Hitman 3 speedrunners have managed to finish the game's first level in less than 10 seconds, and they're only getting faster, with the current leader beating it in just eight. The Dubai assassination mission 'On Top Of The World' can be beaten incredibly quickly due to the position of the two main targets at the start of the level, and Speedrun.com currently shows a number of users vying to claim the Any% world record, with 5 people currently cracking the sub-10 second mark. User Goron managed to finish it in eight seconds on January 25 and, as can be seen in the accompanying video, they don't need to even walk up the stairs to dispatch of the two marks. Using the Atrium elevator entrance to the level, Goron first shoots the wall to alert the targets – stopping them from moving – before quickly picking them off with a silenced pistol. Then, all they need to do is head back to the elevator to complete the mission. Could it be done in even faster? Only time will tell, but our money's on yes. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/08/hitman-3-gameplay-trailer"] But what about getting the Silent Assassin accolade too? Goron has to compromise 47 to complete the mission (brilliantly, an 8-second finish only awards a 2-star rating for the level), but other users have found ways to complete Dubai in less than 20 seconds while staying completely hidden. User GuLe manages it in just 17 seconds by using a silenced sniper, pinging walls to draw the targets into their crosshairs. Going forward from here, the sky's the limit really. Never tell speedrunners the odds. In other Hitman 3 news, check out our review of the game, which we scored a 9, calling it "one of the barcoded butcher's best appearances." If you're just kicking off your journey into the World of Assassination, check out our 17 Hitman 3 tips to help you become a master assassin. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

Update 28/01/2021: CD Projekt Red has released a Cyberpunk 2077 hotfix that, among other things, fixes the widespread new bug in the Down on the Street quest, which would halt all player progress. Hotfix 1.11 is available now on all consoles, PC, and Stadia, and is designed to alleviate two issues created by the major 1.1 patch. "A bug in Down on the Street quest has been fixed", read the patch notes. "It occurred for some players during a holocall with Takemura, when using a save made on version 1.06 with Down on the Street quest in progress at "Wait For Takemura's call" objective. After loading such a save on version 1.1, the holocall would lack dialogue options and block interactions with other NPCs." The second bug is less 'fixed' than 'reverted', with item randomization restored to how it was calculated before patch 1.1. The bug had been seemingly causing found items to fail to randomize properly, meaning they didn't scale with player levels, rendering loot useless in some circumstances. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/08/5-best-pc-mods-to-help-fix-cyberpunk-2077"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Cyberpunk 2077 got its major 1.1 patch last week, offering performance improvements, crash fixes, and more stability-related changes – but players soon noticed a new, potentially game-breaking bug had seemingly been added, too. CD Projekt Red has now acknowledged the issue, and offered a workaround before a full fix is added. The new bug centres around the 'Down on the Street' quest, in which Goro Takemura is meant to close the quest in a phone call – however, players on 1.1 have now found that Takemura can call but never begin speaking. 'Down on the Street' is a key quest, meaning this effectively stops the story in its tracks. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/cyberpunk-2077-reviews-one-month-later-the-review-crew"] CD Projekt Red says it's now looking into the issue but, in the absence of a hotfix, has offered a workaround on its support site – although you'll need a save from before the bug occurred. Per the guide:

• Load a gamesave before Takemura and V leave Wakako's office.
• Finish the conversation with Takemura outside the office right away
• Right after the finished conversation and when the quest was updated, skip 23h.
• See if the holocall triggers and the dialogue with Takemura starts

[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-best-and-worst-reviewed-games-of-2020&captions=true"] No timescale's been given for a full fix, but we'd hope to see a hotfix soon, given the severity of the problem. If you do have the bug, and no earlier save to revert to, it appears you'll be playing the waiting game until that fix is released. Cyberpunk 2077 has had an extremely troubled launch, with more fixes to come before a promised next-gen update arrives in the second half of 2021. CD Projekt Red studio head Adam Badowski recently responded to a report on the game's development to contextualise its 'fake' E3 demo, and cut features. Despite the game's woes, it's reportedly still seen the biggest digital game launch of all time. [poilib element="accentDivider"] 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.

Valve boss Gabe Newell has given an interview about the potential of brain-computer interfaces, and how they could be used to augment the future of gaming. Newell has spoken to IGN previously about his work on brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), technology that will allow direct control of devices using your brain, and potentially for devices to provide feedback to your brain. Speaking to New Zealand's 1 News, the Valve co-founder went into more detail about what he sees as the potential of the technology – and reiterated that developers shouldn't ignore this emerging technology. "If you're a software developer in 2022 who doesn't have [a BCI headset] in your test lab, you're making a silly mistake," Newell notes. Valve has been working with technology organisation OpenBCI – which has shown off a design for a BCI headset, Galea, which can work in tandem with Valve's Index VR headset. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/03/18/ign-first-half-life-alyx-gabe-newell-interview"] Newell is particularly interested in the idea of using BCIs to enhance immersion and personalise interactive experiences such as video games. With BCIs able to interpret if a player is "excited, surprised, sad, bored, amused and afraid", games could programmed to adjust for what the player is experiencing. One example is "turning up the difficulty a bit if the system realises the player is getting bored." Newell goes further, adding that BCIs could be used to 'write' information into the player's brain, from changing feelings, to even helping you feel as though you actually are a different individual. He distinguishes this technology as a medium of experience that is far more potentially immersive than the "meat peripherals" like our eyes and ears can provide. "The real world will stop being the metric that we apply to the best possible visual fidelity," Newell tells 1 News. "The real world will seem flat, colourless, blurry compared to the experiences you'll be able to create in people's brains." Newell suggested that early applications of this technology could come in the form of an app to improve sleep, where users can choose how much REM they need for the night and commit the signal to their brain. Similarly, BCIs may provide a means to fight VR Vertigo, which is one of the key stumbling blocks for the medium. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/03/23/half-life-alyx-review"] Valve isn't planning to launch a consumer BCI headset anytime soon due to the speed of research, and Newell is certainly conscious of the dangers of this technology going forward. He told 1 News that BCIs could be used to stimulate physical and mental pain and that it will be up to consumers if they want to adopt the technology or not, given the potential risks. "I'm not saying that everybody is going to love and insist that they have a brain computer interface," Newell notes. "I'm just saying each person is going to decide for themselves whether or not there's an interesting combination of feature, functionality and price." Newell added that BCIs are no less vulnerable to viruses or security breaches, so the technology will demand a lot of consumer trust. "Nobody wants to say, 'Oh, remember Bob? Remember when Bob got hacked by the Russian malware? That sucked - is he still running naked through the forests?' or whatever. So yeah, people are going to have to have a lot of confidence that these are secure systems that don't have long-term health risks." Valve has been interested in this field for some time, with Newell previously telling IGN how "we're way closer to The Matrix than people realise" in a 2020 interview for IGN First. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

The Karate Kid star Ralph Macchio, who now gets to continue playing the role of Daniel LaRusso in Netflix's Karate Kid continuation Cobra Kai, recently revealed that a few famous folks auditioned for the role of Daniel back in the early '80s - including a young Robert Downey Jr. Now, at this point, Macchio wasn't exactly in total danger of losing the LaRusso role as he'd already been cast, largely thanks to his performance in Francis Ford Coppola's 1983 adaptation of The Outsiders, but according to Macchio, as he recounted the tale to Jimmy Fallon, he wasn't quite a household name so the studio wanted to audition other up-and-coming actors of the era just to play things safe. "I was found early," Macchio said. "I was cast very early, but it was like one of those test deals where you’re not in yet. I remember walking by and seeing Charlie Sheen hanging out outside [producer] Jerry Weintraub’s bungalow, thinking, ‘What’s Charlie doing here?’" Also there? "Nic Cage, I think, and Robert Downey Jr." "Robert Downey Jr. also did the workshop of the part I did in The Outsiders." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-iron-man-mcu-armor&captions=true"] So, although the possibility was small, we could have gotten a very different Karate Kid, and very different career trajectories for Macchio and the lucky multiverse winner. Back in the '80s, Downey Jr. had a stable career playing movie bullies and sidekicks, and was even an SNL cast member during the '85-'86  season, but he'd find breakout success by co-headlining 1987's Less Than Zero and The Pick-up Artist. Macchio would star as Daniel LaRusso in three Karate Kid films and then reprise the role, 30 years after The Karate Kid Part III, on Cobra Kai, which began as a YouTube Red series and is now a Netflix Original. You can read IGN's review of Cobra Kai: Season 3, which released at the beginning of this month, as well as dig deeper into the ending of Season 3 with this handy explainer piece. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/09/cobra-kai-season-3-ending-explained"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN and a member of the Television Critics Association. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBFowler.

The Karate Kid star Ralph Macchio, who now gets to continue playing the role of Daniel LaRusso in Netflix's Karate Kid continuation Cobra Kai, recently revealed that a few famous folks auditioned for the role of Daniel back in the early '80s - including a young Robert Downey Jr. Now, at this point, Macchio wasn't exactly in total danger of losing the LaRusso role as he'd already been cast, largely thanks to his performance in Francis Ford Coppola's 1983 adaptation of The Outsiders, but according to Macchio, as he recounted the tale to Jimmy Fallon, he wasn't quite a household name so the studio wanted to audition other up-and-coming actors of the era just to play things safe. "I was found early," Macchio said. "I was cast very early, but it was like one of those test deals where you’re not in yet. I remember walking by and seeing Charlie Sheen hanging out outside [producer] Jerry Weintraub’s bungalow, thinking, ‘What’s Charlie doing here?’" Also there? "Nic Cage, I think, and Robert Downey Jr." "Robert Downey Jr. also did the workshop of the part I did in The Outsiders." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-iron-man-mcu-armor&captions=true"] So, although the possibility was small, we could have gotten a very different Karate Kid, and very different career trajectories for Macchio and the lucky multiverse winner. Back in the '80s, Downey Jr. had a stable career playing movie bullies and sidekicks, and was even an SNL cast member during the '85-'86  season, but he'd find breakout success by co-headlining 1987's Less Than Zero and The Pick-up Artist. Macchio would star as Daniel LaRusso in three Karate Kid films and then reprise the role, 30 years after The Karate Kid Part III, on Cobra Kai, which began as a YouTube Red series and is now a Netflix Original. You can read IGN's review of Cobra Kai: Season 3, which released at the beginning of this month, as well as dig deeper into the ending of Season 3 with this handy explainer piece. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/09/cobra-kai-season-3-ending-explained"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN and a member of the Television Critics Association. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBFowler.

A new Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic game is reportedly in the works, and it is not being developed by EA and BioWare - the studio behind the original game.. As reported by VGC, this latest rumor comes courtesy of credited Star Wars insider Bespin Bulletin, who spoke on a recent B.O.B. The Podcast episode about this project that is said to be in development outside of EA and that "we’ll ‘never guess’ who the studio is that’s making this game.” “Amongst my digging, I heard there is a Knights of the Old Republic project in development somewhere,” Bespin Bulletin said. “I talked to a couple of people, and I also found out that Jason Schreier said that it’s not with EA, and we’ll ‘never guess’ who the studio is that’s making this game.” [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/14/how-star-wars-games-can-flourish-now-that-ea-lost-exclusivity"] Bloomberg's Jason Schreier has previously spoken of a potential KOTOR project, both on ResetERA and Twitter, and his words echo Bespin Bulletin's comments. Furthermore, Wushu Studio's Nate Najda also took to ResetERA in response to this to say "It's not as mysterious as you think. It's just not a household name most people are aware of." There have been previous rumors of a Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Remake being in the works at EA, and that it would take elements of the first KOTOR and Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords and retool the two stories to make them fit in current canon. It is unclear whether this is the discussed project that has since been taken away from EA or if it is an entirely new story. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-ign-star-wars-game-review&captions=true"] Lucasfilm has also said that it was working on something Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic-related, and a report following those comments mention it could be a planned movie. Either way, Star Wars and Lucasfilm are entering a new era of Star Wars games, as they have recently announced the formation of Lucasfilm Games, which all future Star Wars games will be branded under. One of these future games is being developed by Ubisoft Massive, and signals that EA's exclusivity deal with Star Wars games will be coming to an end. However, the studio will still be working on Star Wars games in the future. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2016/12/16/why-we-love-star-wars-kotor-ign-plays-live"] Bespin Bulletin continued to discuss how he's also heard that a bounty hunter game was also being developed somewhere and that EA was working on another Star Wars project that may not be Battlefront 3. “I don’t know if the bounty hunter game is with them or if it’s with Ubisoft," Bespin Bulletin said. "But yeah, EA is working on stuff and there’s another unannounced [Star Wars] game at EA, which I have no idea what it is. I don’t think it’s Battlefront 3.” [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

A new Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic game is reportedly in the works, and it is not being developed by EA and BioWare - the studio behind the original game.. As reported by VGC, this latest rumor comes courtesy of credited Star Wars insider Bespin Bulletin, who spoke on a recent B.O.B. The Podcast episode about this project that is said to be in development outside of EA and that "we’ll ‘never guess’ who the studio is that’s making this game.” “Amongst my digging, I heard there is a Knights of the Old Republic project in development somewhere,” Bespin Bulletin said. “I talked to a couple of people, and I also found out that Jason Schreier said that it’s not with EA, and we’ll ‘never guess’ who the studio is that’s making this game.” [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/14/how-star-wars-games-can-flourish-now-that-ea-lost-exclusivity"] Bloomberg's Jason Schreier has previously spoken of a potential KOTOR project, both on ResetERA and Twitter, and his words echo Bespin Bulletin's comments. Furthermore, Wushu Studio's Nate Najda also took to ResetERA in response to this to say "It's not as mysterious as you think. It's just not a household name most people are aware of." There have been previous rumors of a Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Remake being in the works at EA, and that it would take elements of the first KOTOR and Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords and retool the two stories to make them fit in current canon. It is unclear whether this is the discussed project that has since been taken away from EA or if it is an entirely new story. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-ign-star-wars-game-review&captions=true"] Lucasfilm has also said that it was working on something Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic-related, and a report following those comments mention it could be a planned movie. Either way, Star Wars and Lucasfilm are entering a new era of Star Wars games, as they have recently announced the formation of Lucasfilm Games, which all future Star Wars games will be branded under. One of these future games is being developed by Ubisoft Massive, and signals that EA's exclusivity deal with Star Wars games will be coming to an end. However, the studio will still be working on Star Wars games in the future. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2016/12/16/why-we-love-star-wars-kotor-ign-plays-live"] Bespin Bulletin continued to discuss how he's also heard that a bounty hunter game was also being developed somewhere and that EA was working on another Star Wars project that may not be Battlefront 3. “I don’t know if the bounty hunter game is with them or if it’s with Ubisoft," Bespin Bulletin said. "But yeah, EA is working on stuff and there’s another unannounced [Star Wars] game at EA, which I have no idea what it is. I don’t think it’s Battlefront 3.” [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Cyberpunk 2077, despite all of its launch issues and refunded copies, reportedly had the biggest digital launch of all time based on digital revenue and digital units sold. As reveled by SuperData's worldwide digital games market report for December 2020, Cyberpunk 2077 sold over 10.2 million digital copies, with PC accounting for around 80% of those sales. It's important to note that Sony removed Cyberpunk 2077 from the PlayStation Store in the middle of December 2020 following the performance issues that are especially prevalent on base PS4 and Xbox One consoles. SuperData notes that these estimates do include the digital copies that have been refunded but that its "data shows that refunds did not substantially affect the game's aggregate sales." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/21/cyberpunk-2077s-current-state-before-patch-11-patch-106-performance-review"] Cyberpunk 2077 helped digital game sales reach $12 billion in December, which is a 15% increase year-over-year and made December have the highest monthly total revenue ever. While console earnings year-over-year jumped 16%, PC saw a 40% increase when compared to 2019. SuperData also reported that Fortnite earnings on PC and console were at their highest since August 2020 and player numbers were larger than at any point since August 2019. Grand Theft Auto V's Cayo Perico Heist's release resulted in GTA V's highest monthly digital earnings ever, and although Among Us' player numbers fell from November's "roughly half a billion users," it was still "2.8 times as popular as the next-popular game, Roblox." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-best-and-worst-reviewed-games-of-2020&captions=true"] Among Us also launched on the Nintendo Switch in December and is said to have sold 3.2 million copies, which made it the highest earning version of the game for that month. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Cyberpunk 2077, despite all of its launch issues and refunded copies, reportedly had the biggest digital launch of all time based on digital revenue and digital units sold. As reveled by SuperData's worldwide digital games market report for December 2020, Cyberpunk 2077 sold over 10.2 million digital copies, with PC accounting for around 80% of those sales. It's important to note that Sony removed Cyberpunk 2077 from the PlayStation Store in the middle of December 2020 following the performance issues that are especially prevalent on base PS4 and Xbox One consoles. SuperData notes that these estimates do include the digital copies that have been refunded but that its "data shows that refunds did not substantially affect the game's aggregate sales." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/21/cyberpunk-2077s-current-state-before-patch-11-patch-106-performance-review"] Cyberpunk 2077 helped digital game sales reach $12 billion in December, which is a 15% increase year-over-year and made December have the highest monthly total revenue ever. While console earnings year-over-year jumped 16%, PC saw a 40% increase when compared to 2019. SuperData also reported that Fortnite earnings on PC and console were at their highest since August 2020 and player numbers were larger than at any point since August 2019. Grand Theft Auto V's Cayo Perico Heist's release resulted in GTA V's highest monthly digital earnings ever, and although Among Us' player numbers fell from November's "roughly half a billion users," it was still "2.8 times as popular as the next-popular game, Roblox." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-best-and-worst-reviewed-games-of-2020&captions=true"] Among Us also launched on the Nintendo Switch in December and is said to have sold 3.2 million copies, which made it the highest earning version of the game for that month. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Tencent has acquired a majority stake in Klei Entertainment, the studio behind such games as Don't Starve and Mark of the Ninja. Klei Entertainment founder Jamie Cheng took to the the studio's forums to announce the news and to assure its fans that "as part of this agreement, Klei retains full autonomy of creative and operations across all aspects of the studio, including projects, talent, and more." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2018/04/05/dont-starve-nintendo-switch-edition-trailer"] As for what's going to change, Cheng mentions that while there are some "boring accounting changes" that will need to be adjusted to, he will still be running the studio as before, with "no changes to staffing, projects, or other operations." Cheng continued to discuss why this decision was made and, among other things, how it will help Klei Entertainment continue to do what it does best - "making unique experiences that no one else can." "Klei has been around for 15 years, and we have made many changes over the years in order to respond to a changing world," Cheng wrote. "Consistently, my wish has been to enable people to do their best creative work, to learn and grow, to not have to worry about finances, and be able to enjoy their lives outside the studio. This has not changed. This partnership helps us navigate a changing industry, and helps us focus on what we do best: making unique experiences that no one else can." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2012/09/07/mark-of-the-ninja-video-review"] Tencent, which has invested in other companies that have produced such titles as Path of Exile, League of Legends, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Clash of Clans, Fortnite, and more, helped Klei distribute its games in China in 2016. Furthermore, Don't Starve Together was the first game to launch on Tencent's WeGame platform. These past collaborations helped make the decision for Klei to allow this acquisition, as Cheng feels that it is the only company that "would let us retain the level of control that we demand." Klei Entertainment's newest title, Griftlands, is currently available on PC in Early Access and is also expected to be released on Nintendo Switch later this year. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/28/griftlands-nintendo-switch-edition-announcement-trailer"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.