Despite consistently charting on Netflix since its release, The Sandman's creator is worried that the show's success may not be enough for Netflix to greenlight future seasons.

Neil Gaiman, the writer of The Sandman comic and Executive Producer of the Netflix adaptation, said the show's costly development means it needs to perform incredibly well to earn a second season. On Twitter, Gaiman responded to a fan asking why Season Two of The Sandman isn't a sure thing.

"Because Sandman is a really expensive show," Gaiman explained. "And for Netflix to release the money to let us make another season we have to perform incredibly well. So yes, we've been the top show in the world for the last two weeks. That still may not be enough."

Because Sandman is a really expensive show. And for Netflix to release the money to let us make another season we have to perform incredibly well. So yes, we've been the top show in the world for the last two weeks. That still may not be enough. https://t.co/m7VusGL2rW

— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) August 21, 2022

Back when The Sandman was announced in 2019, it was reported as a "massive" financial deal and the most expensive series that DC Entertainment had ever taken on at the time.

Gaiman also shared some insight into how Netflix measures the success of its content, saying that the streamer looks at completion rates — the percentage of people that actually finish a series or movie — rather than just the number of people watching it in general. So, if you want to contribute to The Sandman's success, be sure to finish watching the series all the way through.

It shouldn't be too difficult for most fans to finish the show, as we called the first season "everything longtime fans could have dreamed of in an adaptation" in our Sandman review.

Gaiman's words on how Netflix chooses what to renew line up with our own report on the subject, where former Netflix VP Cindy Holland said, "the biggest thing that we look at is, are we getting enough viewership to justify the cost of the series?" Completion rate is one consideration, along with the social media conversation and the fandom, among others.

For more, check out how Netflix's Sandman adaption changed Calliope's story in a big way. Or, read about the recently-released surprise episode of The Sandman.

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN. You can find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.

Slightly Mad Studios announced that it will be delisting both Project Cars and Project Cars 2 from digital storefronts on October 3 and September 21, respectively.

“Due to expiring car and track licenses, both Project Cars and Project Cars 2 will be delisted from sale in the coming months,” the studio said on Twitter. “The games remain fully playable, and our players will still be able to enjoy all the game features, including multiplayer. We will remove Project Cars from sale on October 3rd and Project Cars 2 on September 21.”

The studio continued, “We remain focused on making the best sim racing titles, and as mentioned previously, we look forward to sharing more on the next Slightly Mad project when the time is right.”

An update from the Slightly Mad Team on #ProjectCARS and #ProjectCARS2. pic.twitter.com/VtWEow5jao

— Project CARS (@projectcarsgame) August 22, 2022

That doesn't mean that Project Cars and its sequel will be gone forever. While the games will soon be unable to be purchased digitally, physical copies of them will still exist. Furthermore, players will still be able to enjoy the games in their totality as the multiplayer servers will stay up.

The latest iteration of the series, Project Cars 3, remains unaffected. However, the mobile game Project Cars Go shut down seven months after its release in March 2021. Another Slightly Mad Studios game, Fast & Furious: Crossroads, was delisted back in April.

While details about the next project from Slightly Mad Studios are unknown, the studio was acquired by Codemasters in 2019 and then was subsequently acquired by EA last year.

George Yang is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @yinyangfooey

Slightly Mad Studios announced that it will be delisting both Project Cars and Project Cars 2 from digital storefronts on October 3 and September 21, respectively.

“Due to expiring car and track licenses, both Project Cars and Project Cars 2 will be delisted from sale in the coming months,” the studio said on Twitter. “The games remain fully playable, and our players will still be able to enjoy all the game features, including multiplayer. We will remove Project Cars from sale on October 3rd and Project Cars 2 on September 21.”

The studio continued, “We remain focused on making the best sim racing titles, and as mentioned previously, we look forward to sharing more on the next Slightly Mad project when the time is right.”

An update from the Slightly Mad Team on #ProjectCARS and #ProjectCARS2. pic.twitter.com/VtWEow5jao

— Project CARS (@projectcarsgame) August 22, 2022

That doesn't mean that Project Cars and its sequel will be gone forever. While the games will soon be unable to be purchased digitally, physical copies of them will still exist. Furthermore, players will still be able to enjoy the games in their totality as the multiplayer servers will stay up.

The latest iteration of the series, Project Cars 3, remains unaffected. However, the mobile game Project Cars Go shut down seven months after its release in March 2021. Another Slightly Mad Studios game, Fast & Furious: Crossroads, was delisted back in April.

While details about the next project from Slightly Mad Studios are unknown, the studio was acquired by Codemasters in 2019 and then was subsequently acquired by EA last year.

George Yang is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @yinyangfooey

Saul Goodman always knew how to pull a crowd, and the Better Call Saul finale was no exception. According to Nielsen Live+3 Ratings, the series finale of Better Call Saul was the most watched episode of the show since 2017 with 2.7 million viewers on AMC.

In fact, the final episode was the most watched episode of the show since the Season 3 finale on June 19, 2017, which drew an impressive 1.8 million viewers.

“There has been so much said about this final season of Better Call Saul, so many accolades directed at this extraordinary piece of television – from viewers, critics and everyone else who knows what an accomplishment it is to deliver entertainment at this level,” said AMC president of entertainment Dan McDermott. “I just want to cap this final season by saying thank you.”

“Thanks to Peter and Vince and the entire creative team, including Mark Johnson and Melissa Bernstein. Thanks to Bob, Rhea, Jonathan, Giancarlo and the entire cast,” added McDermott. “Thanks to our partners at Sony and to every viewer who went along on this legendary ride. We are so proud to have been the home of Better Call Saul for all these years and unforgettable seasons. Now we put this series up on the mantel as a reminder of the excellence we all aspire to every day.”

Better Call Saul came full circle for its series finale which aired on August 15.

The beleaguered lawyer found his past catching up with him as he wound up back in the dock facing a moral dilemma. Face up to his crimes and be a better man, or work his magic and talk his way out of it?

Saul Goodman certainly worked his magic on viewers, as Better Call Saul became the third most-watched cable drama in key demographics for the current season.

The final season of Better Call Saul is also up for several Emmys with nominations including Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series; Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series #; and additional nominations in sound, music, and writing.

Want to read more about Better Call Saul? Check out what the show gets right about prequels, as well as the great idea one of its stars has about what’s next for Jimmy and Kim.

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

IGN is excited to reveal two new cards from Magic: The Gathering’s next set, Dominaria United. We’ve got the first look at a new rare merfolk creature with kicker called Vodalian Mindsinger, as well as the latest in a long and storied line of Lotus artifacts with a mythic rare called Timeless Lotus.

Both cards are visible in the gallery below, and you can flip through to see each one individually.

Timeless Lotus is a five-mana Legendary Artifact that enters the battlefield tapped and can tap to add five mana, one of each color. That’s a ton of mana to come from a single mana rock like this, though the high cost and tapped entry do slow it down significantly. The two closest comparisons that came to my mind were Gilded Lotus, which is another lotus that costs five and taps for three mana of a single color (without entering tapped), and Jegantha, the Wellspring, a five-mana creature that also taps for one of each color but with a restriction on how it can be spent.

The lotus has always been a symbol of raw power in Magic, tracing its lineage back to the game’s most iconic (and most expensive) card from the very first set: Black Lotus. I could go into its history, but if you’re interested in learning more I’d highly recommend this video from YouTuber Rhystic Studies expertly breaking down its significance, as well as this recent one from Magic designer Gavin Verhey digging into all the times the lotus has made its way back onto a card.

Our other preview card, Vodalian Mindsinger, is sure to make many a merfolk fan happy. It’s a 2/2 blue Merfolk Wizard for three-mana that lets you take control of a creature with power less than its own for as long as you control it. The kicker is that it literally has kicker, letting you pay one and a red, one and a green, or both to have it enter the battlefield with two or four +1/+1 counters on it, raising the cost but also growing its size to allow you to steal bigger things. It’s just a shame that the kicker’s red mana-pip means this won’t be playable in the vast majority of merfolk-themed commander decks.

Wizards of the Coast also previously announced that original cards from the 1994 set Legends will be hiding in Collector booster packs, which leaves an opportunity to open some extremely rare cards in you're lucky. And in unrelated Magic news, WOTC also revealed just last week that the card game would be getting a Doctor Who crossover late next year.

Tom Marks is IGN's Deputy Reviews Editor. He enjoys card games, puzzles, platformers, puzzle-platformers, and plenty more.

It’s a Wonderful Life star Virginia Patton has died, aged 97. The actress, who starred as Ruth Dakin Bailey in the iconic holiday classic, died on Thursday at an assisted living facility in Albany, Georgia.

“Virginia Ann Patton Moss passed peacefully of natural causes on August 18, 2022,” said a statement from Mathews Funeral Home. “Virginia touched so many lives with her gifts of kindness and grace. She will always be remembered for her warm hugs, her zest for life, her elegance, and her deep faith in God. Virginia’s presence made any gathering extra special, and her passion for family and friends was immeasurable.”

We are saddened to hear of Virginia Patton Moss’ passing. She played Ruth Dakin Bailey (Harry’s wife) in ‘It’s A Wonderful Life’. Our thoughts are with her family and friends. pic.twitter.com/keDIGgMYTJ

— Jimmy Stewart Museum (@Jimmy_Dot_Org) August 21, 2022

Patton made her Hollywood debut in 1943 with a handful of uncredited roles but made her breakthrough the following year starring as Carrie Lou in the film, Janie.

Her most recognizable role came just two years later when she starred as Ruth Dakin Bailey in Frank Capra’s 1946 classic, It’s a Wonderful Life. Her character was married to Harry Bailey (Todd Karns) in the legendary holiday classic, and her big scene saw her meeting George (James Stewart) and Uncle Billy (Thomas Mitchell) at the Bedford Falls train station.

“When you were on the set, you knew your lines, you knew your business,” she recalled in 2012. “It was a camaraderie, but it was a business. It was a wonderful atmosphere that some other directors didn’t produce.”

The young starlet went on to clinch a handful of other film roles, but ultimately left Hollywood in 1949 – her final film role as Millie Dale in The Lucky Stiff.

At the age of just 24, Patton retired from Hollywood and married Cruse W. Moss, moving to Ann Arbor to focus on raising a family. She was also the niece of General George S. Patton.

“I have a beautiful letter that [Capra] wrote me because I kept in touch with him,” she revealed. “And he said, ‘I just knew you’d be a wonderful mother with three little bambinos and a wonderful husband.’”

She later studied at the University of Michigan and became a well-known force for good in the Ann Arbor community, serving as a boy and girl scout leader for 10 years as well as joining the Boards of the University of Michigan Kelsey Museum and the Stearns Collection of Musical Instruments.

She was a docent at the University of Michigan Museum of Art for over 25 years.

Patton also served on the Boards of the American Institute of Archeology, the Washtenaw County Mental Health Services Agency, and Cleary College’s Board of Trustees.

Patton is survived by her two children, Carol Moss Loop and Michael Cruse Moss, as well as her seven grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

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

Today, The Game Awards announced it will return for a ninth year on Thursday, December 8, broadcast from LA's Microsoft Theater.

The show will be livestreamed across numerous digital platforms including YouTube, Twitch, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok, and will also include live showings at select IMAX theaters as in past years. Public tickets for the in-person show are expected to be made available this year as well, pending CDC and LA health and safety guidelines. As before, Geoff Keighley remains executive producer of the show alongside Kimmie Kim.

In addition to the usual musical guests and past award categories, The Game Awards will introduce a new category: Best Adaptation. Best Adaptation will "recognize creative work that authentically adapts video game intellectual property to other popular media, including but not limited to theatrical movies, streaming shows, podcasts, novels, and comic books."

We're also likely to see the usual bevy of brand new game announcements and trailers at the show. Last year's announcements included Alan Wake 2, a Wonder Woman game, a new trailer for Elden Ring, the official announcement of Sonic Frontiers, and a lot more.

Last year, It Takes Two took Game of the Year, beating out fellow nominees Deathloop, Metroid Dread, Psychonauts 2, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and Resident Evil Village. You can see the full list of winners here.

Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.

Sony is being sued for £5 billion ($5.9 billion) over the price of its online PlayStation Store prices, which the plaintiff claiming Sony is over-charging consumers and abusing its position as the primary seller of PlayStation games digitally.

As reported by Sky News, consumer rights advocate Alex Neill - the ex-managing director of non-profit consumer advice organisation Which UK - is leading the legal action and said "the game is up for Sony PlayStation".

The lawsuit, filed with the Competition Appeal Tribunal on August 19, states that consumers have been overcharged for digital purchases of games and DLC as Sony is charging a 30% commission.

"With this legal action I am standing up for the millions of UK people who have been unwittingly overcharged," said Neill. "We believe Sony has abused its position and ripped off its customers.

"Gaming is now the biggest entertainment industry in the UK, ahead of TV, video, and music, and many vulnerable people rely on gaming for community and connection. The actions of Sony is costing millions of people who can't afford it, particularly when we're in the midst of a cost of living crisis and the consumer purse is being squeezed like never before."

The crux of the lawsuit is that, as the primary (and dominant) seller of digital PlayStation products, Sony is in a position to overcharge for its items. The legal action claims it's doing exactly that, forcing consumers to overspend unfairly and, as a result, is in breach of competition law.

"Sony dominates the digital distribution of PlayStation games and in-game content," said Natasha Pearman, the legal partner leading the case. "It has deployed an anti-competitive strategy which has resulted in excessive prices to customers that are out of all proportion to the costs of Sony providing its services."

The estimated damages per individual over the last six years range from £67 (around $79) to £562 (around $664), excluding interest, which amasses to the £5 billion total, the lawsuit claims.

IGN has reached out to Sony for comment.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero secured a weekend box office victory in the US, surpassing Universal's survival thriller Beast and landing in first place with $20.1 million.

As Variety reports, the latest Dragon Ball Super installment almost doubled the amount of North American ticket sales that Beast, starring Idris Elba, collected at the US weekend box office. That film opened to a modest $11.5 million while Sony's action-thriller Bullet Train slipped to third place after hauling in another $8 million in its third weekend of release.

"We're absolutely thrilled that Dragon Ball fans could come together to experience and enjoy this amazing film in theaters," Mitchel Berger, Crunchyroll's senior VP of global commerce, said in a statement. "Crunchyroll thanks all of the fans, whether or not you are a 'super' fan or a newcomer, and we hope they come back again and again.

The new movie is a direct sequel to the Broly film that was released initially in 2018, and draws focus away from Goku and Vegeta in favor of Gohan and Piccolo. Broly debuted to $22.3 million over a 6-day holiday weekend in the US but experienced a steep revenue drop in its second weekend, which can be a common occurrence for anime features.

Super Hero's box office takings are tracking above or close to the performance of other recent anime titles. Jujutsu Kaisen 0, for instance, grossed $17.6 million during its opening weekend in the US, while Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train enjoyed the biggest foreign language debut in US box office history when it opened to $21.2 million.

Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero is currently playing on 3,007 screens, including 327 IMAX screens, which garnered $3.4 million in US ticket sales alone during the opening weekend.

The second Dragon Ball Super movie places the characters we've come to know and love in an all-new aesthetic as the franchise's first-ever 3DCG-animated film. According to IGN's review of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, the film "manages to successfully thread the needle between past and present, both showing love for the now codified personalities of its characters and finding a new path for them."

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

2K has announced that the standard edition of PGA Tour 2K23 will be available on October 14, with the more expensive Deluxe and Tiger Woods editions available a few days earlier on October 11.

The game aims to celebrate the legacy of Tiger Woods, who hasn't featured on a video game cover since 2013's Tiger Woods PGA Tour 14, even bringing in the golfing legend as an executive director.

PGA Tour will be available for PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series, and PC via Steam. The Deluxe Edition includes "cross-generation dual-entitlement", meaning a copy of the game on both PS4 and PS5, or both Xbox One and Series, plus Michael Jordan DLC (yes, the basketball player) and 1,300 VC, equivalent to around $5. It also comes with a handful of cosmetics including a hockey stick putter, gold baseball cap, gold glove, and three rare consumable gold sleeves.

The Tiger Woods Edition is a digital-only version that includes everything from the Deluxe Edition plus further cosmetics including Woods' iconic red polo and black pants combo, a unique gold ball, belt, three Epic consumable gold sleeves, and more.

2K didn't reveal the cost of each edition, but did announce the Clubhouse Pass, which appears to follow a Battle Pass style progression system, that will be available in three tiers: the free standard tier, the $9.99 Premium tier, and the $19.99 Premium + tier. Those who preorder the standard edition of PGA Tour 2K23 will also gain access to the Michael Jordan DLC.

Woods is one of 14 male and female pro golfers available to play when PGA Tour 2K23 is released - including Justin Thomas, Lexi Thompson, Tony Finau, Lydia Ko, Collin Morikawa, Will Zalatoris, and Brooke Henderson - but 2K also announced that free DLC would add to this roster down the line.

The game also includes 20 licensed courses at launch including the South Course of Wilmington Country Club, The Renaissance Club, St. George’s Golf and Country Club and more. The custom course designer will also return, letting players make their own unique courses and access ones made by other players.

In our 7/10 review of the previous game, IGN said: "PGA Tour 2K21 delivers the most flexible and enjoyable game of golf since the Tiger Woods series was at its peak."

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.