Microsoft has discussed its plans for Activision Blizzard's games after its intended acquisition of the gaming giant, from how it won't make multi-platform games exclusive, to its plans for putting titles into Game Pass.

Speaking during a briefing for media, Head of Xbox Game Studios, Matt Booty addressed the issue of exclusives, and tried to put fans' minds at ease about existing multiplatform games they might love outside of Xbox:

"If we acquire a game that comes with a big community across a number of platforms," Booty began, "the last thing we want to do is take something away. If anything, we feel that it's our job to be caretakers, to be shepherds, to continue to build and nurture that community, not to cut it up into pieces and try to take some of it away."

This appears to be Microsoft's philosophy for existing games, and perhaps series, given we've heard that Xbox will release multiple new Call of Duty games as multiplatform titles (although it's not clear if that will continue indefinitely). GM for Programming and Events Tina Summerford pointed to Xbox's previous acquisition of Minecraft – and how that game has expanded across new platforms since the purchase – as proof of that philosophy.

However, Summerford did make clear that some games will be exclusive – these would presumably be brand new titles from Activision-Blizzard developers, rather than existing ones.

The philosophy for how Xbox will look at Activision-Blizzard games on Game Pass appears to be much more straightforward. Corporate Vice President, Sarah Bond put it simply: "We want to put as many titles as possible from Activision Blizzard into Game Pass when they join us."

We've seen a similar move following Xbox's acquisition of Bethesda, after which it put tens of Bethesda games into the subscription service. It feels likely we'll see much the same – on both console and PC – if an when the acquisition goes through.

Microsoft announced its intention to buy Activision Blizzard in January, in a record-breaking $68.7 billion deal. The move has been approved by stockholders, but is currently under investigation by the FTC for antitrust purposes.

The Activision Blizzard acquisition comes at a time of ongoing turbulance within and around the company. The deal itself has prompted accusations of insider trading, but even more notable is the ongoing California lawsuit against the publisher accusing it of fostering a "frat boy culture" as well as subjecting female employees to unequal pay and sexual harassment. You can see a full timeline of events related to the lawsuit here.

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.

Which side would Nick Fury have taken in Captain America: Civil War? Sadly, we’ll never find out, and Samuel L. Jackson is still upset about it.

During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the 73-year-old actor explained why he felt left out when it came to Marvel’s superhero rumble in Civil War.

“I fussed at them, I still fuss at them, about Civil War because I’m like, ‘How could the kids fight and Nick Fury not show up?’” he said. “Like, ‘What’s going on here? Everybody go to your room.’ But they didn’t need me for that. They did, but they didn’t.”

Captain America: Civil War essentially pitted Earth’s Mightiest Heroes against each other. The film loosely followed Marvel’s Civil War comic books, with Captain America and Iron Man butting heads over the Sokovia Accords – a new international treaty requiring superheroes to register with oversight from the United Nations. Fracturing the superhero community, it was time for each hero to pick a side…

“That was the thing about the Avengers movies, they all had different personalities and they were able to blossom once we got through the initial film,” said Jackson. “The initial film was to introduce these people to who they are, and these are the things they can do. Now, this is how they interact and they’re not all nice.”

But it turns out the writers had a reason for leaving him out. "We didn’t want him to take one side or the other," writer Christopher Markus told The LA Times in 2016. "Because that’s not his place in the universe."

The last we saw of Nick Fury was in Spider-Man: Far From Home in 2019. But he will be back. Secret Invasion picks up where Nick Fury left off, with the former head of S.H.I.E.L.D. embroiled in a political thriller involving the shapeshifting Skrulls who have infiltrated Earth. It sounds as though Jackson is having a lot of fun with it.

“Well, I can have a whole life as Nick Fury that’s not Nick Fury at work,” he said. “You know, we get to go home with me and see what happens with me at home or when I’m alone or when I’m not so strong and Nick Fury, or when I take off a back brace because Nick Fury is old.”

“Some things that you can do that you can’t normally do [in the films] because the character has to present this [trumpeting heroically] duh-dunna-duh kind of front, and that’s what the movies are for. And when you get to do it in longform, you get to show even superheroes have their down moments.”

Secret Invasion stars Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury alongside Cobie Smulders, Ben Mendelsohn, Martin Freeman, and Don Cheadle. Kingsley Ben-Adir has joined as the show’s mysterious villain, with Olivia Colman, Emilia Clarke, Killian Scott, Christopher McDonald, and Carmen Ejogo in currently unknown roles. Created by Kyle Bradstreet, Secret Invasion will be directed by Thomas Bezucha and Ali Selim.

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

After months of wild guesses, we finally know what Nope is about.

Jordan Peele’s mysterious new project, Nope has seen a recent trailer, not to mention a poster reveal, but fans were still none the wiser about what the film is actually about. Now, a new full trailer gives us the lowdown on the upcoming sci-fi horror flick.

If you don't want to know anything about Nope, turn back now and don't watch the new trailer!

As you can see, it’s all about UFOs… with a money-making twist. After encountering a mysterious shape in the sky, ranch owners James and Jill Haywood (Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer) decide to make the most of this opportunity. Setting up security cameras, they’re determined to get proof of what’s out there.

“Ain’t nobody gonna get what we gonna get,” says Jill. “Undeniable proof of aliens on camera.”

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Jordan Peele movie if things don’t go spectacularly wrong, and as the trailer progresses, we see it isn’t quite as straightforward as they clearly hoped. Kevin (Brandon Perea) is brought to the ranch to set up their new UFO-detecting camera system, while Craig (Michael Wincott) is their very own UFO expert. But the aliens are seemingly having none of it.

“I think we pissed them off,” says Jill.

What unfolds is a montage of clips showing the aliens wreaking havoc on the Haywood Ranch, in disturbingly creative ways. A smashed windscreen and a trashed rodeo ring are nothing compared to what looks like the abduction of an entire rodeo audience. That's to say nothing of Daniel Kaluuya, on a horse, being chased by an enormous flying saucer.

With a jaunty soundtrack and high-energy performances from the likes of Kaluuya and Palmer, this new trailer gives us the best look at Nope we’ve had so far. But whether or not the Haywoods get their footage, or survive the ordeal, remains to be seen.

Nope debuts in theaters on July 22, 2022 (or August 12th in the UK), and remains one of our most anticipated horror movies of the year. Jordan Peele’s Nope stars Daniel Kaluuya, Steven Yeun, and Keke Palmer. Jordan Peele both wrote and directed the project which he also produced alongside Ian Cooper. Robert Graf is also on board as executive producer.

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

Nicolas Cage could be back in Face/Off 2, if the film’s writer/director has his way.

During an interview with Empire Magazine, writer Adam Wingard revealed that the upcoming sequel is all about Nicolas Cage.

“A couple of years ago, the studio maybe would have wanted a hot, young, up-and-coming actor or something,” he explained. “Now, Nicolas Cage is one of the hottest actors in Hollywood again.”

He's not wrong – Nicolas Cage has quickly returned as one of Hollywood’s biggest stars. A flurry of well-received films such as Pig and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent has seen the 58-year-old actor become hot property once more, after a slew of low-budget, straight-to-DVD films.

But why is his return to Face/Off 2 so important? After all, his character, Castor Troy, was presumed dead at the end of the original movie. “He’s just having such a moment,” said Wingard. “Even before Pig came out, we saw this as a Nicolas Cage movie. That’s become totally the obvious way to go now.”

At the moment, Cage is yet to officially sign on to the project, but it’s said that Face/Off 2 producer Neal H. Moritz has spoken to him about a potential return. He'll be getting his hands on the script just as soon as Wingard and co-writer, Simon Barrett are finished with it.

“We’re really honing in on it,” said Wingard. “We’re not going to share it until everybody’s like, ‘This is the one.’”

It’s certainly quite a task – Face/Off was one of the most over-the-top action flicks of the '90s, and following up such a massive hit isn’t going to be easy.

“I think we really got it,” he said. “It has been probably the most challenging script we’ve ever worked on, for a lot of reasons. There’s so much pressure in wanting to make sure that it lives up to the legacy of that project. But every draft you have these things that just click in, and you’re like, ‘A-ha! That’s really what Face/Off is!’”

Face/Off 2 has reportedly been in development since as far back as 2019, with Adam Wingard tapped to write the sequel alongside Simon Barrett just last year.

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

Ghostbusters: Afterlife writer/director Jason Reitman has announced a sequel, codenamed Firehouse.

Appearing on Twitter as part of Ecto-Fest, a Ghostbusters fan fest, the son of Ghostbusters director Ivan Reitman unveiled the next Ghostbusters movie. “The last time we saw Ecto-1, it was driving back into Manhattan: the home of Ghostbusters,” he revealed via Twitter. “That’s where our story begins. The code name is FIREHOUSE.”

The upcoming sequel will follow Ecto-1 (and the Spenglers) heading back to the iconic Firehouse from Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II. A previous tweet from Reitman described the film as “the next chapter in the Spengler family story” but it’s currently unknown how that will play out.

As for returning cast members, it’s likely that we’ll at least see Finn Wolfhard and McKenna Grace return as Egon Spengler’s grandkids, Trevor and Grace. It’s also a safe bet that Carrie Coon will be back as Egon’s daughter, Callie.

Whether or not Paul Rudd will return as Callie’s love interest, Gary Grooberson, remains to be seen, and will likely depend on Marvel’s plans for Ant-Man in its upcoming MCU Phase 4 and beyond.

Will the original Ghostbusters cast be back? At the moment, we’re not quite sure. Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and Ernie Hudson made an emotional return at the climax of Ghostbusters: Afterlife, but whether or not the famously recalcitrant Murray will take on another Ghostbusters movie is anyone’s guess.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife scored a pretty big win with audiences and critics alike, with IGN’s own review calling it: “A delightfully lovely movie that will satisfy those who grew up with Ramis, Hudson, Murray, and Aykroyd, [that] will make youngsters fall just as in love with the new generation.”

Read more about the Ghostbusters franchise with news of a new animated series, as well as hints of an upcoming new game. Check out our rundown of what the Ghostbusters: Afterlife ending means as well as our list of all the film’s Easter eggs.

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

As part of Ghostbusters Day celebrations, Sony Pictures VR announced today that its upcoming title Ghostbusters VR will be coming to the PlayStation VR2.

Ghostbusters VR was announced last April during the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase, where it was first announced to be coming to the Quest 2. nDreams, the studio behind Far Cry VR: Dive Into Insanity and Phantom: Covert Opps, is developing Ghostbusters VR.

Set in San Francisco, players will have the opportunity to run their own ghost-busting business. Sony Picture VR previously confirmed that the game is set "in modern day and maybe slightly in the future," but the game is not a direct follow-up to any of the Ghostbusters movies, including Ghostbusters: Afterlife.

Ghostbusters VR is the latest game to be announced for Sony's forthcoming gaming headset, the PlayStation VR2. Last week Sony had a roughly 30-minute State of Play where several games were confirmed to be in development for the headset, including VR support for Resident Evil Village and an extended look at Horizon: Call of the Mountain. Other games confirmed to be in development for PSVR2 include Among Us VR and No Man's Sky.

Like the PlayStation VR2, Ghostbusters VR currently does not have a release date.

Taylor is the Associate Tech Editor at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.

As part of Ghostbusters Day celebrations, Sony Pictures VR announced today that its upcoming title Ghostbusters VR will be coming to the PlayStation VR2.

Ghostbusters VR was announced last April during the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase, where it was first announced to be coming to the Quest 2. nDreams, the studio behind Far Cry VR: Dive Into Insanity and Phantom: Covert Opps, is developing Ghostbusters VR.

Set in San Francisco, players will have the opportunity to run their own ghost-busting business. Sony Picture VR previously confirmed that the game is set "in modern day and maybe slightly in the future," but the game is not a direct follow-up to any of the Ghostbusters movies, including Ghostbusters: Afterlife.

Ghostbusters VR is the latest game to be announced for Sony's forthcoming gaming headset, the PlayStation VR2. Last week Sony had a roughly 30-minute State of Play where several games were confirmed to be in development for the headset, including VR support for Resident Evil Village and an extended look at Horizon: Call of the Mountain. Other games confirmed to be in development for PSVR2 include Among Us VR and No Man's Sky.

Like the PlayStation VR2, Ghostbusters VR currently does not have a release date.

Taylor is the Associate Tech Editor at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.

Japanese horror master Junji Ito made a surprise appearance during today's Netflix Geeked Week stream, where he announced a new series titled Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre.

The new series will compile 20 of Ito's famous horror stories, which are known for their twisted imagery and terrifying ideas. It's the latest attempt to adapt Ito's work, with the Junji Ito Collection previously appearing on Crunchyroll.

from the horror master of manga comes a new anime series: JUNJI ITO'S MANIAC #GeekedWeek pic.twitter.com/2Yjco9okbM

— Netflix Geeked (@NetflixGeeked) June 8, 2022

Ito confirmed that the first stories to be adapted will be from Tomie, Souichi, and Hanging Balloons, though he did not say which of the Tomie and Souichi stories would be chosen.

Tomie has special meaning as Ito's first published work, having originally appeared in 1987. The manga has been adapted into a live-action series, and at one point was set to appear on Quibli. Meanwhile, Souichi is one of Ito's most famous characters, while Hanging Balloons is a story meant to reflect suicidal urges and mass hallucinations.

To celebrate the announcement, Ito showed art from the various stories and discussed some of the inspirations behind his terrifying tales.

Ito's announcement was part of Day 3 of Netflix Geeked Week, which included a Masters of the Universe announcement and a closer look at Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. You can read our full Netflix Geeked Week roundup here.

Junji Ito Maniac will release on Netflix in 2023.

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.

Japanese horror master Junji Ito made a surprise appearance during today's Netflix Geeked Week stream, where he announced a new series titled Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre.

The new series will compile 20 of Ito's famous horror stories, which are known for their twisted imagery and terrifying ideas. It's the latest attempt to adapt Ito's work, with the Junji Ito Collection previously appearing on Crunchyroll.

from the horror master of manga comes a new anime series: JUNJI ITO'S MANIAC #GeekedWeek pic.twitter.com/2Yjco9okbM

— Netflix Geeked (@NetflixGeeked) June 8, 2022

Ito confirmed that the first stories to be adapted will be from Tomie, Souichi, and Hanging Balloons, though he did not say which of the Tomie and Souichi stories would be chosen.

Tomie has special meaning as Ito's first published work, having originally appeared in 1987. The manga has been adapted into a live-action series, and at one point was set to appear on Quibli. Meanwhile, Souichi is one of Ito's most famous characters, while Hanging Balloons is a story meant to reflect suicidal urges and mass hallucinations.

To celebrate the announcement, Ito showed art from the various stories and discussed some of the inspirations behind his terrifying tales.

Ito's announcement was part of Day 3 of Netflix Geeked Week, which included a Masters of the Universe announcement and a closer look at Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. You can read our full Netflix Geeked Week roundup here.

Junji Ito Maniac will release on Netflix in 2023.

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.

Netflix has revealed that its Cyberpunk: Edgerunners will premiere in September along with an official clip from the new anime series.

Previously only confirmed to be a 2022 release, Netflix gave fans a month to look forward to during day three of its Geeked Week showcase. The trailer starts fairly slowly, before speeding through several chaotic clips of the Cyberpunk 2077-connected anime, showing off some pretty gruesome scenes that reveal Edgerunners to be just as R-Rated as the game.

Sticking to the aesthetic of both the game and overall cyberpunk genre, Edgerunners is colorful and flashy, whether it's the bright lights of Night City or explosions of blood in the series' brutal fight scenes.

We see more of this violence in a 45-second clip released alongside the trailer, which appears to take place in the same location as The Pickup mission from Cyberpunk 2077, in which V and Jackie pick up the robot spy-spider from the electro-eyed Maelstrom gang. We see a similar negotiation take place in the anime clip, though the cargo appears to be a human girl instead of a robo. The girl is taken, guns are pulled, arms are cut off, and general chaos ensues.

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners is a standalone 10-episode story about a street punk who becomes a mercenary known as an Edgerunner. The series was first announced two years ago in June 2020 but Netflix, alongside co-developers CD Projekt Red and Studio Trigger, have all remained pretty quiet on the series since then. Hopefully we'll be seeing more before release in September.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.