The typical annual Call of Duty release planned for 2023 has reportedly been delayed into 2024.

According to Bloomberg, sources familiar with the situation, executives in charge of the franchise have made the decision early after "a recent entry in the series failed to meet expectations," leading them to believe that Call of Duty's current annual cadence of releases was too rapid. The decision is reportedly unrelated to the recent Microsoft purchase of the publisher, and the 2022 Call of Duty release is still on track.

The "recent entry" is most likely Call of Duty: Vanguard, which faced release competition with Battlefield 2042 this past holiday season, as well as the free-to-play Call of Duty: Warzone. A previous report noted that Vanguard's sales had also been suffering due to players feeling fatigued at Call of Duty's constant release cadence, making them less interested in buying a new entry every year.

The annual Call of Duty release has traditionally been one of gaming's biggest moneymakers, typically topping sales charts in the US at launch and remaining in the top ten year-round. With a massive sales gap now looming, Activision is reportedly working on other projects to fill in the gap such as ongoing content for 2022's Call of Duty release and a separate new, free-to-play online game that's as yet unannounced.

One interesting note is that this could mean Call of Duty players on PlayStation are able to stick with the series on their console of choice for a bit longer, as Microsoft has reportedly said it wants to release the next three games (Call of Duty 2022, 2024, and Warzone 2) on all platforms post-acquisition.

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

Warner Bros. Animation has announced today that Constantine: The House of Mystery will be available digitally and on Blu-Ray beginning May 3 of this year.

Constantine: The House of Mystery is an animated short featuring John Constantine. The animated short will have the titular character waking up in an "eerie House of Mystery with no recollection" of how he ended up in the house. Matt Ryan, who previously voiced/portrayed the antihero in several DC films and TV shows, including the short-lived TV series Constantine, is confirmed to be voicing the character once again.

Alongside a new Constantine animated short, the company also confirmed today that three additional short films would be bundled into an anthology of sorts: Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth, The Losers, and Blue Beetle are all included, Warner Bros. confirmed. The press release also notes that a special featurette titled "DC Showcase: One Story at a Time" will also be included.

IGN exclusively revealed a new trailer for the upcoming anthology this past weekend. Yet we knew that the new Constantine short was coming after Warner Bros. teased it as part of DC Fandome 2021.

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

Warner Bros. Animation has announced today that Constantine: The House of Mystery will be available digitally and on Blu-Ray beginning May 3 of this year.

Constantine: The House of Mystery is an animated short featuring John Constantine. The animated short will have the titular character waking up in an "eerie House of Mystery with no recollection" of how he ended up in the house. Matt Ryan, who previously voiced/portrayed the antihero in several DC films and TV shows, including the short-lived TV series Constantine, is confirmed to be voicing the character once again.

Alongside a new Constantine animated short, the company also confirmed today that three additional short films would be bundled into an anthology of sorts: Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth, The Losers, and Blue Beetle are all included, Warner Bros. confirmed. The press release also notes that a special featurette titled "DC Showcase: One Story at a Time" will also be included.

IGN exclusively revealed a new trailer for the upcoming anthology this past weekend. Yet we knew that the new Constantine short was coming after Warner Bros. teased it as part of DC Fandome 2021.

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

Here's your first (official) look at Daniel Radcliffe as Weird Al Yankovic. The actor is set to play the legendary parody musician and polka fiend in The Roku Channel's upcoming biopic.

Originally reported by People, the image shows Radcliffe as a relatively younger version of Yankovic (presumably the 80's, judging from the clothing and hair) performing on an accordion.

"Wearing the Hawaiian shirt is a huge responsibility that I don't take lightly, and I'm honored to finally share with the world the absolutely 100 percent unassailably true story of Weird Al's depraved and scandalous life," Radcliffe said in a statement.

WEIRD: The Weird Al Yankovic Story will follow Yankovic's life from early hits like "Eat It" to his rise to Grammy-winning status. Yankovic shared the photo of Radcliffe on his official Twitter, jokingly claiming that Radcliffe was a rabid superfan who had snuck onto set.

“When my last movie UHF came out in 1989, I made a solemn vow to my fans that I would release a major motion picture every 33 years, like clockwork. I’m very happy to say we’re on schedule,” Yankovic joked in a statement when the film was first announced. “And I am absolutely thrilled that Daniel Radcliffe will be portraying me in the film. I have no doubt whatsoever that this is the role future generations will remember him for.”

The biopic is being written by Yankovic and Eric Appel, who directed Son of Zorn and the Funny or Die mini-doc about the life of Yankovic. The film is being produced by Funny or Die.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/polka king for IGN.

Here's your first (official) look at Daniel Radcliffe as Weird Al Yankovic. The actor is set to play the legendary parody musician and polka fiend in The Roku Channel's upcoming biopic.

Originally reported by People, the image shows Radcliffe as a relatively younger version of Yankovic (presumably the 80's, judging from the clothing and hair) performing on an accordion.

"Wearing the Hawaiian shirt is a huge responsibility that I don't take lightly, and I'm honored to finally share with the world the absolutely 100 percent unassailably true story of Weird Al's depraved and scandalous life," Radcliffe said in a statement.

WEIRD: The Weird Al Yankovic Story will follow Yankovic's life from early hits like "Eat It" to his rise to Grammy-winning status. Yankovic shared the photo of Radcliffe on his official Twitter, jokingly claiming that Radcliffe was a rabid superfan who had snuck onto set.

“When my last movie UHF came out in 1989, I made a solemn vow to my fans that I would release a major motion picture every 33 years, like clockwork. I’m very happy to say we’re on schedule,” Yankovic joked in a statement when the film was first announced. “And I am absolutely thrilled that Daniel Radcliffe will be portraying me in the film. I have no doubt whatsoever that this is the role future generations will remember him for.”

The biopic is being written by Yankovic and Eric Appel, who directed Son of Zorn and the Funny or Die mini-doc about the life of Yankovic. The film is being produced by Funny or Die.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/polka king for IGN.

Cillian Murphy is J. Robert Oppenheimer, the theoretical physicist commonly regarded as one of the "fathers of the atomic bomb" in Christopher Nolan's new biopic. You can check out the first look at Murphy as Oppenheimer in the image below.

Murphy is just one member of a star-studded cast including Robert Downey Jr., Florence Pugh, Rami Malek, Matt Damon, and Emily Blunt.

Oppenheimer was a theoretical physicist who worked at the Los Alamos Laboratory during World War II, where the Manhattan Project developed nuclear weapons. Oppenheimer was among the first humans to witness the effects of a nuclear explosion at the Trinity test in New Mexico. He later remarked that the test brought to mind the words of the Bhagavad Gita: "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds."

Oppenheimer later became a part of the General Advisory Committee in the United States Atomic Energy Commission, working to prevent nuclear proliferation and a nuclear arms race with Soviet Russia.

Murphy is a longtime collaborator of Nolan's, co-starring as Scarecrow in 2005's Batman Begins, then later The Dark Knight, Inception, Dunkirk, and The Dark Knight Rises.

Nolan's film is an adaptation of the 2005 Pultizer Prize-winning book "The American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer." The film is Nolan's first major project with Universal following the director's heated split with Warner Bros. Universal is set to release Oppenheimer in theaters on July 21, 2023.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/destroyer of worlds for IGN.

Cillian Murphy is J. Robert Oppenheimer, the theoretical physicist commonly regarded as one of the "fathers of the atomic bomb" in Christopher Nolan's new biopic. You can check out the first look at Murphy as Oppenheimer in the image below.

Murphy is just one member of a star-studded cast including Robert Downey Jr., Florence Pugh, Rami Malek, Matt Damon, and Emily Blunt.

Oppenheimer was a theoretical physicist who worked at the Los Alamos Laboratory during World War II, where the Manhattan Project developed nuclear weapons. Oppenheimer was among the first humans to witness the effects of a nuclear explosion at the Trinity test in New Mexico. He later remarked that the test brought to mind the words of the Bhagavad Gita: "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds."

Oppenheimer later became a part of the General Advisory Committee in the United States Atomic Energy Commission, working to prevent nuclear proliferation and a nuclear arms race with Soviet Russia.

Murphy is a longtime collaborator of Nolan's, co-starring as Scarecrow in 2005's Batman Begins, then later The Dark Knight, Inception, Dunkirk, and The Dark Knight Rises.

Nolan's film is an adaptation of the 2005 Pultizer Prize-winning book "The American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer." The film is Nolan's first major project with Universal following the director's heated split with Warner Bros. Universal is set to release Oppenheimer in theaters on July 21, 2023.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/destroyer of worlds for IGN.

Fred Hechinger, star of HBO's The White Lotus, has been cast in the upcoming Kraven the Hunter film, rumored to play the titular anti-hero's brother Chameleon, Deadline reports.

Hechinger is also known for his roles in Netflix's The Woman in the Window, Tom Hanks' News of the World, and a recurring star role in Fear Street. He's currently starring in Hulu's Pam & Tommy as infamous pornographer Seth Warshavsky, and the upcoming Pale Blue Eye, starring Christian Bale.

More specifically, Chameleon (real name Dmitiri Smerdyakov) is the illegitimate half-brother of Kraven, and regarded as a master of disguise, capable of impersonating anyone. In Marvel comics lore, Chameleon has impersonated the likes of Captain America, Bruce Banner, Spider-Man, and other major heroes. Hechinger joins Aaron Taylor Johnson as the titular Kraven, whom Chameleon has a tortured relationship with thanks to a history of familial abuse.

Kraven the Hunter releases in theaters on January 13, 2023 as part of Sony's Spider-Man universe, alongside the Venom franchise and Jared Leto's Morbius. It's being directed by J.C. Chandor (Triple Frontier, A Most Violent Year) with Art Marcum and Matt Holloway (Iron Man, Uncharted) and Richard Wenk (Lethal Weapon 5, The Equalizer) writing.

You can read our explainer of Kraven the Hunter's history and rivalry with Spider-Man here, if you're curious why the genetically superpowered Russian is one of the few baddies to send Spider-Man to an early grave. You can also check out how Spider-Man: No Way Home was almost a Kraven movie if the multiverse idea didn't pan out.

(Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/master of disguise for IGN.

Fred Hechinger, star of HBO's The White Lotus, has been cast in the upcoming Kraven the Hunter film, rumored to play the titular anti-hero's brother Chameleon, Deadline reports.

Hechinger is also known for his roles in Netflix's The Woman in the Window, Tom Hanks' News of the World, and a recurring star role in Fear Street. He's currently starring in Hulu's Pam & Tommy as infamous pornographer Seth Warshavsky, and the upcoming Pale Blue Eye, starring Christian Bale.

More specifically, Chameleon (real name Dmitiri Smerdyakov) is the illegitimate half-brother of Kraven, and regarded as a master of disguise, capable of impersonating anyone. In Marvel comics lore, Chameleon has impersonated the likes of Captain America, Bruce Banner, Spider-Man, and other major heroes. Hechinger joins Aaron Taylor Johnson as the titular Kraven, whom Chameleon has a tortured relationship with thanks to a history of familial abuse.

Kraven the Hunter releases in theaters on January 13, 2023 as part of Sony's Spider-Man universe, alongside the Venom franchise and Jared Leto's Morbius. It's being directed by J.C. Chandor (Triple Frontier, A Most Violent Year) with Art Marcum and Matt Holloway (Iron Man, Uncharted) and Richard Wenk (Lethal Weapon 5, The Equalizer) writing.

You can read our explainer of Kraven the Hunter's history and rivalry with Spider-Man here, if you're curious why the genetically superpowered Russian is one of the few baddies to send Spider-Man to an early grave. You can also check out how Spider-Man: No Way Home was almost a Kraven movie if the multiverse idea didn't pan out.

(Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/master of disguise for IGN.

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy had a slow start for Square Enix as the publisher admitted the game initially underperformed when it launched in October last year.

During its latest financial briefing, Square Enix commented that despite receiving positive reviews, Guardians of the Galaxy's "sales on launch undershot our initial expectations."

The game made up ground later however through different sales initiatives (such as store discounts) that began in November, and Square Enix said it intends "to work to continue to expand sales to make up for the title’s slow start."

It proved to be the second shaky start for Square Enix's Marvel games as its president Yosuke Matsuda commented in November that its Avengers game "has unfortunately not proven as successful as we would have liked."

Guardians of the Galaxy certainly reviewed better than Avengers, as IGN said it was "great" and "another convincing example of how much fun a linear, no-frills, single-player campaign can be."

We said Avengers on the other hand was "okay" as its campaign is fun and endearing, but the loot-based post-game meant to be the meat of this meal is unrewarding and overly repetitive.

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