Epic Games has bought an entire mall with plans to turn the unused location into its new headquarters in Cary, North Carolina. In a press release, Epic Games announced that it has purchased a 980,000 square-foot and 87-acre Cary Towne Center mall which will become the new Epic Games campus by 2024. This includes plans to create both office buildings and recreational spaces for long-term use. Development on the new HQ will begin later this year and in the meantime, Epic Games will remain at its current Crossroad Boulevard location in Cary, the city Epic Games has been based for over 20 years. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/02/fortnite-season-5-the-mandalorian-skin-gameplay"] “We’re extremely proud that Epic has chosen to call Cary home for their new global headquarters, and we greatly appreciate the company’s recognition of Cary’s existing assets as well as the unlimited potential of the area for their growing business,” Cary mayor Harold Weinbrecht said in a statement. Epic maintains over 50 offices worldwide, running local and global aspects of its business. But the HQ in Cary will serve as the company’s base of operations. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/04/fortnite-kratos-skin-reveal-trailer"] Unused malls have actually become a popular target for companies looking to create new office space and headquarters. Companies like Google and WeWork have converted abandoned malls across the country for office use. So if you happen to live in Cary and wondered what happened to that old town mall, Epic owns it. Check out IGN’s Fortnite guide for the latest tips and walkthroughs on the latest season. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

Epic Games has bought an entire mall with plans to turn the unused location into its new headquarters in Cary, North Carolina. In a press release, Epic Games announced that it has purchased a 980,000 square-foot and 87-acre Cary Towne Center mall which will become the new Epic Games campus by 2024. This includes plans to create both office buildings and recreational spaces for long-term use. Development on the new HQ will begin later this year and in the meantime, Epic Games will remain at its current Crossroad Boulevard location in Cary, the city Epic Games has been based for over 20 years. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/02/fortnite-season-5-the-mandalorian-skin-gameplay"] “We’re extremely proud that Epic has chosen to call Cary home for their new global headquarters, and we greatly appreciate the company’s recognition of Cary’s existing assets as well as the unlimited potential of the area for their growing business,” Cary mayor Harold Weinbrecht said in a statement. Epic maintains over 50 offices worldwide, running local and global aspects of its business. But the HQ in Cary will serve as the company’s base of operations. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/04/fortnite-kratos-skin-reveal-trailer"] Unused malls have actually become a popular target for companies looking to create new office space and headquarters. Companies like Google and WeWork have converted abandoned malls across the country for office use. So if you happen to live in Cary and wondered what happened to that old town mall, Epic owns it. Check out IGN’s Fortnite guide for the latest tips and walkthroughs on the latest season. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

Marvel's WandaVision will feature original theme songs penned by Frozen songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez for its newly-announced nine-episode run. Disney shared a minute-long TV spot for the upcoming MCU sitcom, which is set to debut on Disney+ on January 15. The video opens with Wanda Maximoff and Vision declaring that they're an "unusual couple" because they "don't have a song or even wedding rings," before remedying both of those observations with a retro-style theme tune playing out over a montage of their married life. The teaser reveals an original theme song written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, the award-winning duo behind some of the most beloved tracks from Frozen, Frozen II, and Coco. Tuning into television, the husband-and-wife songwriting team have now collaborated on a bunch of new songs for several episodes of WandaVision, spanning from the 1950s to the early 2000s. Listen to a snippet of one of the new original theme songs in the trailer below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/04/wandavision-official-new-era-trailer"] "WandaVision is such a cool, strange, one-of-a-kind project," Lopez said in a statement alongside the announcement. "When the director, Matt Shakman—an old friend from my college days—pitched it to us, we didn't have to think about it. We loved the bright feeling of American sitcoms mixed with the deep sense of unease the story had, and it was a really inviting challenge to help set that tone." "I grew up in the '80s watching shows from every decade on the networks all day long," Anderson-Lopez explained, speaking further about their involvement in the highly anticipated project. "Episodes from 'I Love Lucy,' 'Brady Bunch' and 'Family Ties' shaped who I am and how I move through the world. So this project was a dream come true." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=disney-spotlight-january-2021&captions=true"] WandaVision is said to be a blend of classic television and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in which Elizabeth Olsen's Wanda Maximoff and Paul Bettany's Vision reunite in a trippy dreamscape that shifts the duo through various family sitcom styles of several different eras - from the black and white '50s/early '60s era to the groovier '60s/'70s period and the classic '80s/"TGIF" '90s. In order to present all of these different eras, Marvel has confirmed that the first season of WandaVision will feature nine episodes when it lands on Disney+ in January. For more on Marvel's new miniseries, check out the latest images and plot details from EW's cover story, watch our breakdown of the House of M Easter eggs in the trailer, and take a deep dive into the comics that might have inspired the show. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/11/wandavision-official-trailer-2"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.

Marvel's WandaVision will feature original theme songs penned by Frozen songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez for its newly-announced nine-episode run. Disney shared a minute-long TV spot for the upcoming MCU sitcom, which is set to debut on Disney+ on January 15. The video opens with Wanda Maximoff and Vision declaring that they're an "unusual couple" because they "don't have a song or even wedding rings," before remedying both of those observations with a retro-style theme tune playing out over a montage of their married life. The teaser reveals an original theme song written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, the award-winning duo behind some of the most beloved tracks from Frozen, Frozen II, and Coco. Tuning into television, the husband-and-wife songwriting team have now collaborated on a bunch of new songs for several episodes of WandaVision, spanning from the 1950s to the early 2000s. Listen to a snippet of one of the new original theme songs in the trailer below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/04/wandavision-official-new-era-trailer"] "WandaVision is such a cool, strange, one-of-a-kind project," Lopez said in a statement alongside the announcement. "When the director, Matt Shakman—an old friend from my college days—pitched it to us, we didn't have to think about it. We loved the bright feeling of American sitcoms mixed with the deep sense of unease the story had, and it was a really inviting challenge to help set that tone." "I grew up in the '80s watching shows from every decade on the networks all day long," Anderson-Lopez explained, speaking further about their involvement in the highly anticipated project. "Episodes from 'I Love Lucy,' 'Brady Bunch' and 'Family Ties' shaped who I am and how I move through the world. So this project was a dream come true." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=disney-spotlight-january-2021&captions=true"] WandaVision is said to be a blend of classic television and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in which Elizabeth Olsen's Wanda Maximoff and Paul Bettany's Vision reunite in a trippy dreamscape that shifts the duo through various family sitcom styles of several different eras - from the black and white '50s/early '60s era to the groovier '60s/'70s period and the classic '80s/"TGIF" '90s. In order to present all of these different eras, Marvel has confirmed that the first season of WandaVision will feature nine episodes when it lands on Disney+ in January. For more on Marvel's new miniseries, check out the latest images and plot details from EW's cover story, watch our breakdown of the House of M Easter eggs in the trailer, and take a deep dive into the comics that might have inspired the show. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/11/wandavision-official-trailer-2"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.

A bunch of Persona soundtracks is coming to Spotify, including music from the mainline games such as Persona 5 and Persona 4, as well as spinoffs like Persona 4 Arena Ultimax. The news that the Persona soundtracks are on their way to Spotify comes courtesy of the Twitter account @AniPlaylist, which notifies followers when anime songs come to the music streaming platform. The albums won’t go live until midnight on January 5, but Spotify has already created an official playlist with music from various Persona soundtracks. The tracks are unavailable currently, but will likely go live at the same time the soundtracks do on Spotify. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-modern-ign-1010-and-where-to-play-them&captions=true"] According to AniPlaylist, the Persona albums coming to Spotify include Persona 5, Persona 4 and Golden, Persona 3 and FES, Persona 2 Sound Collections; as well as P4 Dancing All Night, P4 Arena Ultimax, and several remixes and live albums as well. The Persona soundtracks are widely beloved and are often cited as highlights in any given Persona game. A popular meme even jokes that Persona single-handedly created new jazz fans.

Main games soundtracks: - Persona 5 OST - P4 & Golden OST - P3 & FES OST - P2 Sound Collections

But also: - P4 Dancing All Night OST - P4 Arena Ultimax OST - Never More -Reincarnation: Persona 4- - P3 & P4 Vocal Sound Collection - PQ & PQ2 OST - MUSIC FES 2013 - SUPER LIVE 2015 — AniPlaylist (@AniPlaylist) January 4, 2021

Read IGN’s perfect score review of Persona 5 Royal here and check out IGN’s Persona 5 guide. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

A bunch of Persona soundtracks is coming to Spotify, including music from the mainline games such as Persona 5 and Persona 4, as well as spinoffs like Persona 4 Arena Ultimax. The news that the Persona soundtracks are on their way to Spotify comes courtesy of the Twitter account @AniPlaylist, which notifies followers when anime songs come to the music streaming platform. The albums won’t go live until midnight on January 5, but Spotify has already created an official playlist with music from various Persona soundtracks. The tracks are unavailable currently, but will likely go live at the same time the soundtracks do on Spotify. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-modern-ign-1010-and-where-to-play-them&captions=true"] According to AniPlaylist, the Persona albums coming to Spotify include Persona 5, Persona 4 and Golden, Persona 3 and FES, Persona 2 Sound Collections; as well as P4 Dancing All Night, P4 Arena Ultimax, and several remixes and live albums as well. The Persona soundtracks are widely beloved and are often cited as highlights in any given Persona game. A popular meme even jokes that Persona single-handedly created new jazz fans.

Main games soundtracks: - Persona 5 OST - P4 & Golden OST - P3 & FES OST - P2 Sound Collections

But also: - P4 Dancing All Night OST - P4 Arena Ultimax OST - Never More -Reincarnation: Persona 4- - P3 & P4 Vocal Sound Collection - PQ & PQ2 OST - MUSIC FES 2013 - SUPER LIVE 2015 — AniPlaylist (@AniPlaylist) January 4, 2021

Read IGN’s perfect score review of Persona 5 Royal here and check out IGN’s Persona 5 guide. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

Cyberpunk 2077 players have been searching for The Witcher's Ciri in the game from day one, and some think they've now spotted a fairly sneaky reference to the character in one of the game's endings. Mild spoilers for one Cyberpunk 2077 ending follow - proceed at your own risk! [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=cyberpunk-2077-portraits-photo-mode-gallery&captions=true"] As pointed out on Nintendo Smash, the endgame quest All Along the Watchtower (check out our Cyberpunk 2077 guide for how to reach it) begins with V waking up on top of the Badlands Dam, and seeing a bird perch on the open car window. That bird looks and sounds like a barn swallow - in the world of the Witcher, 'Swallow' is the Elvish-English translation of 'Zireael', from which Ciri's name derives (and is the name of the silver sword given to her by Geralt in The Witcher 3). That might seem to be a coincidence, but Cyberpunk 2077 makes very clear that there are no birds in or around Night City. A shard (the game's name for text logs) titled "Avian Extermination Act" makes clear why:

"In the face of increasingly frequent and deadly zoonotic disease outbreaks, the City Council has decided that the most effective method for reducing the risk of infection among residents is via the extermination of all avian life within 18 miles of city limits."

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/cyberpunk-2077-panam-romance-guide"] That makes the appearance of a living bird in the game particularly notable, and one with such close association to Ciri feels like a deliberate choice to some fans. There's no sign yet from CD Projekt Red as to whether that is actually the case - it's very much a fan theory at this point. As for why players have been specifically looking for Ciri in Night City - that comes down to a set of lines she speaks in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Ciri describes a world she hid in to escape the titular Hunt, saying: "People there had metal in their heads, waged war from a distance, using things similar to megascopes. And there were no horses, everyone had their own flying ships instead." Many have taken that to mean she arrived in Night City. Cyberpunk 2077 director Adam Badowski previously said he was against the idea of crossing the worlds over, despite many on the team hoping to include Ciri in the game - it could well be that this reference was the compromise. Even if it's a total coincidence, Ciri does make another appearance in the game - albeit in the form of the cover star on a retro gaming magazine found in the Cyberpunk's prologue for Corpo players. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/28/class-action-lawsuit-filed-against-cyberpunk-2077-publisher-ign-news"] Many have wondered if Ciri will be the lead in the Witcher game due to begin development after Cyberpunk's release. It may well be a while before we find out, however, as Cyberpunk itself clearly has a long way to go. After the poor state of the game on consoles at launch, CD Projekt has committed to a number of updates to fix the game by February, after which it will receive free DLC and paid expansions and, eventually, a multiplayer mode. Considering you can't even buy the game digitally on PlayStation right now, it's likely going to be a long road until we get even a chance of seeing CD projekt's take on Ciri in person again. [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.

Cyberpunk 2077 players have been searching for The Witcher's Ciri in the game from day one, and some think they've now spotted a fairly sneaky reference to the character in one of the game's endings. Mild spoilers for one Cyberpunk 2077 ending follow - proceed at your own risk! [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=cyberpunk-2077-portraits-photo-mode-gallery&captions=true"] As pointed out on Nintendo Smash, the endgame quest All Along the Watchtower (check out our Cyberpunk 2077 guide for how to reach it) begins with V waking up on top of the Badlands Dam, and seeing a bird perch on the open car window. That bird looks and sounds like a barn swallow - in the world of the Witcher, 'Swallow' is the Elvish-English translation of 'Zireael', from which Ciri's name derives (and is the name of the silver sword given to her by Geralt in The Witcher 3). That might seem to be a coincidence, but Cyberpunk 2077 makes very clear that there are no birds in or around Night City. A shard (the game's name for text logs) titled "Avian Extermination Act" makes clear why:

"In the face of increasingly frequent and deadly zoonotic disease outbreaks, the City Council has decided that the most effective method for reducing the risk of infection among residents is via the extermination of all avian life within 18 miles of city limits."

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/cyberpunk-2077-panam-romance-guide"] That makes the appearance of a living bird in the game particularly notable, and one with such close association to Ciri feels like a deliberate choice to some fans. There's no sign yet from CD Projekt Red as to whether that is actually the case - it's very much a fan theory at this point. As for why players have been specifically looking for Ciri in Night City - that comes down to a set of lines she speaks in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Ciri describes a world she hid in to escape the titular Hunt, saying: "People there had metal in their heads, waged war from a distance, using things similar to megascopes. And there were no horses, everyone had their own flying ships instead." Many have taken that to mean she arrived in Night City. Cyberpunk 2077 director Adam Badowski previously said he was against the idea of crossing the worlds over, despite many on the team hoping to include Ciri in the game - it could well be that this reference was the compromise. Even if it's a total coincidence, Ciri does make another appearance in the game - albeit in the form of the cover star on a retro gaming magazine found in the Cyberpunk's prologue for Corpo players. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/28/class-action-lawsuit-filed-against-cyberpunk-2077-publisher-ign-news"] Many have wondered if Ciri will be the lead in the Witcher game due to begin development after Cyberpunk's release. It may well be a while before we find out, however, as Cyberpunk itself clearly has a long way to go. After the poor state of the game on consoles at launch, CD Projekt has committed to a number of updates to fix the game by February, after which it will receive free DLC and paid expansions and, eventually, a multiplayer mode. Considering you can't even buy the game digitally on PlayStation right now, it's likely going to be a long road until we get even a chance of seeing CD projekt's take on Ciri in person again. [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.

In an interview with Major Nelson, Phil Spencer has said that Xbox is "working as hard as we can" to get more Xbox Series X and S consoles to players, as shortages continue. Recapping the year, Spencer said, "we got the consoles launched and we wished we had more of them, we're selling out too quickly". He continued, "I get some people [saying], 'Why didn't you build more, why didn't you start earlier, why didn't you ship them earlier?' I mean all of those things, and it is really just down to physics and engineering,". "We're not holding them back, we're building them as fast as we can, we have all of the assembly lines going", Spencer added. Spencer notes that he's been on the phone recently with AMD's Lisa Su (who manufacture the CPU and GPU of Xbox's next-gen consoles) asking "how do we get more?". It's clear that the team is working hard to get more consoles into the hands of players. Supply just simply cannot meet demand right now, so shortages are expected - last year, Microsoft's CFO said he realistically expected supply to meet demand by spring of 2021. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-best-games-to-play-on-xbox-series-xs&captions=true"] You can listen to Spencer's quotes as part of Major Nelson's "Closing out 2020" interview with the head of Xbox on his YouTube channel, where he also discusses the rollout of xCloud, his favourtie games of the year, and more. In other Phil Spencer news, the Xbox don said back in November that console tribalism is "one of the worst things in the industry". In December, some UK politicians called to ban console scalping and the use of retail purchasing bots to combat reselling. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/04/07/phil-spencer-interview-analysis-unlocked-438"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

In an interview with Major Nelson, Phil Spencer has said that Xbox is "working as hard as we can" to get more Xbox Series X and S consoles to players, as shortages continue. Recapping the year, Spencer said, "we got the consoles launched and we wished we had more of them, we're selling out too quickly". He continued, "I get some people [saying], 'Why didn't you build more, why didn't you start earlier, why didn't you ship them earlier?' I mean all of those things, and it is really just down to physics and engineering,". "We're not holding them back, we're building them as fast as we can, we have all of the assembly lines going", Spencer added. Spencer notes that he's been on the phone recently with AMD's Lisa Su (who manufacture the CPU and GPU of Xbox's next-gen consoles) asking "how do we get more?". It's clear that the team is working hard to get more consoles into the hands of players. Supply just simply cannot meet demand right now, so shortages are expected - last year, Microsoft's CFO said he realistically expected supply to meet demand by spring of 2021. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-best-games-to-play-on-xbox-series-xs&captions=true"] You can listen to Spencer's quotes as part of Major Nelson's "Closing out 2020" interview with the head of Xbox on his YouTube channel, where he also discusses the rollout of xCloud, his favourtie games of the year, and more. In other Phil Spencer news, the Xbox don said back in November that console tribalism is "one of the worst things in the industry". In December, some UK politicians called to ban console scalping and the use of retail purchasing bots to combat reselling. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/04/07/phil-spencer-interview-analysis-unlocked-438"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.