UK retailer Argos has been targeted by PS5 scalping groups, possibly contributing to lower-than-expected availability during a recent stock update. In the early hours of January 26, UK gamers were delighted to see the PS5 back in stock at Argos. But, just as we've seen time and time again, the stock lasted for a much shorter time than expected, amid widespread issues. Not only was the site buggy, alongside the app, but there was also supposedly even less stock than expected on the already limited supply of consoles. Multiple sources (who wished to remain anonymous) have confirmed to IGN that this is in part because individuals were able to order PS5 consoles from Argos on January 25, a full day before the aforementioned official stock drop. This was down to a loophole discovered by scalping group Express Notify, a paid-for Discord server that shared links allowing users to buy the PS5 before the general public even knew about the new stock. Express Notify has been publicly taking credit, with many of its users showing off their orders for multiple consoles. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-best-ps5-games&captions=true"] Argos supposedly shut these rogue links down quickly, but not without several consoles being sold and even collected from Argos outlets beforehand. There hasn't been any confirmation of how many PS5s were claimed before the loophole was closed, but this is just another example in the growing list of frustrations that customers are facing when trying to purchase the next-gen system. To compound the issues, those who were attempting to buy legitimately via Argos in the early hours of the morning weren't exactly given a head start. At first, stock appeared to be available on the Argos app – which repeatedly dropped for maintenance – but not on Argos' browser-based website. However, even success with the app was seemingly entirely dependant on your area, and whether it wanted to play ball in general. Some users reported success, others said the money came out of their account without a confirmation email, while many more were left without a console once again. Argos has responded to the issue, stating that it "identified a technical issue which allowed a small proportion of customers to place orders early" while also adding, “It’s clear our customers are excited for the new PlayStation. We released a small amount of additional stock and have seen huge numbers of customers trying to place their orders with us and we have now sold out.” Scalping has become a major issue for the low-stock, high-demand PS5, and has been particularly prevalent in the UK. Consoles have gone missing from Amazon deliveries, been stolen from moving trucks, and retailers have cancelled huge swathes of orders claimed by scalping rings. It's been enough for a set of UK politicians to motion for a debate on making console scalping illegal in the country. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/08/there-is-no-microsoftduracell-deal-requiring-xbox-to-use-aa-batteries-in-its-controllers-ign-news"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Robert Anderson is a Commerce Editor and deals expert for IGN. Send him awesome gaming screenshots @robertliam21 on Twitter. Credit to @PS5StockAlertUK for assisting with information. 

Tomb Raider 2, starring Alicia Vikander, has secured Lovecraft Country showrunner Misha Green as the new writer and director. Green will replace Ben Wheatley, who was first reported as director in September 2019. Tomb Raider 2 originally had a March 2021 release date but was recently taken off MGM's release calendar without receiving a new date. The news was first reported by Deadline and confirmed by Green in a post on Twitter. In her tweet, she said that 2006's Tomb Raider: Legend is her favorite "classic era" game in the series and 2015's Rise of the Tomb Raider is tied with 2018's Shadow of the Tomb Raider as her favorite in the current series.

My fav from classic era is Legend & from survival era it’s a tie between Rise & Shadow. So I’m thinking something like:

*whispers* Who’s as excited as I am for a @TombRaiderMovie!?!? #TombRaider — Misha Green (@MishaGreen) January 25, 2021

Green is not just the showrunner behind Lovecraft Country but also wrote every episode of the show's first season and directed an episode. Green hasn't written or directed a feature-length movie yet, but Deadline said Green recently wrote a movie, The Mother, which Netflix won after a heated competition with rival studios. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2018/03/14/tomb-raider-review-2018"] There's no word on why Wheatley isn't involved in the project anymore. The filmmaker has kept busy by directing a horror movie during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Empire. That movie is set for release in 2021. Variety says that Wheatley is also set to direct The Meg 2 with Jason Statham. Details are slim regarding the Tomb Raider sequel. All that's known at this time is that Vikander will reprise her role as Lara Croft from the first movie. The first Tomb Raider movie with Vikander was released in 2018. Captain Marvel screenwriter Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Small Axe writer Alastair Siddons wrote the script that was directed by Roar Uthaug. IGN gave the movie a 5.5 out of 10 in our review. We said Tomb Raider "fails to develop interesting characters or motives but at least offers viewers some fun action." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=live-action-versions-of-video-game-characters&captions=true"] On the other hand, Lovecraft Country was nominated for IGN's Best TV Series of the Year. Green says that she has been in touch with HBO regarding Lovecraft Country season 2, but nothing is official yet. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Petey Oneto is a freelance writer for IGN who highly recommends Lovecraft Country. It's one of the best TV shows in a long time.

GameStop’s stock is acting strangely, still. It’s gone even higher after last week’s surge drove GameStop’s value skyrocketing to record levels. And although the week is still young, it shows this unexpected rise is, rather than a result of anything the company’s done,  a savvy bit of investing, at least in the short-term. The interest in GameStop’s irregular stock activity has thrust the Reddit group seemingly driving the surge into the spotlight. Popularly described as “4chan with a Bloomberg Terminal,” r/WallStreetBets is a wild west of stock investing “advice” and memes. And the pearl-clutching establishment has certainly painted this group as a rogue troll army messing with the "official" practices of Wall Street. IGN has reached out and spoken to several r/WallStreetBets day traders to find out more about this group that has thrust the struggling video game retailer into the spotlight.

What Is Going on with GameStop Stock?

GameStop stock (traded as $GME) is on the up-and-up. Prices for a single piece of stock peaked today at around $145. Compare that to a year ago, when prices for the biggest video game brick-and-mortar retailer hovered around $15 but went as low as $3 a share. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=gamestop-in-the-news-timeline&captions=true"] Some Wall Street investors bet that GameStop would continue to struggle and began short-selling the company, a strategy where an investor borrows stock of that particular company — in this case, GameStop — and sells it in the hopes that prices for the stock will continue to drop. If that happens, they can buy back the stock for even cheaper and keep the difference as a profit. But instead of going down, prices are going up, and this is bad for short sellers who have to buy back the stock they borrowed. Redditors on r/WallStreetBets saw the short early and moved in to buy GameStop stock early and cheap, creating a short squeeze. Short sellers rushing to buy while minimizing losses created a rush to buy GameStop stock, which in turn drove up prices. A vicious cycle, if you will.

Who Is Squeezing Wall Street?

In speaking with traders on r/WallStreetBets, it’s evident that these traders are not wolves of Wall Street, but hobbyists who trade on the side and have either a clear-eyed or irreverent view of the stock market. Three traders from r/WallStreetBets IGN spoke to say that they are not full-time traders, while a fourth says they’re still relatively new to trading. And all three also joined the community fairly recently with the longest member following the subreddit about a year ago. “I had seen the subreddit in some YouTube video after I got into trading but was only doing my own thing until this GME stuff really started to pop off and I bought in,” one trader, who asked to go by Ike for privacy reasons, tells IGN. [caption id="attachment_2465120" align="alignnone" width="837"] Source: Google.[/caption] Ike bought GME stock when it was around $30 and says he spent about $600 on his position. He says his option is now worth around five times that value but is still waiting before selling. When asked why they went in on GME, Ike says that it took “some convincing” and due diligence but that it was “mostly FOMO [or, Fear of Missing Out].” Another trader named Tj says they invest "on the side for fun," while working as a full-time engineer at a major tech company. Their option is worth six-figures after going in at a buying price of around $18 per stock. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/03/07/how-gamestop-plans-to-save-itself"] In keeping with their 4chan with a Bloomberg Terminal mantra, these traders prefer memeing their way through Wall Street, using terms like FOMO or YOLO [You Only Live Once] to explain away their investment decisions. One investor named Sage says they’ve only been following r/WallStreetBets for “around two months” and that investing is a “side hustle.” For “about five minutes” Sage’s GME options were worth $33,000, based on an initial investment of $1000. Though they chose not to sell. The biggest success story is someone who goes by u/DeepFu*kingValue on WallStreetBets who regularly updates the subreddit on the price of their option which is currently valued at $13 million. The energy the subreddit brings into trading can only be described as chaotic. One thread by user u/dumbledoreRothIRA is titled, “I’M NOT SELLING THIS UNTIL AT LEAST $1000+ GME” with an additional expletive and some rocket ship emojis for good measure. The subreddit is also claiming a “victory” against hedge fund Melvin Capital Management, a short-seller that the Wall Street Journal reports is getting an outside investment to help stabilize the fund after a variety of short bets fell through. One of which was Melvin’s bet against GameStop.

GameStop, a Meme?

One reason why the GameStop stock situation is so absurd is that for the past three years, GameStop has been struggling as a business. A brick-and-mortar video game retailer, GameStop has not been able to compete with digital retailers like Amazon as well as the growing trend of customers buying primarily digital versions of games through portals like Steam, PSN, or Xbox Live. When IGN spoke with GameStop’s chief customer officer Frank Hamlin back in 2019, he explained that “As a specialty retailer, we are linked at the hip to this category of video games. We compete with a bunch of generalist retailers who don’t have the same seasonality as we do because they sell paper towels and loaves of bread and they can use video games as a loss leader to sell a loaf of bread.” The increased competition has forced GameStop to close around 400 and 450 stores in 2020, and the COVID-19 pandemic has not helped physical retailers like GameStop in the least. And whatever is happening with the stocks is not indicative of the business' actual current performance, which is still struggling. But GameStop is a mainstay in the public gaming consciousness, and the brand recognition has driven WallStreetBets to embrace the struggling brand. Whereas investors on Wall Street proper saw a struggling retailer, WallStreetBets saw an underdog and piece of gaming childhood. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=gamestop-experimental-stores&captions=true"] Sage says that while “Reddit Hype” factored into their decision to go in on GME, so did “childhood memories.” Meanwhile, Tj tells IGN that their non-retirement investing is done with additional income. "So I figured might as well throw it into the latest meme and let it ride," they said. Another trader who spoke with IGN named Branyan said that knowing GameStop helped them go in on their own position. “I’ve done my fair share of shopping there,” says Branyan. “It definitely did make a difference that I knew the business opposed to going in blind. I’ve trusted them with my business so I should be able to trust them with my trades.” Ike says they were very aware of GameStop both from their childhood and recent news. “Like most my age [GameStop] used to be a place I’d go often for games as a kid, and I knew about its decline as I've watched the closure of one [of the stores] close to me.” However, Ike cites the addition of pet retail giant Chewy’s co-founder Ryan Cohen to GameStop’s board and the company’s attempts to remodel some of its stores into experiential event spaces as signs of positive change.

What Happens Next?

One side-effect of the GameStop Stock squeeze is the increased scrutiny on r/WallStreetBets. Mainstream and finance-focused publications are covering the subreddit in recent days — and not in a way the community finds helpful. “News coverage has been unfair and misleading, often referring to WSB as a single entity that makes decisions for millions of people,” says Ike. “But take only a glance at the sub and you’ll see just how wrong that is, [it’s] full of people taking all sides [on an investment] and people posting random sh*t half the time.” Tj says they're worried that the media coverage could harm inexperienced investors "jumping into stocks without researching." They believe that "a lot of people will lose more than they can afford to," because of the notoriety. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/09/11/how-is-gamestop-still-a-thing-ign-daily-fix"] “Well to tell you the truth [the media coverage] is very worrisome,” Branyan adds. “Many subreddits have been shut down in the past and wiped out due to getting negative media coverage. The coverage we’re getting now seems to want to suggest that we are attempting to manipulate the market as a collective single organism. This isn’t the case. We are just a bunch of investors who like to chat about what we do.” “People make huge YOLOs and succeed sometimes and people like to see that. That is what you’ll find at the base of WSB. People making it big or losing it all trying. We aren’t trying to manipulate the market, we’re trying to go big or die trying. Each and every one of us.” As for their GME options, the investors say they’ll eventually sell and hopefully make a profit. “I’ll sell when u/deepfu*kingvalue sells,” Sage says.

Update 1/27: The Fallout From $GME Continues

As the GameStop situation continues, there have been several developments. Driven by the activity on GameStop stock, r/WallStreetBets are discussing other potential stocks that could behave similarly. AMC stock, the movie theater chain besieged by COVID-19 has come out as a popular choice along with companies like BlackBerry and Nokia. Meanwhile, leaders in government and finance are sounding off on the GameStop stock situation on Wall Street. Nasdaq President Adena Friedman says it is monitoring the situation on social media for "unusual activity in stocks." White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki says President Biden's economic team is "monitoring the situation" as well. And politicians such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY14) tweeted, "Gotta admit it's really something to see Wall Streeters with a  long history of treating our economy as a casino complain about a message board of posters also treating the market as a casino."

Gotta admit it’s really something to see Wall Streeters with a long history of treating our economy as a casino complain about a message board of posters also treating the market as a casino

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 27, 2021

Reddit also suffered temporary outages during the ongoing GameStop stock situation, though it is apparently back up. There has also been financial damage to short-seller hedge fund Melvin Capital, which was reported to have closed out of its GameStop position after requiring nearly $3 billion in external financing to help stabilize its fund after a few shorts fell through, one of which was GameStop. CNBC reports that there are several hedge funds in similar trouble for their own GameStop options. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

Capcom’s release of the Resident Evil Village demo, Maiden, is a short slice of what the full release will offer...sort of. Maiden doesn’t even include combat, it’s over in about 15-20 minutes (unless you get stuck on a simple puzzle, like I did), and in one of my favorite demo design choices, it isn’t even a scenario you’ll encounter in Village itself. Instead, it’s a mood piece, designed to give a sense of the atmosphere of one of Village’s main locations, tease some of the characters we can expect to face, and, hopefully, creep the hell out of you with a constant feeling of dread, as it did me. While they’ve perhaps less ubiquitous than when publishers tucked demo discs into a gaming magazine, Maiden and other recent examples show there are many right ways to execute a demo, reminding us of just how damn effective they can be in selling players on a game in a way no other part of the video game hype machine can. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/22/resident-evil-village-maiden-demo-gameplay"]

How a Demo Can Be So Effective

Regardless of what form a demo takes, a good one should accomplish at least a few things: let a player get a sense for some key aspect of gameplay, whether it’s basic gameplay mechanics or how they’ve changed within an ongoing series (like last year’s Bravely Default II demo), or introduce you to an atmosphere of a new world (like BioShock’s demo did back in 2007), or give you a sense of scale and spectacle, (like Final Fantasy VII Remake’s demo in 2020). I’ll never forget the BioShock demo specifically, as BioShock was a game I was unsure whether I’d like before launch. That demo, which replicated BioShock’s opening minutes in Rapture, is forever ingrained in my head. I don’t know if I would have ever picked up the full game had I not actually played it; it gave me just enough to want more. No amount of reviews, gameplay teases, or trailers could have properly conveyed everything that hands-on did. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=resident-evil-8-village-showcase-screenshots&captions=true"] Maiden does a fantastic job of preserving the twists and turns the developers have in store for the full game while still communicating what it is about. While it’s likely the more rare case, a totally new slice of gameplay can still thematically and mechanically touch on the full experience. More commonly, a part of the existing game is sectioned off as a demo on its own, either a level a bit into the game to give a full understanding of gameplay, or even just the game’s opening. And thanks to modern advancements, many of these opening mission demos now let players carry progress forward to the full experience. I will always be happy when I can pick up from that spot in the full game without needing to replay anything. Even when progress doesn’t carry over, though, developers have found smart ways to incentivize players to play a demo with content they may or may not have to replay later. Take Monster Hunter Rise’s recent demo, which doesn't carry over progress to the upcoming Switch game, but playing it does earn an item booster pack for players when the full game is available. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/25/resident-evil-8-village-maiden-demo-ps5-performance-review"]

Risk and Reward

Games by their very nature have to be sold on interactive levels that movies and TV just don’t. Trailers and images are all those entertainment mediums can offer, and while there’s no shortage of both in gaming, they pale in comparison to how much a demo can convey about what playing a game is actually like. Of course, there’s also the inverse risk - a player can experience a demo, decide a game isn’t for them, and move on without ever buying that game. I can only imagine the risk-cost analysis in releasing a demo. Not every game is for every person, and you can just as easily decide to buy a game after loving a demo as you can decide to never touch it again. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=resident-evil-village-playstation-5-screenshots&captions=true"] But when demos work, they really work. I don’t know if Maiden will necessarily usher in a new era of demos - their popularity seems to come in waves, either from generation to generation or even just on a given console. And plenty of developers have been putting out demos in recent years, so Capcom’s move here isn’t necessarily a new or unexpected one. Tt’s a reminder of the power of a demo. And they’re an enormous player service, allowing for discoverability and understanding of upcoming games on a deeper level. Demos may help you decide a game isn’t for you, but when they help a player fall in love with a new game, they act incredible gateways to worlds you’ve never experienced before, in a way no other tease could ever accomplish. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jonathon Dornbush is IGN's Senior News Editor, host of Podcast Beyond!, and PlayStation lead. Talk to him on Twitter @jmdornbush.

Scavengers Studio's Season, which had an impressive debut trailer at 2020's The Game Awards, has reportedly had a tumultuous development that is due to the latest in a reported pattern of workplace harassment and toxic behavior at the studio. A new comprehensive report from GamesIndustry.biz lays out a host of allegations from nine current and former employees of Scavengers Studio, the team behind the previous Darwin Project and the upcoming Season, against co-founder and Darwin Project creative director Simon Darveau. Specifically in regard to Season, the report describes an alleged, previous worry among developers at Scavengers that, should Darveau become a part of the team working on Season, he would essentially "override" the current creative director, Kevin Sullivan (who IGN previously spoke to about Season), and the rest of the team's work. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/11/season-announcement-trailer"] According to the report, these concerns became real, with allegations that, despite his actual role on the game remaining unclear, he has come in and led to "a considerable shift in focus and scope" on Season than what had previously been in place. "Several current employees mentioned that Darveau had used the partnership with Sony to force his own ideas onto the game, saying he had promised a number of features to seal the deal - such as a larger world, quests, and objective markers - that either weren't planned or had already been scrapped by the team. Now, they said, the studio is on the hook for them," Gamesindustry.biz's report states, with one source quoted in the story saying "I don't even recognize the game" from what was originally planned. One source even told the outlet "While it brought me extreme joy to see the work of my friends, it did sting a little bit to see a bunch of people praising the studio, saying how calming and chill and progressive everything looked. It might well be true for the Season project, but it has not been my experience with management." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=season-9-screenshots&captions=true"] And those concerns are allegedly not just due to the claims of Davreau's "inability to follow through on ideas" that was also a marked aspect of Darwin Project's development internally. Instead, the report shines a light on a number of accusations against Devreau and current-Scavengers CEO Amélie Lamarche. Chief among the claims of the alleged hostile workplace created by Davreau and Lamarche is the sense of a "boys' club" atmosphere, with allegations that women at the studio have been " frequently degraded by male employees including Darveau, or infantilized and treated as if they did not know what they were talking about even when speaking from a position of expertise about their own work." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/01/25/darwin-project-review"] Additionally, the report lays out reported concerns from current and former employees about Davreau's mistreatment and bullying of employees, save for a group of "commandos" that were Davreau's favorites; allegations of Davreau groping multiple employees, and the implications of Lamarche essentially serving in an HR role to other employees despite having previously been in a romantic relationship with Davreau. Scavengers responded to Gamesindustry, saying "Scavengers Studio appreciates that there have been situations during its rapid growth and takes the position that any type of harassment is unwelcomed and unacceptable and takes any complaints in this respect very seriously," and while the studio told the outlet that "Certain elements...are false, somewhat blown out of proportion or lacking important pieces," Scavengers did not comment further on what specifically may have been incorrect about the allegations. Season is scheduled for a release this year on PC and PS5. [poilib element="accentDivider"]

Dragon Age 4's main location will be Tevinter, according to a new BioWare book. BioWare: Stories and Secrets from 25 Years of Game Development was recently released and in it, it's revealed that the forthcoming Dragon Age game will be set in the land of Tevinter, as originally reported by Eurogamer. Tevinter, while existing in the lore, is a place that hasn't been visited in the Dragon Age games before, making it a first for the series. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=dragon-age-4-game-awards-trailer-screenshots&captions=true"] As pointed out by Eurogamer, Tevinter was set up at the end of the Trespasser expansion for 2014's Dragon Age Inquisition. The book indicates that places other than Tevinter will be visited as well, which makes sense considering Dragon Age usually sees players trekking across multiple different lands. Antiva City, the capital of Antiva, is shown in the book too. This city borders Tevinter to the east and is surrounded by water. Other concept art depicts an Antivan Crow, who is an assassin "celebrated for their mastery of stylish slaying" that wears a mask, wields a sword, and has multiple sidekicks, according to Eurogamer. Alongside that concept art is an image of Mourn Watch, who guards Thedas from occult threats and hangs out in a necropolis. Eurogamer points out that while the location of this necropolis isn't mentioned, necropolises are used in Nevarra, which is a part of Thedas, as its citizens are known for mummifying their dead. Like Antiva City, Nevarra also borders Tevinter. Other images in the book depict The Deep Roads, which are dwarven tunnels in Thedas, and The Lords of Fortune, which is a treasure hunters' guild. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/08/27/dragon-age-4-behind-the-scenes-teaser"] While waiting to actually see Tevinter in Dragon Age 4, check out the cinematic trailer for the game released last December and then read about how that trailer hints at returning characters. Watch this video breaking down all of the hidden details within the trailer after that. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes. 

Welcome back to Game Scoop!, IGN's weekly video game podcast. This week your Omega Cops -- Daemon Hatfield, Sam Claiborn, Justin Davis, and Mark Medina -- are discussing Resident Evil Village, Hitman 3, playing Video Game 20 Questions, and more. The music in this episode is mostly Rambo on NES. Watch the video above or hit the link below to your favorite podcast service. Listen on: Apple Podcasts YouTube Spotify Stitcher   Find previous episodes here!

A Harry Potter TV series is reportedly in early development at HBO Max. A report by Variety says that sources have indicated plans for a show are moving ahead, although no talent, director, or writers have been attached. No plot details have been revealed. THR echoes the report, saying that "broad ideas have been discussed" for what the show could be, but that no deals have been made. HBO Max and Warner Bros. have told THR that, "There are no Harry Potter series in development at the studio or on the streaming platform." This could, however, be a different definition of "in development" – with early discussions reportedly ongoing, the companies may not yet define the project as formally in development. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-25-best-harry-potter-characters&captions=true"] There are multiple avenues for a new Harry Potter story to head down, with more recent additions to the series pushing away from the original books' time period. The Fantastic Beasts movies have depicted an early 20th Century version of the Wizarding World, while the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child pushed into the adulthoods of the main series' characters. In gaming, Hogwarts Legacy will head back to an 1800s take on the school – although we won't see that for some time, after it was delayed into 2022. However, Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe previously told IGN that he expects to see the stories receive a full movie or TV reboot one day. "It will be interesting to see how long those films stay… it feels like there’s a sacredness around them at the moment, but that’ll go, the shine will wear off at some point," he explained. "It’ll be interesting if they reboot them and just do the films again or do a series; I’m fascinated to watch." It remains unclear what part Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling will play in future additions to the franchise, particularly those coming from the entertainment companies that hold the rights to create Harry Potter projects. While the author has oversight on all elements of the property, she has recently caused widespread controversy for her expressed views on trans women and gender identity, which have drawn condemnation from the likes of Harry Potter actors Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe among others. The FAQ page for Hogwarts Legacy seemingly indirectly referenced the ongoing issues by specifically confirming that "J.K. Rowling is not directly involved in the creation of the game." [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.

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment's upcoming projects, including core games in major franchises, will have a "heavy focus on live service", according to an internship advert from the company. Spotted by Twitter user MauroNL3, an advert for a Games Production MBA Intern includes a section that reads: "WBIE is currently involved in a variety of new projects, ranging from casual games to core games featuring our well-known franchises on all platforms (console, digital, mobile) with a heavy focus on live service. " Live service refers to the process of continually updating a game after release to keep players invested, adding new features, items, storylines and more – and has become an increasingly profitable model for developers and publishers across the industry. It's not without controversy, however, with high-profile releases like BioWare's Anthem launching with notably little content, and Marvel's Avengers failing to recoup its costs after failing to enamour its audience at launch. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/17/back-4-blood-hands-on-preview-the-spiritual-successor-to-left-4-dead"] No specifics are given, but we can likely assume that the upcoming Back 4 Blood will include live service elements, given its modular, online nature. Similarly, any future Mortal Kombat and Injustice games from the WB-owned NetherRealm would likely incorporate live service elements, as they have in recent iterations. What's less clear is what other announced WBIE games could include similar ideas, and to what extent. The publisher is currently working on Hogwarts Legacy, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, and Suicide Squad Kill the Justice League, none of which have outwardly announced live elements. The upcoming Gotham Knights from WB Montreal seemingly won't be a part of that push – its developers previously told IGN that it was "very much not designed as a game-as-service", and will tell a self-contained story, rather than an evolving narrative. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/08/23/everything-we-know-about-suicide-squad-kill-the-justice-league"] We've contacted WBIE for comment, but haven't received a response at time of publish. It wasn't long ago that we were debating the future of WBIE as a whole, until parent company AT&T announced that it was no longer looking to sell the company, after reportedly deeming it "too valuable to unload". [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.

Even with the recent announcement that Netflix has surpassed 200 million subscribers worldwide, a new study has revealed that streaming services are in danger of losing customers due to an overabundance of choice. In 2020 alone, there were three new streaming services (HBO Max, Peacock, and Quibi) released, though Quibi ended up being the first major casualty in The Great Streaming Wars. Even with Quibi's $2 billion demise, the demand for streaming is showing no signs of slowing down with the new Discovery+ platform joining the fray in January and Paramount+ set to launch in March. [poilib element="poll" parameters="id=4c478d9d-70ed-46fc-9dd4-ded0d54056a1"] While streaming appears to be at an all-time high, a recent study from professional service network Deloitte (per the Los Angeles Times), revealed that the overwhelming amount of streaming platforms and shows available may be causing customers to cancel their subscriptions and seek out something new. Deloitte's survey, which consisted of 1,100 participants, showed that "46% of respondents canceled at least one streaming service in the last six months," according to the LA Times, which is a major rise from only 20% who said the same in a similar January survey. The majority of participants (62% to be exact) said they canceled a particular service after finishing a TV series or movie. "Churn" is the term used to describe this phenomenon in Hollywood. Deloitte's data suggests that streaming providers are going to have a difficult time keeping subscribers as competition in the space increases. According to the LA Times, "streaming subscribers reported having an average of five services in October, up from the three they reported having before the COVID-19 pandemic," but this increase also seems to indicate that viewers are more willing to cancel a service once they've seen the show or movie that initially prompted them to sign up. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/03/warner-bros-and-hbo-max-2021-movies-announcement-trailer"] In an interview with the LA Times, Deloitte's Media and Telecom Leader Kevin Westcott said, "the competition for the streaming services is shifting to a different level. Over the last few years, the focus was on having exclusive, original content. In 2021, it’s going to come down to the user experience, and do you feel like a special VIP for being a member." While Netflix is currently winning the war with its 200 million (and growing) subscriber base, Disney+ is catching up with an impressive 86.8 million of its own since launching in late 2019, with Peacock making a push with 26 million subscribers in under a year. And with so many services vying for subscribers, streamers are going to have to get creative to keep their audiences active. Disney+ will attempt to keep Marvel fans hooked all year long with an ambitious slate of original TV shows set in the MCU, with WandaVision's weekly release schedule rolling right into The Falcon and the Winter Soldier's March release date, followed by Loki in May. Amazon has also experimented with a weekly release schedule for some of its shows, including Season 2 of its breakout hit The Boys and its upcoming Robert Kirkman animated superhero series Invincible. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=marvel-cinematic-universe-every-upcoming-movie-and-tv-show&captions=true"] Looking ahead, Netflix has an ambitious lineup of at least 70 original movies releasing in 2021, while HBO Max rocked the film industry by announcing that 17 of its theatrically-released movies in 2021 will drop simultaneously on HBO Max for a one-month exclusive window. What do you think of the results from the study? Do you cancel a particular streaming service after you finishing binging a show or watching a movie? Let us know in the comments. [poilib element="accentDivider"] David Griffin still watches DuckTales in his pajamas with a cereal bowl in hand. He's also the TV Editor for IGN. Say hi on Twitter.