sakakibara is responsible for the visual appearance of Night City as part of the Environment Art team at CDPR, which he said is a somewhat large team of dozens of people that builds the game equivalent of what would be sets and props in a movie. The team is subdivided into three smaller groups – the quest location team which is in charge of creating locations for quests together with the game designers, a team that creates smaller scale items, like furniture and garbage cans, that dot the environments, and the city team led by Sakakibara, which brings Night City to life by designing the streets, buildings and more that you will see in this vibrant city. When asked for his favorite spot in Night City, Sakakibara said that while just picking one location is difficult, his favorite area would have to be Japantown, an area that can be reached by crossing the canal from Retro China, the area in which protagonist V resides. “Japantown is a vibrant downtown area with many towering buildings, and while walking through the narrow alleys in the area these skyscrapers make it feel like you are walking through a futuristic valley,” he said. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/cyberpunk-2077-night-city-wire-episode-3"] According to Sakakibara, entering one of the skyscrapers in the area and then randomly getting off the elevator halfway, and walking the stairs from there is a truly dynamic experience. “You will see details like terrace seating, kiosks and other shops, people hanging out their clothes, somebody sitting at a balcony, a drone carrying goods and more.” Sakakibara said that looking down at the streets or up at the little bit of sky you can see between the skyscrapers is an enthralling experience which will make players realize that they have truly come to a cyberpunk mega city. But what is it that makes cyberpunk such a unique genre? Sakakibara said that Cyberpunk 2077’s director Adam Badowski repeatedly reminded the team that “an environment filled with things that look futuristic is not cyberpunk, but simply science fiction”. What makes the cyberpunk style special is how it combines retro and futuristic aspects. “For example, you could have a run down building with an old wooden door, but an LED light might be attached to that door, which could be a part of a high-tech security system,” he said. “Or maybe an old-fashioned diner could have a modern device that allows its customers to make orders.” According to Sakakibara, the team has mixed futuristic elements together with more familiar aspects in order to create an atmosphere that could only be described as cyberpunk. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=cyberpunk-2077-25-new-night-city-images&captions=true"] As for inspiration sources, Sakakibara mentioned that since Night City is located in California, the team looked at cities in California, especially their suburbs. Blade Runner, which Sakakibara called “the bible of all cyberpunk”, has been another obvious source of inspiration, while he mentioned the team has also learned from Japanese anime and manga in the genre, such as Akira and the Ghost in the Shell series. Regarding Night City’s buildings, Brutalist architecture, an architectural style that uses bricks and concrete which emerged in the 1950s, has played an important role in creating Night City as well. The rough and violent style of Brutalist architecture was something that the team saw as a good match with Night City’s suppressed nature, since the city is ruled by a mega corporation. Sakakibara said that “all the artists have put their everything into each single street and building you can see in Night City, so I hope you will enjoy exploring everything the city has to offer”. We don’t have much longer to wait – Cyberpunk 2077 releases on November 19 2019 for consoles and PC. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Esra Krabbe is an editor at IGN Japan. Follow him on Twitter here.

A brand new heroine will be defending Gotham City in Batwoman: Season 2, and now we've gotten our first look at Javicia Leslie wearing the iconic Batsuit. Leslie posted the image on her Instagram account, showing what looks to be a screenshot of a costume test, along with the message, "Look out, Gotham, I'm suited up and ready to go... But just wait until Ryan Wilder puts her own spin on the Batsuit." It appears as though Leslie's character Ryan Wilder will be wearing the same Batsuit as Ruby Rose's Kate Kane (which itself is a modified version of the bulletproof suit originally worn by Bruce Wayne). But based on Leslie's message, we're guessing Ryan will eventually branch out and wear her own, personalized Batsuit. Hopefully Luke Fox or Cisco Ramon can hook her up with new duds. Previously, our only glimpse of the new Batwoman came in the form of a DC FanDome montage poster drawn by Jim Lee. You can see a fully suited-up Ryan Wilder in the lower left, amid dozens of other DC heroes from across the multiverse. [caption id="attachment_2412782" align="aligncenter" width="2048"] Art by Jim Lee. (Image Credit: DC)[/caption] Like most of the current Arrowverse shows, Batwoman was forced to end its first season prematurely after production was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Shortly after the Season 1 finale, we learned original series star Ruby Rose won't be returning, with Rose citing the physical demands of the job and the back injury she suffered as reasons for wanting to move on. The CW eventually confirmed Leslie's Ryan Wilder will inherit the Batwoman mantle and Kate Kane herself won't be recast. Instead, Kate's sudden disappearance will be a major plot point in Season 2. Batwoman: Season 2 will begin in January 2021. Last we heard, the next Arrowverse crossover will unite Batwoman and new series Superman & Lois, though it's unclear if Rose's exit has changed those plans. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=crisis-on-infinite-earths-every-cameo-in-the-crossover&captions=true"] While we wait for more on the future of Batwoman, find out how the season finale (sort of) introduced the Arrowverse's Bruce Wayne, and brush up on all the big changes in the aftermath of Crisis on Infinite Earths. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

A brand new heroine will be defending Gotham City in Batwoman: Season 2, and now we've gotten our first look at Javicia Leslie wearing the iconic Batsuit. Leslie posted the image on her Instagram account, showing what looks to be a screenshot of a costume test, along with the message, "Look out, Gotham, I'm suited up and ready to go... But just wait until Ryan Wilder puts her own spin on the Batsuit." It appears as though Leslie's character Ryan Wilder will be wearing the same Batsuit as Ruby Rose's Kate Kane (which itself is a modified version of the bulletproof suit originally worn by Bruce Wayne). But based on Leslie's message, we're guessing Ryan will eventually branch out and wear her own, personalized Batsuit. Hopefully Luke Fox or Cisco Ramon can hook her up with new duds. Previously, our only glimpse of the new Batwoman came in the form of a DC FanDome montage poster drawn by Jim Lee. You can see a fully suited-up Ryan Wilder in the lower left, amid dozens of other DC heroes from across the multiverse. [caption id="attachment_2412782" align="aligncenter" width="2048"] Art by Jim Lee. (Image Credit: DC)[/caption] Like most of the current Arrowverse shows, Batwoman was forced to end its first season prematurely after production was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Shortly after the Season 1 finale, we learned original series star Ruby Rose won't be returning, with Rose citing the physical demands of the job and the back injury she suffered as reasons for wanting to move on. The CW eventually confirmed Leslie's Ryan Wilder will inherit the Batwoman mantle and Kate Kane herself won't be recast. Instead, Kate's sudden disappearance will be a major plot point in Season 2. Batwoman: Season 2 will begin in January 2021. Last we heard, the next Arrowverse crossover will unite Batwoman and new series Superman & Lois, though it's unclear if Rose's exit has changed those plans. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=crisis-on-infinite-earths-every-cameo-in-the-crossover&captions=true"] While we wait for more on the future of Batwoman, find out how the season finale (sort of) introduced the Arrowverse's Bruce Wayne, and brush up on all the big changes in the aftermath of Crisis on Infinite Earths. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

Amazon is warning customers that it may not be able to deliver Xbox Series X preorders in time for its November release date. Same as the PS5.

Amazon is warning customers that it may not be able to deliver Xbox Series X preorders in time for its November release date. Same as the PS5.

The Xbox app on iOS is getting a major update and one of the big new features is Remote play. This will let Xbox One owners stream games from their console to their iOS devices, similar to how the PS4 Remote Play feature works. Unlike xCloud which streams games from remote data servers, the Remote Play feature for the Xbox app will only work with local Xbox One consoles that owners already have in their homes. You’ll connect your Xbox to your smartphone over wi-fi or a data connection. This feature will let users play a game on their mobile devices while the main TV is occupied for something else, for example. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=confirmed-xbox-series-x-games&captions=true"] Other new features in the Xbox app update includes starting up your Xbox One console remotely, downloading or sharing game clips and screenshots, and downloading or uninstalling games remotely. The iOS app update, which is the same as the one that was released on Android earlier, will carry these new features over to when the Xbox Series X and S are released in November. However, xCloud, which is a service available through the Xbox Game Pass app, is still not supported on iOS devices to Apple’s restrictions. If you’re looking forward to the next-gen Xbox, check out IGN’s Xbox Series X guide for the latest retail links which we update regularly when new stock becomes available. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

The Xbox app on iOS is getting a major update and one of the big new features is Remote play. This will let Xbox One owners stream games from their console to their iOS devices, similar to how the PS4 Remote Play feature works. Unlike xCloud which streams games from remote data servers, the Remote Play feature for the Xbox app will only work with local Xbox One consoles that owners already have in their homes. You’ll connect your Xbox to your smartphone over wi-fi or a data connection. This feature will let users play a game on their mobile devices while the main TV is occupied for something else, for example. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=confirmed-xbox-series-x-games&captions=true"] Other new features in the Xbox app update includes starting up your Xbox One console remotely, downloading or sharing game clips and screenshots, and downloading or uninstalling games remotely. The iOS app update, which is the same as the one that was released on Android earlier, will carry these new features over to when the Xbox Series X and S are released in November. However, xCloud, which is a service available through the Xbox Game Pass app, is still not supported on iOS devices to Apple’s restrictions. If you’re looking forward to the next-gen Xbox, check out IGN’s Xbox Series X guide for the latest retail links which we update regularly when new stock becomes available. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

Black Adam is rounding out its Justice Society, with actor Aldis Hodge reportedly cast as Hawkman in the upcoming DC movie. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Aldis Hodge is in "final negotiations" to play Hawkman in Black Adam, joining Dwayne Johnson and Noah Centineo. Hodge's most recent credits include The Invisible Man and the forthcoming One Night in Miami, wherein he plays football icon-turned-actor Jim Brown. (Be sure to read our One Night in Miami review, which we gave a 10!) [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="3000"] Aldis Hodge as Jim Brown in One Night in Miami.[/caption] Hodge's other appearances include Hidden Figures, Straight Outta Compton, City on a Hill, Star Trek: Short Treks, Black Mirror, TURN: Washington's Spies, Brian Banks, Clemency, Underground, Leverage, and the small screen version of Friday Night Lights. Should the deal be finalized, Hodge will play Carter Hall, the archaeologist who is the reincarnation of the ancient Egyptian prince Khufu. As a member of the Justice Society of America, Hawkman has fought alongside Atom Smasher (Centineo) as well as Doctor Fate and Cyclone, who are as yet to be cast. Michael Shanks previously played Carter Hall/Hawkman in Season 9 of Smallville. [ignvideo width=610 height=374 url=https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/08/22/black-adam-introduces-the-justice-society-of-america-dc-fandome-official-teaser] Jaume Collet-Serra directs Black Adam from a screenplay by Rory Haines & Sohrab Noshirvani and Adam Sztykiel. The movie is slated to open December 2021.