HBO has officially ordered a series based on The Last of Us video game franchise, HBO executive vice president of programming Francesca Ori announced Friday. Though a series based on The Last of Us had been in discussion for some time now, Friday's announcement reconfirms HBO's intent on the show and attaches a few key names to the project. Writing the series are The Last of Us creative director Neil Druckmann and Chernobyl writer Craig Mazin. Druckmann will also be executive producing the series alongside Cheryl Strauss (Chernobyl and Game of Thrones) as well as Naughty Dog president Evan Wells and PlayStation Productions Asad Qizilbash and Carter Swan. HBO is partnering with Sony Pictures Television on the series, with PlayStation Productions, Word Games, and Naughty Dog all co-producing. “Craig and Neil are visionaries in a league of their own,” said Orsi. “With them at the helm alongside the incomparable Carolyn Strauss, this series is sure to resonate with both die-hard fans of ‘The Last of Us’ games and newcomers to this genre-defining saga. We’re delighted to partner with Naughty Dog, Word Games, Sony and PlayStation to adapt this epic, powerfully immersive story.” The Last of Us evidently won't be the only video game property that Sony hopes to convert into a TV production. “We’re thrilled to be working with HBO and this fantastic creative team to bring ‘The Last of Us’ series to life,” said Jeff Frost, president of Sony Pictures Television Studios and Asad Qizilbash, head of PlayStation Productions. “PlayStation’s innovative storytelling and ingenuity is a natural complement to SPT’s creative focus. Our collaboration is a great example of our ‘One Sony’ philosophy at work. We look forward to developing even more iconic game IP in the future.” According to HBO's announcement, the series will focus on the events of the original The Last of Us game, which sees Joel and Ellie smuggling themselves out of an oppressive quarantine zone and traveling across a post-apocalyptic United States. HBO says that the series will be available on both the HBO channel and to stream on HBO Max. Last we heard, Mazin (a self-described Last of Us fan) assured fans in a BBC interview that he hopes to "expand" upon the series rather than "undo" any part of it, including Ellie's sexual orientation. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/keyboard clicker for IGN.

Stranger Things Season 4 has expanded its cast with eight new actors. Netflix has announced that Jamie Campbell Bower (Sweeney Todd), Eduardo Franco (Booksmart), and Joseph Quinn (Catherine the Great) have joined the cast of Stranger Things as series regulars, together with horror icon Robert Englund (A Nightmare on Elm Street), who has boarded the series in a recurring role alongside Tom Wlaschiha (Game of Thrones), Sherman Augustus (Westworld), Mason Dye (The Goldbergs), and Nikola Djuricko (Genius). To accompany this announcement, the streamer shared a few interesting character details about the new additions, some of which were teased last year. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/07/06/what-will-happen-in-stranger-things-season-4"] Series regular Bower will be playing Peter Ballard, a caring man who works as an orderly at a psychiatric hospital. The official character description questions whether he will "finally take a stand" against the "brutality he witnesses day after day." Franco is joining the cast to play Argyle, Jonathan's new best friend. His character is described as being a "fun-loving stoner who proudly delivers delicious pizza pies for Surfer Boy Pizza," so we should probably expect plenty of takeouts with the gang this season. Quinn joins as Eddie Munson, "an audacious 80's metalhead who runs The Hellfire Club, Hawkins High's official D&D club." He is said to be a marmite character who is "hated by those who don't understand him and beloved by those who do." He'll find himself at the "terrifying epicentre of this season's mystery."

Robert Englund aka Victor Creel is a disturbed and intimidating man who is imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital for a gruesome murder in the 1950s. pic.twitter.com/QsuaGTVqDf

— Stranger Things (@Stranger_Things) November 20, 2020

Joining the cast in a recurring role, Englund, who is best known for playing Freddy Krueger in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, will take on another creepy character as Victor Creel, "a disturbed and intimidating man who is imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital for a gruesome murder in the 1950s." Elsewhere, Augustus will play Lt. Colonel Sullivan. He is said to be "an intelligent, no-nonsense man who believes he knows how to stop the evil in Hawkins once and for all," which could be good news for Dye's Jason Carver, who sounds like he's going to face some challenges this season. Jason is one of those characters who seemingly has it all; "he's handsome, he's rich, he's a sports star, and he's dating the most popular girl in school." But as a new evil threatens Hawkins, Jason's perfect world apparently begins to unravel. Finally, Djuricko will play Yuri, "a seedy and unpredictable Russian smuggler who loves bad jokes, cold hard cash, and crunchy style peanut butter," while Wlaschiha will star as Dmitri, a Russian prison guard who befriends Hopper. Dmitri is said to be "smart, cunning, and charming... but can he be trusted?" [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=stranger-things-season-3s-80s-references-a-side-by-side-comparison&captions=true"] Production on Stranger Things Season 4 was suspended back in March after Netflix announced that it would be pausing filming on all of its TV shows and movies in the US and Canada in an effort to reduce the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). The hugely popular sci-fi series has since resumed filming, with cameras starting to roll again this past September. Stranger Things Seasons 1-3 are currently available for streaming on Netflix. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.

Stranger Things Season 4 has expanded its cast with eight new actors. Netflix has announced that Jamie Campbell Bower (Sweeney Todd), Eduardo Franco (Booksmart), and Joseph Quinn (Catherine the Great) have joined the cast of Stranger Things as series regulars, together with horror icon Robert Englund (A Nightmare on Elm Street), who has boarded the series in a recurring role alongside Tom Wlaschiha (Game of Thrones), Sherman Augustus (Westworld), Mason Dye (The Goldbergs), and Nikola Djuricko (Genius). To accompany this announcement, the streamer shared a few interesting character details about the new additions, some of which were teased last year. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/07/06/what-will-happen-in-stranger-things-season-4"] Series regular Bower will be playing Peter Ballard, a caring man who works as an orderly at a psychiatric hospital. The official character description questions whether he will "finally take a stand" against the "brutality he witnesses day after day." Franco is joining the cast to play Argyle, Jonathan's new best friend. His character is described as being a "fun-loving stoner who proudly delivers delicious pizza pies for Surfer Boy Pizza," so we should probably expect plenty of takeouts with the gang this season. Quinn joins as Eddie Munson, "an audacious 80's metalhead who runs The Hellfire Club, Hawkins High's official D&D club." He is said to be a marmite character who is "hated by those who don't understand him and beloved by those who do." He'll find himself at the "terrifying epicentre of this season's mystery."

Robert Englund aka Victor Creel is a disturbed and intimidating man who is imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital for a gruesome murder in the 1950s. pic.twitter.com/QsuaGTVqDf

— Stranger Things (@Stranger_Things) November 20, 2020

Joining the cast in a recurring role, Englund, who is best known for playing Freddy Krueger in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, will take on another creepy character as Victor Creel, "a disturbed and intimidating man who is imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital for a gruesome murder in the 1950s." Elsewhere, Augustus will play Lt. Colonel Sullivan. He is said to be "an intelligent, no-nonsense man who believes he knows how to stop the evil in Hawkins once and for all," which could be good news for Dye's Jason Carver, who sounds like he's going to face some challenges this season. Jason is one of those characters who seemingly has it all; "he's handsome, he's rich, he's a sports star, and he's dating the most popular girl in school." But as a new evil threatens Hawkins, Jason's perfect world apparently begins to unravel. Finally, Djuricko will play Yuri, "a seedy and unpredictable Russian smuggler who loves bad jokes, cold hard cash, and crunchy style peanut butter," while Wlaschiha will star as Dmitri, a Russian prison guard who befriends Hopper. Dmitri is said to be "smart, cunning, and charming... but can he be trusted?" [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=stranger-things-season-3s-80s-references-a-side-by-side-comparison&captions=true"] Production on Stranger Things Season 4 was suspended back in March after Netflix announced that it would be pausing filming on all of its TV shows and movies in the US and Canada in an effort to reduce the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). The hugely popular sci-fi series has since resumed filming, with cameras starting to roll again this past September. Stranger Things Seasons 1-3 are currently available for streaming on Netflix. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.

GTA Online will add the Cayo Perico Heist on December 15. Described as GTA Online's biggest-ever heist, Cayo Perico adds an entire new island to the game, and can be played as a solo experience. Announced with a teaser trailer (below), the Cayo Perico Heist tasks players with infiltrating "one of the most secure private islands in the entire world". You'll evade or fight security, "and escape with valuable evidence along with as much art, gold and drug money as you can carry." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/11/20/gta-online-the-cayo-perico-heist-teaser-trailer"] Playable either alone or with friends, Cayo Perico will let you choose your approach to the heist, and the tools used, and will also feature new vehicles, weapons, social spaces, in-game DJs, and radio stations with over 100 new songs. "Oh," reads a press release, "and a very large, very versatile, and very heavily armed submarine HQ with plenty of other surprises." The update was teased yesterday, showing off the "El Rubio Dossier" and mentioning a John Doe – we're still yet to learn much more about those, but Rockstar promises more information is on the way. [poilib element="accentDivider"] 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.

GTA Online will add the Cayo Perico Heist on December 15. Described as GTA Online's biggest-ever heist, Cayo Perico adds an entire new island to the game, and can be played as a solo experience. Announced with a teaser trailer (below), the Cayo Perico Heist tasks players with infiltrating "one of the most secure private islands in the entire world". You'll evade or fight security, "and escape with valuable evidence along with as much art, gold and drug money as you can carry." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/11/20/gta-online-the-cayo-perico-heist-teaser-trailer"] Playable either alone or with friends, Cayo Perico will let you choose your approach to the heist, and the tools used, and will also feature new vehicles, weapons, social spaces, in-game DJs, and radio stations with over 100 new songs. "Oh," reads a press release, "and a very large, very versatile, and very heavily armed submarine HQ with plenty of other surprises." The update was teased yesterday, showing off the "El Rubio Dossier" and mentioning a John Doe – we're still yet to learn much more about those, but Rockstar promises more information is on the way. [poilib element="accentDivider"] 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.

Despite being the second game of its kind, Nintendo isn't expecting Hyrule Warriors to become its own spin-off series after Age of Calamity – but we could see another installment if the right idea comes along. IGN got the chance to speak to Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity producer Yosuke Hayashi, and I asked whether – after two Hyrule Warriors installments – they were considering making this its own standalone series, alongside mainline Zelda games. "I do think circumstances could align like this again," explained Eiji Aonuma, "but I don't think we're expecting this to become a series. We'd make that decision based on its creative merits, just like we did this time." "I think it depends on whether we get an idea that'll make all the fans happy!", added Hayashi. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/hyrule-warriors-age-of-calamity-review"] I asked if, on a wider level, Nintendo was now looking to put together more spin-offs between its mainline Zelda games. Again, Aonuma explained that it was taking an 'idea-first' approach:  "Echoing my answer to the question above, we're always looking for valuable creative projects, but those only come about when several different conditions align. So, I think it's hard for us to have conscious control over the frequency." So if this game came about through a good idea popping up, who had that original idea? "It was Fujibayashi-san, the director of [Breath of the Wild], who initially came up with the concept," Aonuma tells me. "Fujibayashi-san thought that telling the untold story of the Great Calamity from BotW would only be possible with a system like Warriors where players could come together to fight against vast armies, so he put together a project proposal and sent it to me. His enthusiasm for the project pushed me to consult with Hayashi-san." "We had been having internal discussions about the what would be next for Hyrule Warriors," Hayashi continues, "but we weren't able land on any good ideas. 'Using Warriors to tell the story of the Great Calamity' was a great concept, so it didn't take us long to start pulling the project together." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=hyrule-warriors-age-of-calamity-screenshots-and-art&captions=true"] That fusion of Dynasty Warriors and Breath of the Wild ended up being a potent one - we awarded the game a 9/10 review, saying its "hugely varied roster of characters, solid combat mechanics, fun progression and clever adaptation of Breath of the Wild’s vision of Hyrule is a joy to play and discover".

As good as it is, hopefully Age of Calamity won't have to tide us over for too long until The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2. Sadly, we still have to wait a bit longer for updates on that one.

[poilib element="accentDivider"] 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.

Despite being the second game of its kind, Nintendo isn't expecting Hyrule Warriors to become its own spin-off series after Age of Calamity – but we could see another installment if the right idea comes along. IGN got the chance to speak to Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity producer Yosuke Hayashi, and I asked whether – after two Hyrule Warriors installments – they were considering making this its own standalone series, alongside mainline Zelda games. "I do think circumstances could align like this again," explained Eiji Aonuma, "but I don't think we're expecting this to become a series. We'd make that decision based on its creative merits, just like we did this time." "I think it depends on whether we get an idea that'll make all the fans happy!", added Hayashi. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/hyrule-warriors-age-of-calamity-review"] I asked if, on a wider level, Nintendo was now looking to put together more spin-offs between its mainline Zelda games. Again, Aonuma explained that it was taking an 'idea-first' approach:  "Echoing my answer to the question above, we're always looking for valuable creative projects, but those only come about when several different conditions align. So, I think it's hard for us to have conscious control over the frequency." So if this game came about through a good idea popping up, who had that original idea? "It was Fujibayashi-san, the director of [Breath of the Wild], who initially came up with the concept," Aonuma tells me. "Fujibayashi-san thought that telling the untold story of the Great Calamity from BotW would only be possible with a system like Warriors where players could come together to fight against vast armies, so he put together a project proposal and sent it to me. His enthusiasm for the project pushed me to consult with Hayashi-san." "We had been having internal discussions about the what would be next for Hyrule Warriors," Hayashi continues, "but we weren't able land on any good ideas. 'Using Warriors to tell the story of the Great Calamity' was a great concept, so it didn't take us long to start pulling the project together." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=hyrule-warriors-age-of-calamity-screenshots-and-art&captions=true"] That fusion of Dynasty Warriors and Breath of the Wild ended up being a potent one - we awarded the game a 9/10 review, saying its "hugely varied roster of characters, solid combat mechanics, fun progression and clever adaptation of Breath of the Wild’s vision of Hyrule is a joy to play and discover".

As good as it is, hopefully Age of Calamity won't have to tide us over for too long until The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2. Sadly, we still have to wait a bit longer for updates on that one.

[poilib element="accentDivider"] 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.

Rocket League developer Psyonix has said that while adding 120 FPS to the Xbox Series version of the game is a "minor patch," it would require a "full native port" on PS5. Speaking to Eurogamer, a spokesperson for the developer noted that this was due to the way backwards compatibility works on Sony's next-gen console. "Enabling 120hz on Xbox Series X|S is a minor patch, but enabling it on PS5 requires a full native port due to how backwards compatibility is implemented on the console, and unfortunately wasn't possible due to our focus elsewhere." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/11/16/how-to-switch-from-ps4-version-games-to-ps5"] Psyonix has been focusing on the game's "free to play transition" and updating the game's Tournament system instead. It paints a troublesome picture for backwards-compatibile PS4 games receiving 120 FPS updates on the PS5, going forward. A similar Eurogamer report from last week noted that Infinity Ward had added 120 FPS support to Call of Duty: Warzone on the Xbox Series X, but not the PS5, which suggests that this stumbling block is more significant than perhaps expected. Hopefully, in the future, Sony could commit resources to create an easier solution for developers who want to update their last-generation games to run at 120 FPS on PS5. To check out the differences between the console, make sure to check out our PS5 vs. Xbox Series comparison chart. We've also got our PS5 review and Xbox Series X review to run you through the major features of both new consoles. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

Rocket League developer Psyonix has said that while adding 120 FPS to the Xbox Series version of the game is a "minor patch," it would require a "full native port" on PS5. Speaking to Eurogamer, a spokesperson for the developer noted that this was due to the way backwards compatibility works on Sony's next-gen console. "Enabling 120hz on Xbox Series X|S is a minor patch, but enabling it on PS5 requires a full native port due to how backwards compatibility is implemented on the console, and unfortunately wasn't possible due to our focus elsewhere." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/11/16/how-to-switch-from-ps4-version-games-to-ps5"] Psyonix has been focusing on the game's "free to play transition" and updating the game's Tournament system instead. It paints a troublesome picture for backwards-compatibile PS4 games receiving 120 FPS updates on the PS5, going forward. A similar Eurogamer report from last week noted that Infinity Ward had added 120 FPS support to Call of Duty: Warzone on the Xbox Series X, but not the PS5, which suggests that this stumbling block is more significant than perhaps expected. Hopefully, in the future, Sony could commit resources to create an easier solution for developers who want to update their last-generation games to run at 120 FPS on PS5. To check out the differences between the console, make sure to check out our PS5 vs. Xbox Series comparison chart. We've also got our PS5 review and Xbox Series X review to run you through the major features of both new consoles. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan says there's "news to come" on a PlayStation response to Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft's popular subscription-based games service. In an interview with TASS, Ryan was asked about how PlayStation will respond to Game Pass, which has become an increasingly attractive value proposition for Xbox in recent years. While not explaining exactly what the response will be, Ryan did make clear that, "There is actually news to come, but just not today." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=28-best-xbox-game-pass-games&captions=true"] Ryan went on to point out that PlayStation already has its Now subscription service. He is presumably also not talking about the existing PS Plus Collection, which bundles a number of classic PlayStation games into the cost of a PS Plus subscription. Likely, any further response would either be a new service, or an addition to one of the above. Xbox Game Pass offers over 100 games as part of a monthly subscription - including all newly released titles from Xbox Game Studios. At its Ultimate tier, that includes Xbox Live Gold, EA Play, xCloud, and, currently, a 30 day subscription to Disney+. It's been a huge success for Microsoft, with 70% of Xbox Series X and S owners subscribing to Game Pass. [poilib element="accentDivider"] 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.