• Forza Horizon 5’s Full Map Revealed

    Playground Games has revealed the full map for its upcoming racing title, Forza Horizon 5, and as is tradition with the franchise, the map is massive.

    Forza Horizon 5 was announced less than two month ago and since then, Playground Games and Microsoft have been quite generous in dolling out information for drivers excited to take to the streets and off-road paths of Mexico. Today, the studio revealed the entirety of Forza Horizon 5's massive map on Twiter and well… it speaks for itself. Check it out for yourself:

    As you can see on the map above, Forza Horizon 5 will see players driving through all sorts of biomes, named and unnamed locations, and more. Over on the Forza Horizon subreddit, fans are clearly excited about all that's seemingly packed into this map.

    "The racetrack at the festival is massive compared to FH4, looks awesome," BoomBamCrash said. "And the airport at the very bottom in the jungle looks sick, and it looks like there might be a jump at the end of it."

    Reddit user Techophilia said they can't wait to drive through this map and that it looks excellent. They specifically pointed out the highway, the volcano road, and the dunes on the western side of the map in their excitement. There are hundreds of other comments similar to these on the subreddit and there's barely a comment void of excitement.

    You can also view the view the new reveal on our interactive wiki map.

    If this map reveal has you excited about Forza Horizon 5's release on November 9 later this year, check out this stunning 4K Forza Horizon 5 release date trailer and then watch this developer gameplay walkthrough. Read this story about all 11 of the game's biomes after that.

    Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

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    Back 4 Blood Won’t Have One Of Left 4 Dead’s Most Popular Modes

    Back 4 Blood developer Turtle Rock Studios has confirmed that the game won’t include a campaign versus mode, a popular feature from its spiritual predecessor Left 4 Dead.

    Turtle Rock made the announcement on the Back 4 Blood Discord, first spotted by Eurogamer.

    "We do not have plans to have a campaign versus mode at this time,” Turtle Rock said.

    There’s a few distinctions to be made here: Back 4 Blood will feature a versus mode that’s smaller in scope, letting two teams duke it out as either Cleaners (humans) or the Ridden (zombies). Left 4 Dead’s campaign versus mode let players try to make it through a lengthy campaign level as either a human or zombie, ending at a safe house. Turtle Rock Studios did promote Back 4 Blood’s versus mode in behind-the-scenes footage, but didn’t claim it would be identical to Left 4 Dead’s.

    When asked why the feature wasn’t in Back 4 Blood, Turtle Rock co-founder and design director Chris Ashton said. “We have a lot of defensive equipment and our specials are good at ambushing. Defending worked far better for our game than running from A-B.”

    Some players expressed a large sense of disappointment on the Back 4 Blood subreddit, while others defended Turtle Rock and blamed fellow fans for unrealistic expectations. Despite the negative reception, Back 4 Blood’s beta is performing admirably on Steam, reaching heights of 100,000 concurrent players.

    You can read IGN’s thoughts on the Back 4 Blood beta, including our impressions of the new Swarm mode. You can also check out gameplay from Back 4 Blood's first act missions including Blue Dog Hollow: The Sound of Thunder and The Devil's Return: The Crossing. Here's how to access the Back 4 Blood beta if you want to hop in and murder some zombies.

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

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    Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Rumored To Be Revealed Later This Year

    Rumors that Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is in development are picking up steam, with an announcement possibly due before the end of the year.

    According to a new report by Fanbyte, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 was set to be revealed earlier this year, but as with many other games it has reportedly been hampered by issues related to the pandemic.

    Monolith Soft has also reportedly had difficulties optimizing the game for Nintendo Switch. It is said to be aiming for more character models on screen than any game in the series to date.

    The rumors are supported by earlier comments by voice actress Jenna Coleman, who plays Antiqua in the original Xenoblade Chronicles. In a video first released back in June, she talked about how she first got the role, and hinted that a third game might be in development.

    "It was through my voiceover agent and I did it… god, when was the first game? Ten years ago? It was a long time ago," Coleman said. "I did it pre-Doctor Who days and then when they did the second one, they asked me to come back."

    "And I think they're going to do another,” she added. "Common knowledge? Don't know… Yeah I think they're going to do another… Not sure if I'm allowed to say that."

    First released in 2010, Xenoblade Chronicles has found success over the past decade as one of Nintendo's flagship RPGs. A sequel was released shortly after the launch of the Nintendo Switch, with a Definitive Edition remaster launching last year.

    The Definitive Edition's Future Connected DLC heavily hinted at the possibility of a sequel. According to Fanbyte, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is unlikely to make its original 2021 target, but it could arrive in the first half of 2022.

    Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN.

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    Morbius Director May Have Just Spoiled a Tom Hardy Cameo

    The director for Morbius might have spoiled a cameo that would further connect the movie to other films in Sony's version of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

    This news comes by way of The Direct, which translated an interview MovieZine conducted with Morbius director Daniel Espinosa. In the interview, Espinosa appears to reveal a potential cameo by Tom Hardy, who plays Eddie Brock in the Venom films.

    "It usually feels strange before the day begins, when you look at the schedule and stand on the set yourself," Espinosa said. "When you walk around there, the recording looks just like a Swedish production, but then when you look at the schedule and read names like Michael Keaton, Jared Leto, Tom Hardy, then it feels cool and very exciting."

    As you can see in Espinosa's quote above, the director might have let a certain name slip that was previously unknown to audiences. We did already know about Michael Keaton – he's in the trailer after all, presumably reprising his role as Adrian Toomes, aka Vulture, from the MCU — but what we didn't know was that Hardy was going to make an appearance.

    It seems Hardy's Eddie Brock is set to make an appearance in Morbius. Now, the question is whether or not his more symbiotic side makes an appearance. It's not like Espinosa's schedule would say "Venom" instead of "Tom Hardy" if Venom was set to make an appearance.

    Of course, there's always the possibility that Espinosa accidentally slipped up and said a name that wasn't actually on the schedule. Maybe he had just watched the latest trailer for Venom: Let There Be Carnage. Maybe Hardy actually will be in Morbius. It would certainly make sense, at least, considering Morbius and the Venom movies take place in the same universe.

    Hardy plays both Eddie Brock and Venom so only time will tell if we'll see just one of those characters or both when Morbius is released on January 28, 2022.

    While waiting to see if Hardy is in Morbius or not, read about why the movie was recently delayed and then check out IGN's list of every Spider-Man movie in development. Read about how Sony and Netflix have struck a deal for upcoming streaming rights after that.

    Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

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    New Super Mario Movie Could Bring Back One Of Nintendo’s Most Obscure Characters

    Illumination’s upcoming Super Mario Bros. movie is bringing back one of the Mushroom Kingdom’s most obscure characters: Foreman Spike from 1995’s NES and arcade game Wrecking Crew.

    First reported by VGC, comedian Sebastian Maniscalco appeared on fellow comedian Bert Kreischer’s podcast (yes, of the shirtless stand-up fame) and claimed he was voicing Mario's little-known boss in Illumination’s CG film.

    “I’m in the movie Super Mario Bros., an animated movie,” Maniscalco said. “I’m playing Spike, their boss.”

    Spike first appeared as the foreman of Mario in 1985’s Wrecking Crew, serving as an antagonist of sorts to the lowly plumber, as pointed out by Twitter user @eponge2L.

    Spike also appeared in the 1998 Japan-only sequel Wrecking Crew ‘98 for the Super Famicom.

    Maniscalco has worked as a stand-up comedian since 1998, releasing five comedy specials throughout the years. He’s more recently transitioned to sizeable acting roles, including Italian mobster “Crazy” Joe Gallo in Martin Scorcese’s The Irishman and a supporting role in Green Book.

    If Maniscalco’s comment is true, it’s the first bit of casting info for Illumination’s take on the Mushroom Kingdom. Further details are still scarce, even with the film being revealed in early 2018. All we know thus far is that Nintendo and Illumination are targeting a 2022 release date, though it’s possible the COVID-19 pandemic has shifted expectations. Universal and Nintendo are co-producing the project, with Universal being responsible for the film’s distribution.

    Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto commented back in early 2020 on why now was a good time for another Mario film.

    More recently, Nintendo has added Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri to its board of directors in order to help with future Nintendo films.

    Illumination is the studio behind CG films like Despicable Me, The Life of Pets, and 2018's The Grinch.

    Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/despicable person for IGN.

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