If the words "Avatar mobile MMORPG" excite you, boy do I have good news. Avatar: Reckoning is a new "multiplayer online role-playing shooter," based on Disney and James Cameron's Avatar franchise, and it's coming to iOS and Android this year.

Players will create their character (or Avatar avatar) and travel to never-before-seen parts of Pandora, meet new Na'vi clans, battle human troops from the RDA, and meet other alien creatures. Players will be able to do all this in either solo or multiplayer matches, level up their character, equip new gear, and complete single-player story missions, co-op missions, or PvP modes with touchscreen combat.

The game is also built using Unreal Engine 4.

Accompanying the announcement is a single piece of concept art, showing a Na'vi overlooking the horizon on Pandora while wielding an assault rifle and dressed in camo.

Avatar: Reckoning is being developed by Archosaur Games and produced by Tencent, Lightstorm Entertainment, and Disney. Archosaur is a Chinese mobile game studio, with previous games including Dragon Raja, World of Kings, and Novoland: The Castle in the Sky, and Naval Creed.

That's it for major details, but you can visit the official Avatar: Reckoning site to sign up for a beta test and receive news.

Meanwhile, over in movie land, we're finally getting some looks at what James Cameron's Avatar 2 will look like. We're also learning some plot details, like the fact that original protagonists Jake Sully and Neytiri now have a mixed species family, including an adopted human son.

If mobile games aren't your speed, there's always Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, the upcoming open-world adventure game from Ubisoft. It's using an updated version of Ubisoft's Snowdrop engine, which Ubisoft is using to add denser vegetation and more realistic clouds and other weather effects to improve the look of Pandora on next-gen systems.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/unobtanium for IGN.

Peacemaker showrunner James Gunn really wants you to watch the show’s intro.

During an interview with Polygon, the 55-year-old Peacemaker director explained why the 1980s rock intro on Peacemaker is so important.

“I really wanted to do a dance number where everybody was doing something incredibly ridiculous, and looked incredibly serious while they were doing it,” he said. Gunn explained that it was a way to “vanquish the skip forward button”, encouraging viewers to see the credits for people who worked on the show.

“I thought it was something that would, you know, be a signpost for people that this isn’t just your normal DC or Marvel TV show,” he added.

He’s right, of course. The insane, over-the-top intro really captures the essence of the show, which stars John Cena as The Suicide Squad character, Peacemaker. But it’s not just a bit of fun, either – it also gives us some insight into how the character ticks.

“I think that some of the rock ‘n’ roll stuff that he’s into has actually been a more positive influence on him than, say, his father has been,” said Gunn. Music has clearly been a huge influence on Peacemaker, and Gunn points out that during The Suicide Squad, his dance with Ratcatcher 2 “is the only moment he’s happy in the entire movie.”

Throughout Peacemaker’s debut season, it becomes clear that it’s a huge part of who he is.

“It’s just a part of the story, it’s a part of who the character is,” Gunn said. “I think that it’s just a part of his sort of secret joy that he has with him, you know, that he only practices by himself, for the most part, his relationship to music is a very private thing.”

It’s the same for series star John Cena, who wasn’t exactly thrilled at his musical interludes.

At the end of the show’s pilot episode, he’s forced to perform a dance number in his underwear, to the sound of “I Don’t Love You Anymore” by the Quireboys.

“I don’t dance,” explained Cena. “It’s something I’m not very comfortable with, even in a COVID, restricted environment watching you do your thing.”

“I think it’s more of an expression of him being happy or having a flash of fulfillment or meaning,” he added. “And that’s why it doesn’t need to take any shape or form, it can be off key. It shows a very human side to Peacemaker [...] and I appreciate James for trying to push me into that uncomfortable space because it doesn’t need to be anything more than it is; it’s just a freedom of being fulfilled.”

Thankfully, Cena was more comfortable filming the hilariously deadpan intro. And with the stage set for even more Suicide Squad members to get their own shows, this could be only the beginning.

Read more about Peacemaker with IGN’s spoiler-free review of the show’s premiere.

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

An enormous asteroid is expected to make its closest approach to Earth soon, but don't worry, it's still going to be more than a million miles away from us.

According to Space.com, the colossal space rock is estimated to measure around 3,400 feet, which is almost three times the height of the 102-story Empire State Building, and it will make its closest pass to our planet on January 18, per NASA's Near-Earth Object Studies. Nevertheless, Earth is in the clear as it's expected to be travelling at a distance of 1.2 million miles.

What makes this coming event significant is that the flight path of the asteriod, formally known as 7482 (1994 PC1), marks the closest approach the space rock will make to Earth within the next 200 years, says EarthSky, though it'll be gone almost as quickly as it arrives as it's anticipated to be flying past at a top speed of almost 12 miles per second (20 km/s).

Despite its far-off trajectory, the asteroid would qualify as a "Near-Earth object" (NEO) according to NASA, given that any asteroid or comet that comes closer than 1.3 astronomical units (120.9 million miles) is classified as such — and this is something that the agency continues to monitor, having used survey telescopes to find nearly 28,000 NEOs to date.

Scientists have even calculated the probability of the potentially hazardous Bennu asteroid hitting Earth between 2021 and 2300. Fortunately, Bennu's chances of hitting Earth are still very low, yet those living on Earth may consider getting closer to asteroids than ever before as an astrophysicist has explained how humans could inhabit a floating asteroid belt in space.

Before you consider relocating, you might want to take a closer look at an asteroid sample from space and find out more about an asteroid's interior to discover whether they contain water. It's worth noting these rocky objects don't come cheap either; one metallic asteroid between Mars and Jupiter was found to have an estimated value of $10,000 quadrillion.

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

Thumbnail image credit: NASA.

The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences has revealed the nominations for its 25th annual DICE awards, and Insomniac's Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart leads the pack with 9 nominations.

Arkane's Deathloop follows closely behind with 8 nominations, while inscryption and It Takes Two earn 6 each. All four of those games are up for Game of the Year, as well as Housemarque's Returnal – meaning three of the five GOTY contenders are PlayStation exclusives.

The awards will be held on February 24 in Las Vegas, and IGN will be the official media partner, meaning you'll be able to stream the entire event live right here with us.

You can check out the full list of nominees below:

Game of the Year

• Deathloop
• Inscryption
• It Takes Two
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Returnal

Outstanding Achievement in Animation

• Call of Duty: Vanguard
• Deathloop
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Resident Evil Village

Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction

• Call of Duty: Vanguard
• Deathloop
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Resident Evil Village

Outstanding Achievement in Character

• Deathloop – Colt Vahn
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits – Kena
• Life is Strange: True Colors – Alex Chen
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart – Rivet
• Resident Evil Village – Lady Dimitrescu

Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition

• Deathloop
• It Takes Two
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits
• Psychonauts 2
• Returnal

Outstanding Achievement in Audio Design

• Forza Horizon 5
• Halo Infinite
• It Takes Two
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Returnal

Outstanding Achievement in Story

• Before Your Eyes
• Inscryption
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• Psychonauts 2
• The Forgotten City

Outstanding Technical Achievement

• Battlefield 2042
• Forza Horizon 5
• Moncage
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Returnal

Action Game of the Year

• Deathloop
• Halo Infinite
• Metroid Dread
• Returnal
• The Ascent

Adventure Game of the Year

• Death's Door
• It Takes Two
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• Psychonauts 2
• Resident Evil Village

Family Game of the Year

• Animal Crossing: New Horizons - Happy Home Paradise
• Cozy Grove
• Mario Party Superstars
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Warioware: Get it Together

Fighting Game of the Year

• Guilty Gear Strive
• Melty Blood: Type Lumina
• Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl

Racing Game of the Year

• F1 2021
• Forza Horizon 5
• Hot Wheels Unleashed

Role-Playing Game of the Year

• Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker
• Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous
• Shin Megami Tensei V
• Tales of Arise
• Wildermyth

Sports Game of the Year

• FIFA 22
• Mario Golf: Super Rush
• NBA 2k22
• Riders Republic
• The Climb 2

Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year

• Age of Empires IV
• Gloomhaven
• Griftlands
• Inscryption
• Loop Hero

Immersive Reality Technical Achievement

• Lone Echo II
• Puzzling Places
• Resident Evil 4 VR
• Song in the Smoke
• Yuki

Immersive Reality Game of the Year

• Demeo
• I Expect You To Die 2
• Lone Echo II
• Resident Evil 4 VR
• Song in the Smoke

Outstanding Achievement for an Independent Game

• Death's Door
• Inscryption
• Loop Hero
• Sable
• Unpacking

Mobile Game of the Year

• Behind the Frame
• Fantasian
• League of Legends: Wild Rift
• Moncage
• Pokémon Unite

Online Game of the Year

• Back 4 Blood
• Call of Duty: Vanguard
• Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker
• Halo Infinite
• Knockout City

Outstanding Achievement in Game Design

• Deathloop
• Inscryption
• It Takes Two
• Loop Hero
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction

• Deathloop
• Inscryption
• It Takes Two
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• The Artful Escape

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.

IO Interactive has announced that the Hitman Trilogy Collection will be launching next week, and it's coming straight to Game Pass.

IO Interactive is combining all three of its Hitman games into one single package that fans will be able to get their hands on next week. Officially launching on January 20, the collection will be available for fans on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and on PC through Steam and the Epic Games Store.

However, that's not all. For those of you currently signed up for Xbox Game Pass, there will be no need to purchase the game separately, as the studio has also announced that the trilogy will be coming to the service on day one.

January 20 marks the first time that Hitman 3 has been made available to players on Steam. The game's Steam launch will include full support for the title's brand-new VR mode (which is set to launch the same day) as well as a number of other technical improvements coming to Hitman 3 on PC later this year including the likes of Ray Tracing as well as Variable Rate Shading to boost PC performance.

HITMAN Trilogy includes all three games from the World of Assassination. Available digitally on January 20 for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Epic Games Store. As well as Steam and Xbox Game Pass.

Watch the full @HITMAN 3 Year 2 reveal here: https://t.co/1SODjYBTQC pic.twitter.com/0o4gvAj7WK

— IO Interactive (@IOInteractive) January 13, 2022

As well as announcing the launch date for its Hitman Trilogy, IO has also shed further light on what's in store for Hitman 3 across the next twelve months. According to a press release from the studio, Year 2 content for the game will include two brand new modes and a new map, named Rocky, which will be revealed later this year.

The first of those two modes, Elusive Target Arcade, will take the game's Elusive Target concept to further heights by adding a number of new challenges and unlockable rewards to Hitman 3 - while a brand new Freelancer mode is also set to be introduced this year.

Launching this Spring, IO says that Hitman 3's new Freelancer mode will bring a brand new way to play the game as it introduces new roguelike elements, further strategic planning and a customizable safehouse into the fold.

For more from the world of Hitman, make sure to check out this article detailing how the game's developers are reportedly working on an Xbox fantasy game featuring dragons.

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Bandai Namco has announced My Hero Academia: Ultra Rumble - a new free-to-play battle royale game headed to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam.

As reported by Gematsu, Bandai Namco revealed the game in the latest issue of Weekly Jump magazine and, while a release date wasn't shared, the magazine does tease that players will get to "team up to win a 24-player rumble in multiplayer action!"

Prior to launch, My Hero Academia: Ultra Rumble will have a closed beta test for a select few to try out the game and some of what it has to offer. When they become available, all the details on the closed beta and how to sign up will be available on the game's official website.

My Hero Academia is no stranger to the video game world, and the franchise and its characters have appeared in various forms over the years, beginning with My Hero Academia: Battle for All for the Nintendo 3DS in 2016.

My Hero: One's Justice followed in 2018 and its sequel - My Hero: One's Justice 2 - was released in 2020. Izuku "Deku" Midoriya, All Might, and Katsuki Bakugo have also appeared as playable characters in Jump Force and there have been a few mobile title releases as well.

In our review of My Hero: One's Justice 2, we said that it "touches up some of the nuances of the original's combat and builds an impressive roster, but doesn't bring its A-game when it comes to offering much beyond a few good matches."

For more, check out why we believe My Hero Academia is one of the best choices for beginners and why this new wave of Shonen Anime are raising the bar.

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.

Nathan Drake returns in a new Uncharted poster, along with a whole gallery of new images from the upcoming video game movie.

The new Uncharted poster features Tom Holland as Nathan Drake – the young fortune hunter in search of one of the greatest treasures in the world. Along with his mentor Victor “Sully” Sullivan (played by Mark Wahlberg), Drake is about to embark on a globetrotting adventure like no other.

Rather fitting then, that this new poster has distinct Raiders of the Lost Ark vibes:

Alongside Holland and Wahlberg, we also find Sophia Ali as a fellow treasure hunter and love interest Chloe Frazer, Tati Gabrielle as Braddock, and Antonio Banderas as the film’s villain and Nathan Drake’s ruthless competitor.

And a collection of new images gives us an even closer look at what we can expect in Uncharted. Unfortunately, there are no new images of Sully’s iconic moustache.

But what we do get is a glimpse of Drake’s first adventure, as well as a quieter moment between Drake and Banderas’ unnamed villain as they peer into a glass cabinet containing an artifact that looks a bit like the Cross of Coronado from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Seriously, guys, it belongs in a museum.

Check out the brand-new Uncharted images below:

Directed by Ruben Fleischer, Uncharted is based on the popular PlayStation video game franchise. Although little is known about Drake’s first big-screen adventure at the moment, the script was written by Rafe Judkins, Art Marcum, and Matt Holloway.

Of course, adventure is the name of the game, with the first Uncharted trailer giving us a brief look at what we can expect. The film is said to be an origin story, with PlayStation boss Jim Ryan saying that this is “just the beginning” for the new adventure franchise. And with multiple references to the videogames, there’s plenty for fans to get excited about.

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

Microsoft quietly discontinued manufacturing all Xbox One consoles at the end of 2020, the company has revealed.

As reported by The Verge, Microsoft has stated that it stopped producing Xbox One consoles at the end of 2020 in order to focus its efforts on its new generation of consoles. “To focus on production of Xbox Series X / S, we stopped production for all Xbox One consoles by the end of 2020,” a statement reads.

The company announced that it had ceased production on all Xbox One X and digital Xbox One S consoles a few months prior to the launch of the Xbox Series X in 2020. However, the latest comments from Microsoft indicate that the publisher also stopped manufacturing the disc version of the Xbox One S only a few months later.

It's possible that focusing entirely on Xbox Series console production has helped ease supply issues for Microsoft amid worldwide parts shortages for electronics.

News of the discontinuation comes just shortly after it was reported that Sony is set to produce more PlayStation 4 consoles than initially planned. The company had planned to stop production of the PlayStation 4 at the end of 2021. However, ongoing PS5 shortages have seemingly pushed the technology giant to continue manufacturing its last-generation console for a little while longer.

According to a Bloomberg report, the decision was said to be reached because "the older console uses less advanced chips, is simpler to make and provides a budget-friendly alternative to the PS5." In total, it is expected that a further one million PS4 consoles will be produced due to the issue. As per a Sony official who asked to remain anonymous, this strategy is meant to "fill the supply vacuum and keep gamers within the PlayStation ecosystem."

For more from Microsoft, make sure to check out this article detailing how Phil Spencer recently spoke about how Xbox is "not a free speech platform" for politics. And, if you've read that, then make sure to check out our rundown for everything Xbox Game Pass this January.

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Nintendo has released a new 13-minute gameplay video showcasing Pokémon Legends Arceus. It offers and in-depth look at Arceus' new spin on the classic monster collecting game, including how Pokémon are battled and caught out in the wild.

The more open world-like nature of Legends Arceus means that Pokémon can be caught in and out of battle; you can try and sneak up on them and catch them unaware, or catch them in the more traditional way during battles. To try and get an advantage over your potential captures, you can throw items to lure or distract Pokémon.

Getting into a battle with a Pokémon brings a certain amount of risk, as they can directly attack you. Should you take enough damage, you'll eventually faint and lose items. As such, you'll want to be careful around particularly aggressive wild Pokémon, because items can be use to craft new creations in the new scavenging and crafting system.

A detailed explainer of Pokémon battles reveals that the turn-based system has been overhauled with a two-style system. Pokémon can attack with either strong style or agile agile moves. Agile moves are less powerful, but faster, and may allow you to take another attack turn sooner. Strong style moves are the opposite: more devastating, but you risk delaying your next turn. Using a combination of both will be important for success, it seems.

Mini-boss style Pokémon, known as Alpha Pokémon, can be found in the world, and are larger, stronger versions of classic favourites. Seen in the trailer is an alpha Walrein with glowing red eyes, who's a pretty big boy compared to the trainer's own Raichu.

The biggest battles, however, appear to be Noble Pokémon boss battles. These are a mixture of action-based sections in which you must both avoids attacks and throws "balms" at the boss, then more traditional turn-based Pokémon battles.

Pokémon are not just used for fighting, though. As in the original games they can also be used as mounts, but in Legends Arceus you can switch between traversal Pokémon on the fly, such as switching from a ground-based mount onto a flying Pokemon.

As ever, trading is a big part of the Pokémon games, and so Legends Arceus will also allow you to trade monsters with other players. The system can been seen in action in the trailer. We also get a look at the customisation options for clothes and hairstyles.

For more from Pokémon Legends Arceus, check out the Hisui Clans and Hisuian Voltorb trailers, and more details on the Noble Pokémon.

Matt Purslow is IGN's UK News and Entertainment Writer.

The leader of Turkmenistan would like to finally close the "Gates of Hell" crater that has been burning in the Karakum Desert since the 1970s.

As reported by Metro, the president of Turkmenistan has urged scientists to find a way to seal up the fiery sinkhole, officially known as the Darvaza Crater, largely due to the environmental damage caused by the "methane and other noxious gases" that it releases into the air, which has sparked concerns over the negative impact on the health of the people living nearby.

The flaming crater reportedly stretches 230-feet wide across the desert terrain, which is located approximately 150 miles north of Turkmenistan's capital, Ashgabat. It is said to have been formed in 1971 during a Soviet drilling operation for natural gas deposits when the ground beneath the drill rig collapsed inwards and created a 70-foot deep hole.

Shortly after its accidental creation, the crater was reportedly set alight in a bid to burn off the natural gases being emitted, with the Soviets estimating that it would "burn itself out in a couple of weeks." However, this expectation turned out to be quite wrong, as the fiery pit is still ablaze 50 years later, with its amber glow visible for miles around the site.

"We are creating – and will continue to create – all necessary conditions for the development of the colossal hydrocarbon resources of our independent Motherland, in the interests of our people," the Turkmen president declared alongside his most recent proposal to extinguish the flames, having made a previous attempt to expel the Gates of Hell in 2010.

Craters can sometimes offer a passage to the past. The Chicxulub crater, for instance, marks the impact site of an asteroid that struck Earth 66 million years ago. Scientists determined that the asteroid crashed and created a 90-mile deep hole in the ground, which had such an impact that the resulting effects killed all dinosaurs and 75% of the world's animal species.

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

Thumbnail image credit: Dale Johnson/500px/Getty.