A raft of updates were announced for Hearthstone today, including a brand new mode, a brand new expansion, and a complete overhaul of the game’s progression system. Let’s go through them.

Hearthstone Duels

First up, the new mode is called Hearthstone Duels and it takes the build-as-you-go deckbuilding gameplay that has been so popular across many of Hearthstone’s Solo Adventures of recent years and lets you take on other players. If you’ve played Dungeon Run, Monster Hunt, Rumble Run, The Dalaran Heist or Tombs of Terror, you’d have some idea of the format, but a key difference here is that Duels is structured like Arena, so players are striving for 12 wins, while three losses ends the run. At the start of a run, players choose a hero, each of which has a bespoke hero power, and then builds their own starter deck of 15 cards to take into the run. These cards can be anything from the current legal pool for the mode, but instead of the usual limit of one copy of each legendary and two copies of each card of other rarities, Duels only allows one copy of each card, regardless of rarity. With each win, players can choose between different options to add cards to their decks, and – as anyone who has played the Solo Adventures would expect – powerful treasures will also be a fixture of the mode, allowing players to make truly over-the-top plays. With each season, the heroes, hero powers, treasures and card pool will change. The debut season’s theme is Wizard Duels, so the ten heroes are pulled from the Scholomance Academy expansion. And in terms of the cards players can use, Season 1 will include the Basic and Classic sets, as well as Scholomance Academy, Curse of Naxxramas and One Night in Karazhan. Duels will be a free game mode, although there will also be a Heroic Duels option for 150 gold or a Tavern ticket, with rewards based on how well you perform. The Duels beta officially launches on November 17, but there will be ample opportunities to play it before then. Players who pre-purchase a Madness at the Darkmoon Faire bundle (yes, that’s the next expansion – we’ll get to it in a sec) will get early access to Duels. How early? It’s running right now. And once November 12 rolls around, early access will open up for everyone. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=hearthstone-duels-screenshots&captions=true"]

Old Gods, New Tricks

The Hearthstone team also announced the game’s next expansion, and it’s a doozy. Welcome to Madness at the Darkmoon Faire, so named because The Old Gods have chosen WoW’s iconic Darkmoon Faire as the site of their return. Yes, all four Old Gods are back as new legendary cards, and are packing game-swinging power. Not only that, but the set will also include four Old God Artifacts – powerful spells inspired by the original Old God card designs from Whispers of the Old Gods. Across its 135 new cards, Madness at the Darkmoon Faire will also play host to a new keyword – Corrupt. Cards with Corrupt can be upgraded in hand by first playing a card of a greater cost than the corruptible card. In a neat touch, the corrupted card then gets a new, twisted version of its original artwork. This feels like a thoughtful new mechanic that should make for interesting deckbuilding, not to mention plenty of decisions within matches. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=madness-at-the-darkmoon-faire-announcement-cards&captions=true"] Madness at the Darkmoon Faire (MDF) will launch on November 17 (or Nov 18 in ANZ), but there are two pre-purchase options available now. The first bundle is $39.99 USD ($53.95 AUD) and contains 45 Madness at the Darkmoon Faire card packs, one random MDF legendary card, the N’Zoth card back and early access to Hearthstone Duels. The Mega Bundle, meanwhile, costs $79.99 USD ($109.95 AUD) and includes 80 Madness at the Darkmoon Faire card packs, five golden MDF card packs, one random golden MDF legendary card, the playable N’Zoth Warlock Hero, the N’Zoth card back, Battleground perks and early access to Hearthstone Duels. [caption id="attachment_2428183" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The new game board.[/caption]

Making Progress

Last but by no means least, the team has also announced the biggest overhaul to Hearthstone’s progression system ever, and it’s coming on November 12. The change includes an achievements system, a central Reward Track, a quest revamp and an updated profile page. Let’s run through these. Achievements have been requested since the very beginning of Hearthstone and they’re finally coming! The system will include a broad set of stats across every game mode, will let you chase in-game accomplishments by class, and will even let you easily keep track of your card collection and ranked milestones. Another huge change is the shift to an experience-based reward system. Yes, with each new expansion, players will be able to earn experience by completing quests, unlocking specific achievements and simply playing the game, and in doing so make their way through a 50-level Reward Track. Along the way you’ll be given gold, card packs, cards and cosmetics. And hitting level 50 will earn players one of ten all-new hero skins. Purchasing a Tavern Pass can also add bonus earnable items to the Reward Track, including XP boosts and extra cosmetics. As mentioned, completing quests now rewards players with XP to push them along their Reward Track. There will, however, be even more quests to complete, with daily quests being joined by all-new weekly quests. You’ll get three at the start of each week, and like daily quests, one weekly quest can be re-rolled each day. Lastly, as of November 12 each player will now have an in-game profile page with lifetime stats for their accounts. Nice. You can see the official announcement post here and catch the announcement VODs on Hearthstone's YouTube channel here. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=hearthstones-new-progression-system-reward-track&captions=true"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Cam Shea is based in Sydney and is still in love with Breath of the Wild. He's on Twitter.

Ghostrunner is running onto next-gen consoles in 2021. The official Ghostrunner Twitter account announced today that owners of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions of the game will receive a free upgrade to next-gen versions of the game. Those upgrades will come in 2021 when the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X versions of the game are released.

Owners of the @PlayStation 4 & @Xbox One versions of Ghostrunner will receive a free upgrade to the next generation versions when they release in 2021!

Pre-Order Now https://t.co/GlPZoMjsna#BeGhostrunner#PS5 #XboxSeriesX pic.twitter.com/49yTJDz55d — Ghostrunner (@GhostrunnerGame) October 22, 2020

As you can see in the tweet above, there isn't any elaboration as to when players can expect to receive this next-gen upgrade or when people can purchase the PS5 and Series X versions of the game. You might notice the asterisk note at the bottom of the picture in the tweet above. It reads, "buy the digital version of Ghostrunner for PS4 or Xbox One and download the PS5 or Xbox Series X version at no extra cost when it launches in 2021." If you're wondering why there's no mention of physical version upgrades, it's because Ghostrunner is digital-only. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/06/ghostrunner-cinematic-trailer"] Developed by One More Level and Slipgate Ironworks, Ghostrunner is a cyberpunk parkour game set in a neon-drenched metropolis where you basically play as a ninja wielding katanas. If that sounds cool, you can pre-order the game on PS4 as a PlayStation Plus subscriber or on PC to get a 20% discount. There's a 10% pre-order discount on Xbox One. Ghostrunner will be released on October 27, 2020. If you haven't seen Ghostrunner's ninja in action, check out the official reveal trailer and then watch this gameplay of a new story level available in the game's demo. Watch the Ghostrunner developers react to some incredible demo speedruns after that. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes. 

Update: The first image of Tom Holland as Nathan Drake has been released, and he looks exactly how you'd expect. Posted by Holland himself to Instagram and Twitter, the photograph shows him in a tan-coloured shirt and cargo pants, a get-up that's practically identical to his in-game counterpart. "It’s nice to meet you, I’m Nate," Holland wrote in the post's caption.

It’s nice to meet you, I’m Nate. #uncharted pic.twitter.com/v79Mvy26iH

— Tom Holland (@TomHolland1996) October 22, 2020

Original story: The first images from the Uncharted movie have been released, giving us a first look at not just some props, but also TWO Nathan Drakes. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=uncharted-movie-first-images&captions=true"] The images, published by Naughty Dog on the studio's Twitter account, show Nathan Drake's original voice actor, Nolan North, talking to live-action Nathan Drake, Tom Holland. The photograph was taken when North was visiting the set of the video game adaptation. Additionally, Naughty Dog also posted another two images: an artifact slotted into a dusty wood-and-metal surface almost like a key, and a book featuring an image of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. The tweet is accompanied by a quote from Magellan: "Meet the shadowy future without fear and conquer the unknown." We know that the film will be a prequel to the Uncharted series of video games, with a young Nate Drake accompanied by a young Victor Sullivan (played by Mark Wahlberg). Perhaps we'll see them investigating the travels and discoveries of Magellan, the first circumnavigation of the Earth during his Spanish expedition to the East Indies between 1519 and 1522. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/07/15/uncharted-movie-finally-begins-shooting-updated"] For more on the Uncharted movie, see our stories on how Sully may not be rocking his signature 'tache, and Tom Holland's claim that the film has a solution to the video game movie problem. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt Purslow is IGN's UK News and Entertainment Writer.

Netflix has released the official trailer for its new animated World War II epic, called The Liberator, which premieres on the streamer on Veterans Day, November 11, 2020. Here's how Netflix describes the upcoming four-episode historical drama: "(The Liberator) tells the riveting true story of the bloodiest and most dramatic march to victory of the Second World War: the battlefield odyssey of maverick U.S. Army officer Felix Sparks and his infantry unit as they fought for over five hundred days to liberate Europe." IGN can exclusively reveal the new trailer in the video below or at the top of the page: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/22/netflixs-the-liberator-exclusive-official-trailer-2020"] The Liberator's unique animation is called "Enhanced Hybrid Animation," which is a new patent-pending technology that uses a combination of CGI and live-action performances. The series is based on the book “The Liberator: One World War II Soldier’s 500-Day Odyssey” by Alex Kershaw and created for television by Jeb Stuart (Die Hard, The Fugitive). IGN spoke to Stuart (via email) about why the use of animation was important for The Liberator's production. “Trioscope's hybrid animation allowed us to tell a massive W.W.2 drama on a scale we could only dream about in live-action," Stuart said, adding, "without sacrificing any of the story’s emotional nuances.” Be sure to check out all four parts of The Liberator when it premieres on Netflix on Wednesday, November 11, 2020. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=netflixs-the-liberator-gallery&captions=true"] [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.

Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & The Blade of Light - the first Fire Emblem game from 1990 - will be released on the Nintendo Switch on December 4, 2020, and will be fully localized for the first time. This Fire Emblem game, that was released only in Japan on the Nintendo Family Computer (Famicom), told a story that featured the "heroic exploits of Prince Marth," and began a franchise that has spawned 20 games, spin-offs, and remakes, most recently with Fire Emblem: Three Houses for the Nintendo Switch. Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & The Blade of Light will be available on the Nintendo eShop for $5.99 and will only be available to purchase until the end of the franchise's 30th anniversary on March 31, 2021. Super Mario 3D All-Stars and Super Mario Bros. 35 will also only be available, at least in their current forms, until that date as well. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/22/fire-emblem-shadow-dragon-the-blade-of-light-english-version-announcement-trailer"] There will also be a Fire Emblem 30th Anniversary Edition that will be available for $49.99 and will include "a nostalgic, stylized physical NES box and a replica NES Game Pak art piece with a protective sleeve that transports owners to the era of the original game’s release." There will also be a 222-page Legacy of Archanea deluxe hardbound art book, download code, NES instruction manual (also localized!), a fold-out world map, and a Mini Nintendo Power retro collectible. Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & The Blade of Light will have its first English language localization on Switch, and will also have rewind, fast-forward, and save states to help players along their journey. Throughout the adventure, players will be able to control dozens of characters with unique attributes and will help Marth acquire the sacred Falchion sword on his quest to restore peace to the Kingdom of Archanea. This particular adventure was remade for the Nintendo DS in 2008 as Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon. In our review, we said "Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon doesn't offer a revolutionary experience, but it is a highly polished and well-balanced example of strategy gaming. Nintendo did a nice job making sure it kept the challenge the series is known for while at the same time providing a friendlier experience for newcomers. The series superfans may be disappointed at the lack of new features, but this is still one of the strongest turn-based strategy experiences on the DS." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-ign-fire-emblem-review-ever&captions=true"] [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.

Sony has revealed that Apple TV+, Disney+, Netflix, Spotify, Twitch, and YouTube will all be available on PS5 on its launch day of November 12, 2020. Announced on PlayStation.Blog, the PS5 will also be getting additional streaming apps in the future like Amazon Prime Video, MyCanal, Hulu, Peacock, and more. Some of these apps also have an integrated experience with PS5, including being able to play Spotify in the background while you play a game, watching or livestreaming on Twitch, and broadcasting and sharing gameplay moments from YouTube. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/16/ps5s-ui-the-5-biggest-gamechangers"] Furthermore, these apps, as was shown in the PS5's UI reveal, will have a dedicated media entertainment space next to the Game home screen. There will also be no need to download the entertainment apps through the PS Store as they will now all be contained in the Media space. This will allow for switching quickly between Game and Media spaces and PS5's new Control Center will also make controlling your music even easier with the ability to switch between channels, skip, and pause whatever you may be playing. The PS5's Media Remote will also be available with the launch of the console, and will let users power on the PS5, quickly navigate media, adjust volume and power settings on compatible TVs, and will feature dedicated launch buttons for Disney+, Netflix, Spotify and YouTube. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=confirmed-playstation-5-games&captions=true"] [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.

Publisher Ragnarok Game has amended a lawsuit against Human Head Studios, suing Bethesda for $100 million over its alleged part in an "intentional sabotage" of Ragnarok's Rune 2 in an attempt to protect The Elder Scrolls franchise. As reported by PC Gamer, the lawsuit was originally filed in December of 2019 and focused on Human Head Studios, the original developers of Rune 2. Ragnarok claims that the developers intentionally abandoned the game upon launch and refused to turn over the source code, so the publisher is seeking damages and restitution. The reason Bethesda Softworks and ZeniMax Media are now involved in the suit is that Human Head Studios went out of business a day after the game's launch, only to be absorbed by Bethesda and re-opened as Roundhouse Studios on the same day. You can read the amended complaint here, which notes that Ragnarok "seeks redress for fraud and the intentional sabotage of two video games, Rune II and Oblivion Song." Oblivion Song wasn't announced, but it appears to be an adaptation of the popular Robert Kirkman comic book series that was left unfinished when Human Head Studios announced their departure. "Rune II was maliciously torpedoed in a conspiracy between the game's developer, desperate for cash, and a large video game conglomerate intent on destroying threats to its own video-game franchises," the complaint reads. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/11/05/rune-ii-co-op-trailer"] The suit alleges that Human Head contacted Bethesda and ZeniMax about a potential acquisition without notifying Ragnarok, and later provided the publisher with keys to a pre-release version of Rune 2, which allowed Bethesda to "see for themselves the threat that Rune II posed to their hit franchise, Skyrim/Elder Scrolls." Then, two weeks prior to Rune II's launch, Zenimax allegedly formed Roundhouse Studios and used the company "to purchase all of Human Head's equipment and take over its leases," which Ragnarok alleges contained trade secrets, source and materials relating to the two games. The complaint also mentions the PR troubles caused by the alleged sabotage, noting that in spite of the game's positive reviews, the next day Ragnarok was faced with headlines about the studio's departure and the wavering future of Rune 2 post-launch. For more on Rune 2, you can check out our preview of the game from 2019. ZeniMax Media was recently part of a major acquisition, with Bethesda Softworks and Roundhouse Studios brought under the wing of Microsoft in September as part of a $7.5 billion deal. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

Nintendo has pushed a patch to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate that removes the unintentionally NSFW victory pose used by Minecraft Steve. The Mojang mascot arrived in-game on October 13, and shortly after fans made the internet aware of his provocative victory animation. If Steve triumphs over his Nintendo colleagues, he will start eating a piece of steak in the endgame screen and then hold the steak slab at waist height, creating an image rife with potential innuendo for those of us with a dirty mind.

THE SMASH ULTIMATE 9.0.1 UPDATE REMOVED STEVE’S VICTORY MEAT LMFAOOO pic.twitter.com/25Fa0ds7as

— YuYu (@Plun_Yu) October 22, 2020

However, Nintendo has now made it so that the steak vanishes after he eats it, removing its promiscuous potential. You can see Steve's new victory pose in the video above, uploaded by Twitter user Plun_Yu. This is one of the many tweaks introduced in the Ver. 9.0.1 update, issued on October 21. As well as getting rid of Steve's slab, the patch has fixed a few issues with the Minecart and Anvil moves used by the new suite of Minecraft characters. Microsoft's head of gaming Phil Spencer was shown the image in an interview with Kotaku's Stephen Totilo last week. After a long pause, Spencer responded "Yeah. Who did that?" before being told it was a real screenshot for the game, and saying, "I assume that will be fixed." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/15/super-smash-bros-ultimate-dlc-review-minecraft-steve"] In our review of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's Minecraft Steve DLC we considered more than just his modesty, scoring the fighter a 7 and noting that "his uniqueness carries him far nonetheless." In other Smash Bros. Ultimate news, check out the new Banjo-Kazooie, Byleth and Terry Bogard amiibo that will arrive in 2021. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.