Editor's Note: The war in Ukraine is an ongoing, painful and emotive topic. IGN urges community members to be respectful when engaging in conversation around this subject and does not endorse harassment of any kind.

Russia is reportedly easing its copyright laws to offset sanctions imposed by Western nations in response to its invasion of Ukraine – in doing so it is effectively legalizing piracy of games, movies, TV shows, and more.

The Russian Ministry of Economic Development proposed relaxing piracy legislation earlier this week to circumvent sanctions.

“The possibility of lifting restrictions on the use of intellectual property contained in certain goods, the supply of which to Russia is limited, is being considered,” said the Ministry. “This will smooth out the impact on the market of breaks in supply chains, as well as the shortage of goods and services that arose due to new sanctions by Western countries.”

According to local media in Russia (as reported by City A.M.), the government has now announced that Russian companies have no obligation to pay patent holders for the use of intellectual property, from any countries that have sanctioned the country. This has effectively legalized piracy across the nation.

State-backed newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta reports that new laws allow Russian firms to use innovations from unfriendly countries without paying to use their intellectual property.

When it comes to Hollywood movies, it looks as though Russian people will be free to pirate them, and Russian politician Dmitry Ionin has even suggested that the country may unblock the torrenting suite RuTracker to help Russians pirate Hollywood films.

“Since many Western studios have refused to release new films in Russia, the parliamentarian believes that thanks to the torrent tracker, users will be able to watch Hollywood films,” reports Gazetta.

Депутат Госдумы Дмитрий Ионин предложил разблокировать RuTracker

Так как многие западные студии отказались от выпуска новых кинолент в России, парламентарий считает, что благодаря торрент-трекеру пользователи смогут увидеть голливудские фильмы. pic.twitter.com/muO1VitjTO

— Газета.Ru (@GazetaRu) March 3, 2022

The move comes just days after Twitch suspended payments to Russian streamers. They have also introduced new rules to stop the spread of misinformation, allowing Twitch to take action against accounts deemed to be spreading false info – such as the video game footage being passed off as real-life war footage.

Additionally, Microsoft, Sony, and many more gaming and entertainment companies have suspended sales of games and hardware across Russia. In doing so the companies have answered a call from Ukraine's deputy prime minister, who asked "all game developers" to temporarily end support in Russia and Belarus.

We have a guide on how to help Ukrainian civilians, which includes a number of humanitarian charities that use donations to provide aid in the country.

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

Editor's Note: The war in Ukraine is an ongoing, painful and emotive topic. IGN urges community members to be respectful when engaging in conversation around this subject and does not endorse harassment of any kind.

Russia is reportedly easing its copyright laws to offset sanctions imposed by Western nations in response to its invasion of Ukraine – in doing so it is effectively legalizing piracy of games, movies, TV shows, and more.

The Russian Ministry of Economic Development proposed relaxing piracy legislation earlier this week to circumvent sanctions.

“The possibility of lifting restrictions on the use of intellectual property contained in certain goods, the supply of which to Russia is limited, is being considered,” said the Ministry. “This will smooth out the impact on the market of breaks in supply chains, as well as the shortage of goods and services that arose due to new sanctions by Western countries.”

According to local media in Russia (as reported by City A.M.), the government has now announced that Russian companies have no obligation to pay patent holders for the use of intellectual property, from any countries that have sanctioned the country. This has effectively legalized piracy across the nation.

State-backed newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta reports that new laws allow Russian firms to use innovations from unfriendly countries without paying to use their intellectual property.

When it comes to Hollywood movies, it looks as though Russian people will be free to pirate them, and Russian politician Dmitry Ionin has even suggested that the country may unblock the torrenting suite RuTracker to help Russians pirate Hollywood films.

“Since many Western studios have refused to release new films in Russia, the parliamentarian believes that thanks to the torrent tracker, users will be able to watch Hollywood films,” reports Gazetta.

Депутат Госдумы Дмитрий Ионин предложил разблокировать RuTracker

Так как многие западные студии отказались от выпуска новых кинолент в России, парламентарий считает, что благодаря торрент-трекеру пользователи смогут увидеть голливудские фильмы. pic.twitter.com/muO1VitjTO

— Газета.Ru (@GazetaRu) March 3, 2022

The move comes just days after Twitch suspended payments to Russian streamers. They have also introduced new rules to stop the spread of misinformation, allowing Twitch to take action against accounts deemed to be spreading false info – such as the video game footage being passed off as real-life war footage.

Additionally, Microsoft, Sony, and many more gaming and entertainment companies have suspended sales of games and hardware across Russia. In doing so the companies have answered a call from Ukraine's deputy prime minister, who asked "all game developers" to temporarily end support in Russia and Belarus.

We have a guide on how to help Ukrainian civilians, which includes a number of humanitarian charities that use donations to provide aid in the country.

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

Elden Ring is officially the United States' best-selling game of 2022 so far, with a huge launch according to the latest NPD data.

FromSoftware's latest is the second best launch of the last twelve months, falling short of only Call of Duty: Vanguard. That means its sales in February performed better than Forza Horizon 5, Halo Infinite, and the other best games of 2021.

Elden Ring is also already the fifth best selling game of the past twelve months, despite only being released two weeks ago on February 25.

PlayStation players still favoured their latest exclusive, Horizon: Forbidden West, as Elden Ring placed second on Sony consoles.

It still secured the top spot on Xbox, however, and on Steam, where it grew in popularity day by day on its first weekend before becoming the sixth most played game of all time on the platform.

Elden Ring has proven somewhat of a cultural phenomenon, with crazy adverts, a streamer's Twitch chat playing while he swept, someone using the Nintendo Switch's Ring Fit Controller to beat a boss, and it's even got its own candy.

In our 10/10 review, IGN said: "Elden Ring is a massive iteration on what FromSoftware began with the Souls series, bringing its relentlessly challenging combat to an incredible open world that gives us the freedom to choose our own path."

To make those choices with the best available information, check out our guide that features everything you could ever hope to know about Elden Ring, including collectible locations, boss strategies, and more.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale.

Elden Ring is officially the United States' best-selling game of 2022 so far, with a huge launch according to the latest NPD data.

FromSoftware's latest is the second best launch of the last twelve months, falling short of only Call of Duty: Vanguard. That means its sales in February performed better than Forza Horizon 5, Halo Infinite, and the other best games of 2021.

Elden Ring is also already the fifth best selling game of the past twelve months, despite only being released two weeks ago on February 25.

PlayStation players still favoured their latest exclusive, Horizon: Forbidden West, as Elden Ring placed second on Sony consoles.

It still secured the top spot on Xbox, however, and on Steam, where it grew in popularity day by day on its first weekend before becoming the sixth most played game of all time on the platform.

Elden Ring has proven somewhat of a cultural phenomenon, with crazy adverts, a streamer's Twitch chat playing while he swept, someone using the Nintendo Switch's Ring Fit Controller to beat a boss, and it's even got its own candy.

In our 10/10 review, IGN said: "Elden Ring is a massive iteration on what FromSoftware began with the Souls series, bringing its relentlessly challenging combat to an incredible open world that gives us the freedom to choose our own path."

To make those choices with the best available information, check out our guide that features everything you could ever hope to know about Elden Ring, including collectible locations, boss strategies, and more.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale.

New episodes of four different anime series have been delayed after a recent hacking incident suspended some of Toei Animation's internal systems.

According to Siliconera, Toei Animation became the target of an online hack on March 6 when an unauthorized third party attempted to access the company's network, which resulted in its online store and internal systems "temporarily shutting down as a safety measure." The suspension of those systems will affect the airing dates of some episodes of its anime series.

The shutdown has impacted the broadcasting schedules of four anime titles in total, with new episodes of Dragon Quest: The Adventures of Dai, One Piece, Digimon Ghost Game, and Delicious Party: Pretty Cure all affected by the incident. New episodes will not air as planned, with updated airing schedules released at a later date.

In the meantime, some shows will air reruns of earlier episodes in place of the new episodes that were originally scheduled for this weekend. Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai will air its 31st episode on March 12 in place of its upcoming 73rd episode, while Delicious Party: Pretty Cure will air its fourth episode instead of the sixth episode.

Toei Animation shared a press release on March 7 to confirm that its network had been compromised by a third party the previous day. They are currently conducting an investigation into the incident to determine the details of the hack, specifically whether the security breach affected any of its user and client data.

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

New episodes of four different anime series have been delayed after a recent hacking incident suspended some of Toei Animation's internal systems.

According to Siliconera, Toei Animation became the target of an online hack on March 6 when an unauthorized third party attempted to access the company's network, which resulted in its online store and internal systems "temporarily shutting down as a safety measure." The suspension of those systems will affect the airing dates of some episodes of its anime series.

The shutdown has impacted the broadcasting schedules of four anime titles in total, with new episodes of Dragon Quest: The Adventures of Dai, One Piece, Digimon Ghost Game, and Delicious Party: Pretty Cure all affected by the incident. New episodes will not air as planned, with updated airing schedules released at a later date.

In the meantime, some shows will air reruns of earlier episodes in place of the new episodes that were originally scheduled for this weekend. Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai will air its 31st episode on March 12 in place of its upcoming 73rd episode, while Delicious Party: Pretty Cure will air its fourth episode instead of the sixth episode.

Toei Animation shared a press release on March 7 to confirm that its network had been compromised by a third party the previous day. They are currently conducting an investigation into the incident to determine the details of the hack, specifically whether the security breach affected any of its user and client data.

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

Obi-Wan Kenobi star Ewan McGregor thinks opinions of the Star Wars prequels have shifted, and admitted that the original reception to the movies was hard for him to take at the time.

During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the 50-year-old Star Wars actor explained that he sees a new “Wave of positivity” when it comes to the prequel trilogy.

“Now I meet the people who we made those films for, who were the kids of the time, he said. “And our Star Wars films are their Star Wars films. In the way that Carrie Fisher and Alec Guinness and Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford's films were ours, we're theirs. And that's beautiful that they were important to the kids who we made them for. It's just so nice to finally get that wave of positivity about them.”

Of course, it wasn’t always that way. After the release of The Phantom Menace in 1999, the film was met with mixed reviews. Over time, it only worsened… and with the release of both Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith the trilogy failed to live up to many fans' expectations.

“I found it quite hard,” said McGregor. “For it to come out and get knocked so hard was personally quite difficult to deal with. And also, it was quite early in my career. I didn't really know how to deal with that. I'd been involved with things that just didn't make much of a ripple, but that's different from making something that makes a negative ripple.”

Equally, the young Darth Vader actor Hayden Christensen felt the force of critical reaction.

“When the films came out and the critics were very critical, of course, that was a difficult thing,” said Christensen. “Because you care so much about this thing that you've invested so much of yourself into. So, for sure, that's challenging.”

Now, the pair get to revisit their roles in the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi series for Disney+.

The first Obi-Wan Kenobi trailer saw the Jedi master return to Tatooine, with our first look at Hayden Christensen’s Darth Vader soon to follow. Then there’s the addition of a brand-new foe in the form of Inquisitor Reva. The Star Wars prequels may be getting some love, but it seems Obi-Wan is in for a rough time.

Obi-Wan Kenobi star Ewan McGregor as the iconic Jedi, with Hayden Christensen set to appear as Darth Vader. They’re joined by Rupert Friend, Kumail Nanjiani, Joel Edgerton, and Moses Ingram.

Deborah Chow directed the upcoming series, with scripts by Joby Harold.

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

Obi-Wan Kenobi star Ewan McGregor thinks opinions of the Star Wars prequels have shifted, and admitted that the original reception to the movies was hard for him to take at the time.

During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the 50-year-old Star Wars actor explained that he sees a new “Wave of positivity” when it comes to the prequel trilogy.

“Now I meet the people who we made those films for, who were the kids of the time, he said. “And our Star Wars films are their Star Wars films. In the way that Carrie Fisher and Alec Guinness and Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford's films were ours, we're theirs. And that's beautiful that they were important to the kids who we made them for. It's just so nice to finally get that wave of positivity about them.”

Of course, it wasn’t always that way. After the release of The Phantom Menace in 1999, the film was met with mixed reviews. Over time, it only worsened… and with the release of both Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith the trilogy failed to live up to many fans' expectations.

“I found it quite hard,” said McGregor. “For it to come out and get knocked so hard was personally quite difficult to deal with. And also, it was quite early in my career. I didn't really know how to deal with that. I'd been involved with things that just didn't make much of a ripple, but that's different from making something that makes a negative ripple.”

Equally, the young Darth Vader actor Hayden Christensen felt the force of critical reaction.

“When the films came out and the critics were very critical, of course, that was a difficult thing,” said Christensen. “Because you care so much about this thing that you've invested so much of yourself into. So, for sure, that's challenging.”

Now, the pair get to revisit their roles in the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi series for Disney+.

The first Obi-Wan Kenobi trailer saw the Jedi master return to Tatooine, with our first look at Hayden Christensen’s Darth Vader soon to follow. Then there’s the addition of a brand-new foe in the form of Inquisitor Reva. The Star Wars prequels may be getting some love, but it seems Obi-Wan is in for a rough time.

Obi-Wan Kenobi star Ewan McGregor as the iconic Jedi, with Hayden Christensen set to appear as Darth Vader. They’re joined by Rupert Friend, Kumail Nanjiani, Joel Edgerton, and Moses Ingram.

Deborah Chow directed the upcoming series, with scripts by Joby Harold.

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

Xbox is hosting a new ID@Xbox indie showcase on March 16.

Xbox announced the stream in a blog post, saying it will include a number of new game announcements and updates for current releases. The showcase will take place on March 16 at 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern / 6pm UK (that's March 17 at 5am AEDT) . You'll be able to watch it here with us on IGN.

Xbox's post reads: "We’ll be featuring updates, new trailers, and gameplay from Finji [Tunic] and Whitethorn [Lake], as well as the first game from iam8bit’s brand new publishing label."

"Fans will also get a chance to see the latest and hear from teams working on Shredders, Roblox, and some new games that you need to tune in for to see."

Xbox hosted their an indie showcase last March to promote its ID@Xbox development programme, and its showcase last August included a ton of announcements including news on Stardew Valley, OlliOlli World, and RPG Time.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale.

Xbox is hosting a new ID@Xbox indie showcase on March 16.

Xbox announced the stream in a blog post, saying it will include a number of new game announcements and updates for current releases. The showcase will take place on March 16 at 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern / 6pm UK (that's March 17 at 5am AEDT) . You'll be able to watch it here with us on IGN.

Xbox's post reads: "We’ll be featuring updates, new trailers, and gameplay from Finji [Tunic] and Whitethorn [Lake], as well as the first game from iam8bit’s brand new publishing label."

"Fans will also get a chance to see the latest and hear from teams working on Shredders, Roblox, and some new games that you need to tune in for to see."

Xbox hosted their an indie showcase last March to promote its ID@Xbox development programme, and its showcase last August included a ton of announcements including news on Stardew Valley, OlliOlli World, and RPG Time.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale.