After almost 30 years, EA Sports and FIFA are parting ways and EA will chart a new future under the name, EA Sports FC. Aside from the name change, the lack of a licensing deal means there could be some changes to the tried-and-true FIFA formula.

In an interview with the BBC, EA Sports vice president David Jackson says that the deal with FIFA wasn’t just for the name, but included a set of licensing restrictions that EA no longer has to abide by. This could free the company to explore more interactive and fan-focused gameplay content.

“Under the licensing conventions that we had agreed with Fifa 10 years ago, there were some restrictions that weren’t going to allow us to be able to build those experiences for players,” Jackson says.

Those experiences include both watching and creating content, possibly similar to how players can watch screenings of trailers in Fortnite and create custom modes and maps.

The deal with FIFA is set to end partially because of money. It was previously reported that FIFA upped the price for its license to over $1 billion per four-year World Cup cycle and Jackson admits money was a factor in the decision to rename the franchise, though isn’t the full reason behind the split.

“Money plays a critical role in most negotiations, but the reason we are doing this is to create the very best experiences we can for both players and partners. As part of that you consider whether or not your investment in one place is better or worse than an investment in another.”

While EA will lose the rights to the FIFA name, the company has signed up 19.000 athletes, 700 teams, 100 stadiums, and over 30 leagues including the Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga, and UEFA, so players can still expect real team names and players.

There will be no World Cup content every four years, but the main leagues and players will remain. EA is set to have a financial earnings report later today where we’ll likely hear more on EA’s plans for EA Sports FC.

Matt T.M. Kim is IGN's News Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.

Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, starring John Krasinski, will reportedly conclude its run with the upcoming fourth season, while Amazon eyes a spinoff centered around another character.

According to Deadline, Krasinski had committed to four seasons of Jack Ryan when he signed on for the titular role in the Prime Video action series. Krasinski has already filmed the third season, which does not yet have a release date, and production is now said to be underway on the fourth season. After that, there are reportedly no plans to continue the series.

While Jack Ryan is on its way out, Amazon is said to be eyeing a potential spinoff series headlined by Michael Peña who will reportedly star as Domingo "Ding" Chavez, a major character from the Tom Clancy literacy universe, having appeared in 22 novels. His character will be introduced in Jack Ryan Season 3 before he takes a more significant role in Season 4.

It sounds like the next two seasons of the flagship series will help to set the stage for Peña's character to potentially get his own independent series, though the spinoff is only believed to be in the very early stages of development right now, with very few details firmed up at this stage as the focus remains on wrapping up Jack Ryan with Season 3 and Season 4.

Season 3 finds Jack "on the run and in a race against time," per the synopsis. "Jack is wrongly implicated in a larger conspiracy and suddenly finds himself a fugitive out in the cold. Wanted by both the CIA and an international rogue faction that he has uncovered, Jack is forced underground, crisscrossing Europe, trying to stay alive and prevent a massive global conflict."

Jack Ryan Season 2 premiered on Prime Video in October 2019. IGN called the series "an easy binge" with "just the right amount of movie-level action and another solid performance from leading man John Krasinski," but noted that "the by-the-numbers story and lack of character development" left the season feeling "unworthy" of its all-star lineup of actors.

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

After more than 20 years on the market, Apple is finally discontinuing the iPod, with the current 7th Generation Touch the last model to ever be released.

The tech giant announced the iPod's discontinuation on its website, saying that the MP3 player is essentially redundant amid Apple's range of other products that are capable of playing music, including the iPhone, iPad, and HomePod Mini, to name a few.

The iPod Touch will be available at several retailers as well as Apple's direct website, while supplies last.

“Music has always been part of our core at Apple, and bringing it to hundreds of millions of users in the way iPod did impacted more than just the music industry — it also redefined how music is discovered, listened to, and shared,” Apple Senior VP of Worldwide Marketing Greg Joswiak said in a recent press release.

The first iPod was released in October 2001 and has since gone through 26 different iterations with the most recent model, the seventh generation iPod Touch released on May 28, 2019.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

Monster Hunter Rise will soon have more official Nintendo Switch Pro Controllers than any other franchise as Capcom has announced a new design based on the incoming Sunbreak DLC.

Capcom revealed the new dragon-like Malzeno design in its latest Monster Hunter Digital Event and confirmed the Pro Controller will launch alongside the Sunbreak expansion on June 30.

The Malzeno version is silver and black with the dragon coming in from the left. Compare that with the gold and black design of the previous Monster Hunter Rise controller, which sees another monster coming in from the right.

This #NintendoSwitch Pro Controller featuring a Malzeno design launches alongside the massive DLC expansion Monster Hunter Rise: #Sunbreak on 30/06! pic.twitter.com/i2JmSrblMc

— Nintendo UK (@NintendoUK) May 10, 2022

The controller doesn't appear to be available to preorder anywhere at the time of writing though will likely be available as normal through gaming retailers and Nintendo's website. Though a price hasn't been confirmed, the controller will likely retail for the standard limited edition price of $74.99 / £69.99.

This is only the fifth limited edition Pro Controller to be released in the Switch's five year history, joining Splatoon 2, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, and the previous Monster Hunter Rise version as the only games with special designs.

Monster Hunter Rise launched in March 2021 and its $39.99 / £35.99 DLC was announced a few months later in September.

In our 8/10 review, IGN said: "Monster Hunter Rise mixes classic Monster Hunter ideas with some of World’s best improvements and a whole bunch of clever new mechanics of its own."

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

EA has announced that the FIFA series will officially change its name to EA Sports FC after this year's FIFA 23, ending what will be an almost three-decade partnership with football's governing body.

Announced in a blog post, EA Sports said the name change would take place after the next FIFA game, with more information coming about the first EA Sports FC in July 2023. "This new independent platform will bring fresh opportunity – to innovate, create and evolve," reads a message from Group GM of EA Sports, Cam Weber.

Weber made clear that despite dropping the name license, EA Sports FC will keep FIFA's league, club and player licenses, including "19,000+ players, 700+ teams, 100+ stadiums and 30 leagues". EA included a number of messages of support for the move from the English Premier League, LaLiga, Bundesliga, European football organization UEFA, and more. FIFA itself has not released a statement at time of writing.

Speaking to the BBC, EA Sports vice president David Jackson explained what wouldn't be in EA Sports FC: "In terms of things that they'll miss, players will notice only two things: The name and a World Cup piece of content every four years. Outside of that, very little will change about the things they know, and love about the current FIFA products."

Join The Club
Learn more July 2023#EASPORTSFC

More details: https://t.co/3fi6YPOH2G pic.twitter.com/75FLzjOapN

— EA SPORTS FIFA (@EASPORTSFIFA) May 10, 2022

Weber also promised to "expand to new authentic experiences that bring joy, inclusivity and immersion to a global community of fans." More details will be announced on that "in the coming months."

The next and final FIFA will include "more features, game modes, World Cup content, clubs, leagues, competitions, and players than any FIFA title before", and Weber says EA Sports FC will receive more information in July 2023.

EA had previously said it was exploring the idea of renaming the series, and went onto trademark the EA Sports FC name, but this is the first time it's been officially confirmed. Previous reports have suggested that FIFA wants to charge EA $1 billion every four years to use the name.

EA CEO Andrew Wilson has reportedly said that the only value the FIFA name offers EA outside of a World Cup year is the "four letters on the front of the box." He apparently added, "I would argue – and this may be a little biased – that the FIFA brand has more meaning as a video game than it does a governing body of soccer."

FIFA is the international governing body for association football, but has been mired in controversy for many years, including major corruption scandals. It's not clear whether FIFA will grant its license to other companies following the move.

The FIFA series is one of the most successful gaming franchises on Earth, both in terms of sales and after-sale revenue – it will be fascinating to see if a change in brand name affects that in future.

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.

Intel has once again delayed the release window of its highly-anticipated first-generation Arc desktop graphics cards. While the CPU maker still plans to release the GPUs in Q2, most of the Arc series desktop cards won't launch until later this summer.

Intel VP and General Manager for the Visual Compute Group, Lisa Pearce, wrote that Intel plans to launch its first desktop GPUs in China with some caveats. Only the entry-level Arc 3 graphics cards will be released, and those components will only be made available to Chinese system builders and OEMs before it expands to self-builders and a worldwide market.

The more powerful Arc 5 and Arc 7 desktop cards are anticipated to launch "later this summer," according to Intel.

Intel also shared more information on laptops featuring its Arc graphics cards. Currently, its laptop chips are exclusive to Samsung, with South Korea the only market selling the laptops, but Intel is hoping to expand to other manufacturers and markets soon.

According to Intel, software development and supply chain issues are the reasons for these delays. The tech giant is looking to get laptops with the Arc 3 GPU out "ASAP" and is working closely with several manufacturers, including Asus, HP, and Lenovo, to make these products.

This news comes a few months after Intel announced a roadmap for its GPUs, noting the Arc series will launch first on laptops in Q1, then desktops in Q2, followed by workstation products in Q3. With the desktop GPUs not expected to arrive in western markets until at least the end of summer, it will be interesting to see how the supply will fare for the Arc series. Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said last week that he expects the chip shortage to last until 2024.

Taylor is the Associate Tech Editor at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.

HBO has released the first teaser trailer for Westworld Season 4, announcing that the next chapter of the dystopian sci-fi drama will arrive on screens in June.

Variety confirmed that HBO planned to release the trailer for the upcoming fourth season of Westworld as an "easter egg for fans to uncover," and it didn't take long for the unlisted video on HBO's YouTube channel to be found and shared on social media. The trailer also announced that the eight-episode season will start airing on HBO and HBO Max on June 26.

A perfect day is here.#Westworld Season 4 premieres June 26 on @hbomax. pic.twitter.com/UMqB8XsIdg

— HBO (@HBO) May 10, 2022

Inconspicuously titled "It doesn't look like anything to me," the teaser drops us into a dystopian New York where the streets are filled with familiar faces and the mood is melancholy as Lou Reed's classic "Perfect Day" plays out over the footage, offering glimpses of Evan Rachel Wood, Jeffrey Wright, Ed Harris, Thandiwe Newton, and many more.

The third season of Westworld inspired plenty of questions as the series took the A.I. uprising out of the robotic theme parks and into the real world where android Dolores found herself in the crosshairs of Rehoboam, the world's most advanced A.I., secretly in place to impose order on human affairs by careful manipulation and prediction of the future.

Westworld was created by master storytellers Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, who also serve as executive producers on the series alongside Alison Schapker, Denise Thé, J.J. Abrams, Athena Wickham, Richard J. Lewis, and Ben Stephenson. The sci-fi drama was renewed for a fourth season in April 2020, just under two weeks out from its third season finale.

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

Crunchyroll and Toei Animation have announced that Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, the newest film in the hugely popular anime franchise, will hit theaters globally this summer.

Following the record-breaking success of Dragon Ball: Super Broly, the blockbuster anime franchise is heading back to the big screen. In Japan, the movie will be released on June 11.

Starting in August, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero will then be rolled out in theaters in North America, Latin America, Europe, Australia/New Zealand, Africa, the Middle East, and the rest of Asia.

Super Hero is set to become the first truly globally-distributed theatrical release for Crunchyroll, and it is the second film under the Dragon Ball Super brand following the release of Broly in 2018. Both films serve as a continuation of Dragon Ball Super, which has both a manga and anime series, though the latter stopped producing new episodes in 2018.

"For more than 30 years, the Dragon Ball franchise has delighted fans around the globe who have followed the world's greatest warriors who defend Earth from forces of evil," said Rahul Purini, President of Crunchyroll. "We're thrilled to partner with Toei Animation to bring fans the latest chapter of Dragon Ball Super to the legion of super fans eager to continue the adventure and to grow the anime audiences who are discovering it for the first time."

Timeline-wise, the new flick takes place around the end of Dragon Ball Z in Age 784, with fan-favorite characters such as Goku, Bulma, Piccolo, Vegeta, Broly, and a kindergarten age Pan all returning for the next adventure alongside Gamma 1 and Gamma 2, two new android characters that call themselves "Super Heroes" but quickly turn on Piccolo and Gohan.

The Japanese voice cast features Masako Nozawa (Gohan, Goku and Goten), Toshio Furukawa (Piccolo), Yūko Minaguchi (Pan), Ryō Horikawa (Vegeta), Mayumi Tanaka (Krillin), Aya Hisakawa (Bulma), Takeshi Kusao (Trunks), Miki Itō (Android 18), Bin Shimada (Broly), Kōichi Yamadera (Beerus), Masakazu Morita (Whis), Hiroshi Kamiya (Gamma 1), Mamoru Miyano (Gamma 2), Miyu Irino (Dr. Hedo), Volcano Ota (Magenta), and Ryota Takeuchi (Carmine).

The latest action-packed entry in the sprawling anime series was originally announced at SDCC 2021, where a teaser with a new animation style was revealed alongside an official title. Original creator Akira Toriyama was also confirmed to be returning to write and provide more character designs for the 21st Dragon Ball movie, under the direction of Tetsuro Kodama.

Super Hero made it onto IGN's list of new anime to watch out for this year alongside the likes of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, a 10-episode series set in the Cyberpunk 2077 universe, Spriggan, an anime based on the classic manga by Hiroshi Takashige, and Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2, which is now available to stream on Crunchyroll and Funimation.

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

FromSoftware's developers are "actively working" to fix the Dark Souls trilogy's PC servers after a serious exploit brought them down in January.

As reported by PC Gamer, reddit user Relevant-Heart-1751 received an email from publisher Bandai Namco saying the servers would be brought back online "as soon as possible".

The user had contacted Bandai Namco to ask if the servers for Dark Souls (Prepare to Die Edition and Remastered), Dark Souls 2, and Dark Souls 3 - turned off after an exploit allowed other players to take over the user's PC - would ever be turned back on.

"I'm happy to confirm that the developers are actively working on resolving the issue in question and re-launching the Dark Souls servers for PC as soon as possible," the email read.

It didn't give any indication of when the servers would be restored, however, which have already been offline for three and a half months.

Bandai Namco said at the time: "PvP servers for Dark Souls 3, Dark Souls 2, and Dark Souls: Remastered have been temporarily deactivated to allow the team to investigate recent reports of an issue with online services."

As this issue arose just a month before FromSoftware released Elden Ring, fans looking forward to the game were worried it would affect its multiplayer components. Thankfully, however, Elden Ring was able to launch without major issues and became an incredible success.

It did have to deal with a few hacking issues though, after an infamous Dark Souls hacker appeared in Elden Ring and forced illegal items into players' inventories, causing them to be banned. Even weirder, the game's secret underwear was also being used by trolls to get other players banned.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

The BioWare store listed and quickly deleted a product description that implies original Mass Effect protagonist Commander Shepard is returning in the next game.

As reported by Video Games Chronicle, YouTube user MrHulthen noticed a plot synopsis in the description of a Mass Effect 5 poster, which indicates that Shepard would return.

Though it was quickly removed, the description originally read: "The show goes on. Shepard's final quest may have ended the threat of the Reapers but at great cost including Earth itself. While Shepard and the survivors are left to pick up the pieces, fans are left wondering what's next."

The mention of Shepard was omitted later as the description was changed to: "The threat of the Reapers might have been ended, but at great cost including Earth itself. While the survivors are left to pick up the pieces, fans are left wondering what's next."

It's unclear whether the original text was an inadvertent slip of information, or a simple mistake on the part of someone outside of the development team. Merchandise has been involved in accidental leaks before, but there's also the chance that someone with no inside knowledge has written the description. We've contacted BioWare for comment.

Spoilers for the original Mass Effect trilogy will follow.

What makes the description and potential return of Shepard particularly interesting is the fact that, in seven out of eight potential endings to Mass Effect 3, they die.

Most players would see Shepard sacrifices themselves in order to stop the enemy Reapers, with only one ending, and a complicated one at that, resulting in living.

That being said, while nothing is official, fans have speculated based on the events of Mass Effect: Andromeda and the new Mass Effect's reveal trailer that the ending where Shepard lives is actually the true canon.

The poster itself (above) was revealed in November last year and BioWare general manager Gary McKay did say it includes "at least five surprises", though it would be pretty hard to identify one of the four characters as Shepard from that distance.

BioWare has said practically nothing else about the new Mass Effect game following its reveal in December 2020, though we do know that multiple members of the original trilogy are working on the new intalment.

IGN loved the first three games, saying Mass Effect 1, 2, and 3 were all amazing. While the fourth installment, Mass Effect: Andromeda, dipped a little, IGN still said it was good.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.