Valve has responded to a growing Team Fortress 2 community movement in protect of the game's massive botting problem, and is reassuring players it is "working to improve things."

In a tweet today from the official Team Fortress 2 account, Valve said "TF2 community, we hear you! We love this game and know you do, too. We see how large this issue has become and are working to improve things." It is the first tweet from the account since July 2020 (not counting a single retweet of an official Valve tweet from October 2020).

TF2 community, we hear you! We love this game and know you do, too. We see how large this issue has become and are working to improve things.

— Team Fortress 2 (@TeamFortress) May 26, 2022

This comes in response to the hashtag #SaveTF2, which the Team Fortress 2 community has adopted in the last few days to draw attention to a massive botting problem that has been ongoing in the game since 2020. The hashtag has been adopted by a large number of Team Fortress 2 streamers and is described as a "peaceful" protest about the state of the game. The bot infestation has caused Team Fortress 2's casual servers to be overun with spam messages, flawless snipers, and more recently bots that can crash entire games or orchestrate coordinated kicking of human players. Previously, community leaders organized an emailing campaign to reach out to Valve and media outlets to shed light on the issue.

While individuals using the #SaveTF2 hashtag may have different motives, largely the group has simply been hoping for some level of acknowledgement from Valve, ideally coupled with a fix. Others hope that renewed attention on Team Fortress 2 may result in the game getting regular updates again given the large community clearly still interested. Despite being over a decade old, Team Fortress 2 remains incredibly popular and has consistently averaged between 70,000 and 90,000 concurrent players every month for the last year.

For now, it's unclear what improvements Valve has up its sleeve, but hopefully they can get Team Fortress 2 into a more stable state.

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

The Mandalorian executive producer and writer Dave Filoni has revealed that he has hidden a tiny Akira Kurosawa figure on every episode he's directed of the Disney+ show.

Filoni was speaking at Star Wars Celebration and shared that he chose to place this figure of the legendary director on set as he was a huge influence on not only Filoni, but on George Lucas himself.

"One thing I do in particular that I don't think anyone will ever see, but a lot of my influence comes from obviously George, and then George's mentor is Akira Kurosawa," Filoni said. "And so I've done a lot of study of that and talking with George about it.

"So I have a really small Akira Kurosawa figure, and he is in every episode I've directed somewhere in the set. I hide him in there, and when we shoot an episode I'm directing, he's always right by the monitors to remind me of a lot of his principles of filmmaking that he gave to George so he's another influence on what I'm doing.

"He's in there, but it would be very hard to see him. And there are little Pittsburgh homages, because I love my hometown, so you'll see little golden triangles here and there."

Kurosawa is known for such films as Seven Samurai and The Hidden Fortress, and the inspirations of those movies in particular and his wider work can be clearly seen in that galaxy far, far away.

Fans of Kurosawa will be happy to know that Obi-Wan Kenobi director Deborah Chow was also hugely inspired by Kurosawa and "gritty, poetic westerns," so that influence will be felt in this new series as well.

For more from Star Wars Celebration, check out the release date and first trailer of Star Wars' Andor, the official teaser trailer of Willow, the first image from Indiana Jones 5, and the confirmation that the third season of The Mandalorian and the premiere of Ahsoka will arrive in 2023.

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.

The Mandalorian executive producer and writer Dave Filoni has revealed that he has hidden a tiny Akira Kurosawa figure on every episode he's directed of the Disney+ show.

Filoni was speaking at Star Wars Celebration and shared that he chose to place this figure of the legendary director on set as he was a huge influence on not only Filoni, but on George Lucas himself.

"One thing I do in particular that I don't think anyone will ever see, but a lot of my influence comes from obviously George, and then George's mentor is Akira Kurosawa," Filoni said. "And so I've done a lot of study of that and talking with George about it.

"So I have a really small Akira Kurosawa figure, and he is in every episode I've directed somewhere in the set. I hide him in there, and when we shoot an episode I'm directing, he's always right by the monitors to remind me of a lot of his principles of filmmaking that he gave to George so he's another influence on what I'm doing.

"He's in there, but it would be very hard to see him. And there are little Pittsburgh homages, because I love my hometown, so you'll see little golden triangles here and there."

Kurosawa is known for such films as Seven Samurai and The Hidden Fortress, and the inspirations of those movies in particular and his wider work can be clearly seen in that galaxy far, far away.

Fans of Kurosawa will be happy to know that Obi-Wan Kenobi director Deborah Chow was also hugely inspired by Kurosawa and "gritty, poetic westerns," so that influence will be felt in this new series as well.

For more from Star Wars Celebration, check out the release date and first trailer of Star Wars' Andor, the official teaser trailer of Willow, the first image from Indiana Jones 5, and the confirmation that the third season of The Mandalorian and the premiere of Ahsoka will arrive in 2023.

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.

Hayden Christensen spoke to IGN and revealed that director Deborah Chow had a "Vader movement specialist on set for us to make sure we stay true to the Vader we know and love."

IGN interviewed Christensen at Star Wars Celebration 2022 and he shared how much importance the team behind Disney+'s Obi-Wan Kenobi Series is putting on staying true to the legacy of Darth Vader.

"Because this is a character that existed before I was even alive there was a continuity there that we needed to adhere to," Christensen said. "So I think we all felt it was very important to get that right. Deborah [Chow] had a Vader [Movement Specialist] on set for us to make sure we stay true to the Vader we know and love.“

Christensen had previously shared other details of what it was like to return to Darth Vader after 17 years, including that it was "surreal" but "natural."

He also revealed that he binged the Star Wars animated shows to prep for his return to the legendary character.

The first two episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi are set to debut on Disney+ on May 27 and be sure to watch our look at Obi-Wan's story so far and Ian McDiarmid on whether Palpatine will appear in the series.

For more on Star Wars Celebration, check out the release date and first trailer of Star Wars' Andor, the official teaser trailer of Willow, the first image from Indiana Jones 5, and the confirmation that the third season of The Mandalorian and the premiere of Ahsoka will arrive in 2023.

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.

Hayden Christensen spoke to IGN and revealed that director Deborah Chow had a "Vader movement specialist on set for us to make sure we stay true to the Vader we know and love."

IGN interviewed Christensen at Star Wars Celebration 2022 and he shared how much importance the team behind Disney+'s Obi-Wan Kenobi Series is putting on staying true to the legacy of Darth Vader.

"Because this is a character that existed before I was even alive there was a continuity there that we needed to adhere to," Christensen said. "So I think we all felt it was very important to get that right. Deborah [Chow] had a Vader [Movement Specialist] on set for us to make sure we stay true to the Vader we know and love.“

Christensen had previously shared other details of what it was like to return to Darth Vader after 17 years, including that it was "surreal" but "natural."

He also revealed that he binged the Star Wars animated shows to prep for his return to the legendary character.

The first two episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi are set to debut on Disney+ on May 27 and be sure to watch our look at Obi-Wan's story so far and Ian McDiarmid on whether Palpatine will appear in the series.

For more on Star Wars Celebration, check out the release date and first trailer of Star Wars' Andor, the official teaser trailer of Willow, the first image from Indiana Jones 5, and the confirmation that the third season of The Mandalorian and the premiere of Ahsoka will arrive in 2023.

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.

Star Wars legend Ian McDiarmid likes the idea of a Palpatine prequel series.

During a panel at Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim, California, the actor was asked about rumors of an Emperor Palpatine series starring Tom Hiddleston (prompted by fanart that circulated a few years ago).

“I think it’s a very good rumor,” he said. “I think you could do that with practically any of the characters to whom it has not been done already. We saw [Palpatine] rise when he was 50, didn’t we? What did he go through to get there, and how did Sidious come about? I think all of that is very interesting, and no doubt there are people as we speak somewhere around this city thinking along those lines. It would be great.”

Of course, this is just McDiarmid speculating, probably. But if this ever came to pass, this wouldn’t be the first Star Wars prequel series to head to Disney+.

The upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi series takes place in between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, with the Jedi master hiding out on the desert planet Tatooine following Order 66.

Additionally, Andor will tell the story of Cassian Andor five years before the events of Rogue One.

Would McDiarmid consider returning to his iconic role if such a prequel ever was made?

“Anyone younger than 78 is probably more suited to the part than me,” he said. “And here comes the qualifying bit: although, have you seen what they can do with faces? I’d better leave it at that.”

Considering the furor surrounding digitally de-aged characters, I can’t help thinking that a young Palpatine played by McDiarmid himself would be a bit of a misfire...especially after the less-than-satisfying return of the Emperor in The Rise of Skywalker.

Either way, it looks as though a Palpatine prequel might be a bit of a pipe dream for now… and I can’t help thinking that’s definitely a good thing.

A new Andor teaser trailer was released earlier today, giving us our first glimpse at the upcoming Star Wars series. Additionally, The Mandalorian Season 3 was confirmed and will debut on Disney+ in 2023.

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

Star Wars legend Ian McDiarmid likes the idea of a Palpatine prequel series.

During a panel at Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim, California, the actor was asked about rumors of an Emperor Palpatine series starring Tom Hiddleston (prompted by fanart that circulated a few years ago).

“I think it’s a very good rumor,” he said. “I think you could do that with practically any of the characters to whom it has not been done already. We saw [Palpatine] rise when he was 50, didn’t we? What did he go through to get there, and how did Sidious come about? I think all of that is very interesting, and no doubt there are people as we speak somewhere around this city thinking along those lines. It would be great.”

Of course, this is just McDiarmid speculating, probably. But if this ever came to pass, this wouldn’t be the first Star Wars prequel series to head to Disney+.

The upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi series takes place in between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, with the Jedi master hiding out on the desert planet Tatooine following Order 66.

Additionally, Andor will tell the story of Cassian Andor five years before the events of Rogue One.

Would McDiarmid consider returning to his iconic role if such a prequel ever was made?

“Anyone younger than 78 is probably more suited to the part than me,” he said. “And here comes the qualifying bit: although, have you seen what they can do with faces? I’d better leave it at that.”

Considering the furor surrounding digitally de-aged characters, I can’t help thinking that a young Palpatine played by McDiarmid himself would be a bit of a misfire...especially after the less-than-satisfying return of the Emperor in The Rise of Skywalker.

Either way, it looks as though a Palpatine prequel might be a bit of a pipe dream for now… and I can’t help thinking that’s definitely a good thing.

A new Andor teaser trailer was released earlier today, giving us our first glimpse at the upcoming Star Wars series. Additionally, The Mandalorian Season 3 was confirmed and will debut on Disney+ in 2023.

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

Striking Distance Studios CEO Glen Schofield revealed that upcoming game The Callisto Protocol no longer takes place within the PUBG universe.

"FYI @CallistoTheGame is its own story and world," he explained on Twitter. "It no longer takes place in the PUBG Universe. It was originally part of the PUBG timeline, but grew into its own world. PUBG is awesome, and we will still have little surprises for fans, but TCP is its own world, story and universe."

FYI @CallistoTheGame is its own story and world. It no longer takes place in the PUBG Universe. It was originally part of the PUBG timeline, but grew into its own world. PUBG is awesome, &we will still have little surprises for fans, but TCP is its own world, story and universe.

— Glen A. Schofield (@GlenSchofield) May 26, 2022

The survival horror game was originally announced in December 2020 and was going to take place within the same universe as PUBG several centuries into the future. However, it was unclear what kind of ties the two games would have. Earlier this week, Schofield stated that The Callisto Protocol was so far into the future in 2320 that any connections didn't even really matter. Now, he clarifies that there simply aren't any.

The Callisto Protocol follows protagonist Jacob Lee as he tries to escape a prison facility on Jupiter's Callisto moon that's filled with monsters called Biophages. To fight off these monsters, Jacob is only equipped with a baton, pistol, shotgun, and a device called a GRP that can move items and enemies around.

While the game won't take place within the PUBG universe anymore, it's possible that there could be PUBG easter eggs, as Schofield says that there will still be some surprises for fans.

The Callisto Protocol is scheduled to launch sometime this year for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.

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

Striking Distance Studios CEO Glen Schofield revealed that upcoming game The Callisto Protocol no longer takes place within the PUBG universe.

"FYI @CallistoTheGame is its own story and world," he explained on Twitter. "It no longer takes place in the PUBG Universe. It was originally part of the PUBG timeline, but grew into its own world. PUBG is awesome, and we will still have little surprises for fans, but TCP is its own world, story and universe."

FYI @CallistoTheGame is its own story and world. It no longer takes place in the PUBG Universe. It was originally part of the PUBG timeline, but grew into its own world. PUBG is awesome, &we will still have little surprises for fans, but TCP is its own world, story and universe.

— Glen A. Schofield (@GlenSchofield) May 26, 2022

The survival horror game was originally announced in December 2020 and was going to take place within the same universe as PUBG several centuries into the future. However, it was unclear what kind of ties the two games would have. Earlier this week, Schofield stated that The Callisto Protocol was so far into the future in 2320 that any connections didn't even really matter. Now, he clarifies that there simply aren't any.

The Callisto Protocol follows protagonist Jacob Lee as he tries to escape a prison facility on Jupiter's Callisto moon that's filled with monsters called Biophages. To fight off these monsters, Jacob is only equipped with a baton, pistol, shotgun, and a device called a GRP that can move items and enemies around.

While the game won't take place within the PUBG universe anymore, it's possible that there could be PUBG easter eggs, as Schofield says that there will still be some surprises for fans.

The Callisto Protocol is scheduled to launch sometime this year for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.

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

American crime drama True Detective just cast Jodie Foster in Season 4.

The show’s anthology format means that each season of True Detective uses a completely different cast. And this time around, it looks as though that starts with the Oscar-winning actress.

The Hollywood Reporter reveals that her casting follows a long series of negotiations, and sees her take one of the leading roles as Detective Liz Danvers.

Most recently, True Detective Season 3 starred Mahershala Ali and Ray Fisher as an Arkansas detective and his son.

Season 4 of True Detective, also known as True Detective: Night Country is currently still in development, but does have an official synopsis:

“When the long winter night falls in Ennis, Alaska, the six men that operate the Tsalal Arctic Research Station vanish without a trace. To solve the case, Detectives Liz Danvers and Evangeline Navarro will have to confront the darkness they carry in themselves and dig into the haunted truths that lie buried under the eternal ice.”

True Detective: Night Country will be one of Foster’s biggest TV roles in recent years after the actress starred in Paper Moon in 1974, as she's been far more active in film.

Recent TV appearances include a cameo in The Simpsons and The X-Files as well as narrating an episode of Makers: Women Who Make America.

At the moment, little else is known about True Detective Season 4, including the rest of its cast. Issa Lopez and Alan Page are confirmed to co-write the scripts, with Lopez also attached to direct the pilot episode. Cary Joji Fukunaga and creator Nic Pizzolatto are listed as exective producers, but won't be involved in the creative for season four.

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

Blogroll credit: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin, Getty Images