Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss won’t have anything to do with the upcoming spin-offs.

During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Weiss confirmed that they won’t be heading back to Westeros for any of the Game of Thrones spin-off shows.

“We never saw more Game of Thrones shows [as] something that made sense for us to be involved with, given where we were just as people at the time we were done with the original,” he explained.

HBO is clearly hoping to continue the success of Game of Thrones with its upcoming prequels and spin-offs, starting with House of the Dragon later this year. The series is based on writer George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, charting the history of the Targaryen empire.

Although a previous attempt at a prequel, starring Naomi Watts, was ultimately canceled.

“All in, we were 11 years, probably, doing that show,” explained Weiss. “When I say 11 years, it was full-on, all in, all day, every day for 11 years. It was the best decade of our lives. It still kind of feels a bit like a dream, but we got to a place where it was pretty clear to us that we had reached the end of what made sense for us to be involved with in that world that we lived. It just felt like, for us, it was time to move on and get excited and terrified about building something else — building lots of something elses.”

Although Game of Thrones was a huge hit, it wasn’t without detractors… especially when it comes to the show’s finale. Leaving plenty of unanswered questions, the final episode left a lot of fans disappointed.

Other Game of Thrones spin-off shows currently include 10,000 Ships which follows the story of Princess Nymeria, an ancestor of House Martell and founder of the kingdom of Dorne. This series is set a whole millennium before the events of Game of Thrones.

Then, there’s 9 Voyages which tells the story of Lord Corlys Velaryon, also known as the Sea Snake, and the head of the House of Velaryon.

Finally, there’s a Tales of Dunk and Egg spin-off in the works which is written by The Secret Life of Walter Mitty scribe, Steve Conrad.

Game of Thrones: House of the Dragon is expected to premiere on HBO in 2022.

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

A man from Georgia, USA, has been jailed for fraudulently using COVID-19 relief payments to buy a rare, shiny Charizard Pokémon card.

As reported by Polygon, 31-year-old Vinath Oudomsine pretended to be a small business owner to receive an $85,000 Economic Injury Disaster Loan, and then spent most of it on the card.

The first-edition, shadowless, holographic Charizard (super rare, super shiny) was bought for $57,789 in December and has now been handed over to the state.

Oudomsine pleaded guilty to fraud and was sentenced to three years in prison, three years of "supervised release" afterward, and must also pay a $10,000 fine on top of the loan repayment.

Acting Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta, Philip Wislar said: "COVID-19 disaster relief loans are issued by the government to help businesses struggling to survive during a pandemic, not to use for trivial collectible items. This sentence highlights the FBI’s commitment to aggressively pursue anyone who would abuse taxpayer dollars and divert them from citizens who desperately need them.”

It's not the only recent Pokémon card related crime – someone reportedly broke through the wall of an independent gaming store in Minnesota last month and stole around $250,000 worth of products.

The thief allegedly cleared out two storage rooms of different Pokémon card items including booster boxes worth upwards of $100 each.

A similar incident also occurred in Tokyo last year when a man allegedly used a rope to descend into a store and steal Pokémon cards and cash.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale.

Lost Ark has now amassed more than 20 million players, with half coming from its western release last month.

Western publisher Amazon Games and developer Smilegate RPG announced that more than 4.7 million new players joined within three days of Lost Ark's release in North and South America, Europe, and Australia, and that number has now grown to more than 10 million. The game launched in South Korea back in 2019, where it amassed a huge following well before its western release.

But Amazon Games VP Christoph Hartmann said the action-RPG-MMO is just getting started: "The excitement surrounding Lost Ark from around the world is quickly gaining steam, as evidenced by the growing number of global players.

"Together with Smilegate, we are committed to supporting the growing community with a robust roadmap of updates in the years to come."

Lost Ark got off to a flying start in the west with its early access release and became one of Steam's biggest-ever games, even before it's official free-to-play launch. When the official release date rolled around on February 11, it rocketed even further to second place in Steam's most-played games of all time by concurrents.

The development teams told IGN last week that they're "absolutely shock and thrilled by the reception" and said they're committed to maintaining momentum.

Lost Ark is set to receive regular updates to achieve this, beginning with its March 2022 update that will bring new quests, islands, and cinematics to the game.

In our 8/10 review, IGN said "Lost Ark is an extremely generous free-to-play ARPGMMO that draws a lot from Diablo – including its well-worn story about humans and Heaven teaming up against demons."

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale.

Rockstar has revealed the pricing for GTA 5 and GTA Online on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. We now know for sure that the games won't be offered as free upgrades to existing owners, but they will be at least 50% off on all new-gen platforms for the first three months of launch.

Ahead of pre-loading starting today, the pricing for all the new versions of GTA 5 and GTA Online is now live on the PlayStation Store and Microsoft Store, and confirms that there will be no free upgrades available for those who bought the games on previous console generations.

However, there are significant discounts on all platforms within the first three months of release. You can see the pricing for all the new versions of GTA 5 and GTA Online below:

PS5 - GTA 5 and GTA Online Pricing and Discounts

GTA 5 for PS5 will be 75% off for the first three months of launch, priced at $9.99 USD / £8.75 / $14.99 AUD. After three months, the game will cost $39.99 / £34.99 / $59.95 AUD. This version of the game includes the single player story mode, and GTA Online.

The standalone version of GTA Online for PS5 is completely free for the first three months of release on PS5. After the first three months, the standalone game will cost $19.99 USD / £17.99 / $30.95 AUD.

Xbox Series X/S - GTA 5 and GTA Online Pricing and Discounts

GTA 5 for Xbox Series X/S will be 50% off for the first three months of launch, priced at $19.99 USD / £17.49 / $29.97 AUD. After three months, the game will cost $39.99 / £34.99 / $59.95 AUD. This version of the game includes the single player story mode, and GTA Online.

Xbox versions of GTA Online will not be free at launch, but are on sale for three months at $9.99 USD / £8.99 / $15.47 AUD. After the first three months, the standalone game will cost $19.99 USD / £17.99 / $30.95 AUD.

Both GTA 5 and GTA Online will launch for new-gen consoles on March 15, and will include a number of improvements and new features – including three different graphics modes, "high-end PC visuals", increased population and traffic variety, and additions to GTA Online. You can also transfer your existing story progress and GTA Online character to the new versions.

Grand Theft Auto 5 and GTA Online are both immensely popular while also being nearly 10 years old. And while Rockstar confirmed it is working on the new Grand Theft Auto 6, until then Los Santos will still be open for business.

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.

Blizzard is gearing up for a series of new Warcraft reveals in the coming months, including a new expansion for World of Warcraft and a Warcraft mobile game announcement.

On March 15, details for the new Hearthstone expansion will be revealed. About a month later on April 19, details for the new WoW expansion will be revealed. The last World of Warcraft expansion, Shadowlands, was released in 2020, meaning it’s about time for a new adventure in WoW.

The potentially biggest surprise comes in May when the long-rumored Warcraft mobile game is set to be revealed.

The next expansion is on the horizon.

Join us. April 19.

✨ https://t.co/u5mEMf2WYj pic.twitter.com/dOIyAFBjcM

— World of Warcraft (@Warcraft) March 7, 2022

Blizzard has long been rumored to be working on a mobile game related to Warcraft. Blizzard confirmed that the mobile game would be released in 2022 back in February after finally confirming it was in “advanced development” on a Warcraft mobile experience in 2021.

Previous rumors stated Blizzard was developing a Pokemon Go-style AR game set in the Warcraft universe. But since the release of Pokemon Go in 2016, there have been many new genres that have become popular in the mobile space including battle royales, auto-battlers, and even open-world games like Genshin Impact.

Warcraft as a series has been impacted by several outside factors since the launch of Shadowlands in 2020. Reception to the latest expansion wasn’t as positive as it could have been and developers have been working to clean up World of Warcraft of old references following the lawsuit by the State of California over Blizzard’s workplace gender discrimination.

Blizzard will also be absorbed into Xbox as part of the Activision Blizzard acquisition, which will no doubt have some impact on the biggest MMORPG in the world.

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

Blizzard is gearing up for a series of new Warcraft reveals in the coming months, including a new expansion for World of Warcraft and a Warcraft mobile game announcement.

On March 15, details for the new Hearthstone expansion will be revealed. About a month later on April 19, details for the new WoW expansion will be revealed. The last World of Warcraft expansion, Shadowlands, was released in 2020, meaning it’s about time for a new adventure in WoW.

The potentially biggest surprise comes in May when the long-rumored Warcraft mobile game is set to be revealed.

The next expansion is on the horizon.

Join us. April 19.

✨ https://t.co/u5mEMf2WYj pic.twitter.com/dOIyAFBjcM

— World of Warcraft (@Warcraft) March 7, 2022

Blizzard has long been rumored to be working on a mobile game related to Warcraft. Blizzard confirmed that the mobile game would be released in 2022 back in February after finally confirming it was in “advanced development” on a Warcraft mobile experience in 2021.

Previous rumors stated Blizzard was developing a Pokemon Go-style AR game set in the Warcraft universe. But since the release of Pokemon Go in 2016, there have been many new genres that have become popular in the mobile space including battle royales, auto-battlers, and even open-world games like Genshin Impact.

Warcraft as a series has been impacted by several outside factors since the launch of Shadowlands in 2020. Reception to the latest expansion wasn’t as positive as it could have been and developers have been working to clean up World of Warcraft of old references following the lawsuit by the State of California over Blizzard’s workplace gender discrimination.

Blizzard will also be absorbed into Xbox as part of the Activision Blizzard acquisition, which will no doubt have some impact on the biggest MMORPG in the world.

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

In the wake of Steam Deck's release last week, many fans are waiting anxiously for the email giving them the greenlight to order a unit of their own. Meanwhile, some further down the line are finding that they will have to wait still longer for Valve's new handheld unit.

Over on the Steam Deck subreddit, some users are reporting that their order availability has been pushed from "Q3 2022" to "After Q3 2022." Others report that their previously nebulous "After Q2 2022" is now a firmer "Q3 2022," while some say they went from "After Q2" to "After Q3." It seems that some customers are getting pushed back as other users further ahead of them are locked into a release window.

These reports are corroborated by the experiences of the IGN staff, some of whom have also had their estimated availability updated to Q3 2022 as well. One Reddit user encouraged users sitting in the "After Q3" window to not get discouraged, saying that the estimate is likely a worst case scenario.

"Valve has said: 'we want to sell millions of units' and 'we expect to be selling hundreds of thousands of units per month' by next month (April). First this means they have the desire to move a lot of units. To sell millions they've got to get these to retailers and before they can do that they have to satisfy all their reservations," they wrote.

"Secondly, they expect they will have the ability to move a lot units. If they are indeed able to attain and maintain 'hundreds of thousands' of units per month then reservations as of today will be satisfied in just a few months. I think Valve is just being careful with 'After Q3.' I'm now Q3 but I still expect my unit to arrive in Q2."

Like many platform holders, Valve has grappled with supply chain issues, which have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and more recently by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Asked whether Valve learned anything from the launch of PS5 and Xbox Series X during an interview with IGN last week, CEO Gabe Newell said that they likely shared "a lot of manufacturing and supply chain issues," though he said the nature of Steam Deck meant that it was easier to draw comparisons with the Nintendo Switch.

The Steam Deck was previously delayed into 2022 after initially anticipating a late 2021 release.

The Steam Deck itself remains something of a work-in-progress for Valve. In our review, we described it as a "constantly improving" platform that nevertheless struggles with compatibility issues with various anti-cheat systems. Elden Ring, which launched at roughly the same time as the Steam Deck, is among the games that Valve is working on optimizing for the Steam Deck.

One way or another, it's a rough time to launch new hardware, and Steam Deck is far from the only platform being affected by the unique challenges faced by the world today. If you were among those lucky enough to get in on the pre-order window for the Steam Deck, we recommend that you check in on your order status and hope for the best.

IGN reached out to Valve for comment and will update this story if there is a response.

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN

In the wake of Steam Deck's release last week, many fans are waiting anxiously for the email giving them the greenlight to order a unit of their own. Meanwhile, some further down the line are finding that they will have to wait still longer for Valve's new handheld unit.

Over on the Steam Deck subreddit, some users are reporting that their order availability has been pushed from "Q3 2022" to "After Q3 2022." Others report that their previously nebulous "After Q2 2022" is now a firmer "Q3 2022," while some say they went from "After Q2" to "After Q3." It seems that some customers are getting pushed back as other users further ahead of them are locked into a release window.

These reports are corroborated by the experiences of the IGN staff, some of whom have also had their estimated availability updated to Q3 2022 as well. One Reddit user encouraged users sitting in the "After Q3" window to not get discouraged, saying that the estimate is likely a worst case scenario.

"Valve has said: 'we want to sell millions of units' and 'we expect to be selling hundreds of thousands of units per month' by next month (April). First this means they have the desire to move a lot of units. To sell millions they've got to get these to retailers and before they can do that they have to satisfy all their reservations," they wrote.

"Secondly, they expect they will have the ability to move a lot units. If they are indeed able to attain and maintain 'hundreds of thousands' of units per month then reservations as of today will be satisfied in just a few months. I think Valve is just being careful with 'After Q3.' I'm now Q3 but I still expect my unit to arrive in Q2."

Like many platform holders, Valve has grappled with supply chain issues, which have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and more recently by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Asked whether Valve learned anything from the launch of PS5 and Xbox Series X during an interview with IGN last week, CEO Gabe Newell said that they likely shared "a lot of manufacturing and supply chain issues," though he said the nature of Steam Deck meant that it was easier to draw comparisons with the Nintendo Switch.

The Steam Deck was previously delayed into 2022 after initially anticipating a late 2021 release.

The Steam Deck itself remains something of a work-in-progress for Valve. In our review, we described it as a "constantly improving" platform that nevertheless struggles with compatibility issues with various anti-cheat systems. Elden Ring, which launched at roughly the same time as the Steam Deck, is among the games that Valve is working on optimizing for the Steam Deck.

One way or another, it's a rough time to launch new hardware, and Steam Deck is far from the only platform being affected by the unique challenges faced by the world today. If you were among those lucky enough to get in on the pre-order window for the Steam Deck, we recommend that you check in on your order status and hope for the best.

IGN reached out to Valve for comment and will update this story if there is a response.

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN

Another new Walking Dead spin-off is in the works at AMC, this one set in New York City. Set to debut next year, it will follow original series stalwarts Negan and Maggie as they battle zombies in the Big Apple.

Titled Isle of the Dead, the new series will envision a Manhattan "long ago cut off from the mainland" that is filled with the living and dead alike. The first season will consist of six episodes to be released on AMC and AMC+.

Series stars Lauren Cohan and Jeffrey Dean Morgan will reprise their roles as Maggie and Negan, while series writer and co-executive producer Eli Jorné will serve as the showrunner. As part of the announcement, AMC released a teaser poster featuring an ominous door saying, "Don't open. Dead inside" with New York's familiar skyline in the background.

“I'm delighted that Negan and Maggie's journey continues," Morgan said in a statement. "It's been such a ride walking in Negan's shoes, I'm beyond excited to continue his journey in New York City with Lauren. Walkers in an urban setting has always been such a cool image, but 5th Avenue, Empire State Building, Statue of Liberty? The greatest city in the world??

"The backdrop is amazing, but it's the story that Eli Jorné cooked up that is even better. Buckle up folks, Isle of the Dead is going to reinvent the TWD Universe. Huge thank you to Dan McDermott, Scott Gimple and AMC for having us back for more... we simply can't wait."

Isle of the Dead will join The Walking Dead, which is currently in the midst of airing Part 2 of its final season. Other spin-offs include the prequel Fear the Walking Dead, The Walking Dead: World Beyond, and a planned anthology series in Tales of the Walking Dead.

Isle of the Dead will release sometime in 2023. Check out the rest of the biggest shows set to premiere in 2022 right here.

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN

Taika Waititi nearly missed his first meeting with Marvel due to a passport blunder, which should have prevented him from boarding the plane – until Moana came to his rescue.

During a recent appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden, Waititi recounted the story of how he almost lost out on the opportunity to meet with Marvel to discuss Thor: Ragnarok, explaining that he had celebrated his birthday in Hawaii prior to the rendezvous but got separated from his passport, which he required for his trip to Los Angeles.

"A whole lot of friends had come to visit me in Hawaii and a bunch of them went back to New Zealand and they took a lot of my luggage with them and my passport was in one of those suitcases," the filmmaker recalled. "And not being from America, you can't travel domestically without some sort of American I.D. and all I had was a New Zealand driver's license."

Waititi added that the driver's license, which was his only official form of identification at the time, looked like something that had come out of a cereal box but he decided to try his luck at the airport regardless. The customs agents initially laughed at his attempt to board the plane without a passport, until he pulled out a contract he once had with Disney for Moana.

"I looked in my bag, and I still had a contract sitting there, an old contract from Moana, because I was the first writer on Moana," Waititi said. "And I said, 'Look, all I've got is this. It's from Disney - Marvel, Disney, all the same people, you know. I'm trustworthy.' And to their credit, the guy looked at the thing, he said, 'Hey, bro, you're working on Moana. Hey, we're pretty excited about that. Get on that f**king plane!'"

Waititi extended his gratitude to the airport staff who allowed him to board the plane, which ultimately meant that he could attend the meeting with Marvel and secure his seat in the director's chair for Thor: Ragnarok. The filmmaker has since signed on to write and direct the follow-up to his 2017 blockbuster, returning to the MCU with Thor: Love and Thunder.

Chris Hemsworth's Thor is also back for the sequel. He stars alongside the MCU's Tessa Thompson, Natalie Portman, Chris Pratt, Jaimie Alexander, Pom Klementieff, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Sean Gunn, Jeff Goldblum, and Vin Diesel. Christian Bale enters the mix as baddie Gorr the God Butcher while Portman's Jane Foster becomes her own version of Thor.

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

Thumbnail image credit: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images.