The Best Deals Today: Gears of War: E-Day, Apple Watch Ultra 4, Star Wars Zero Company, and More

A new weekend has arrived, and today, you can save big on Gears of War: E-Day, Apple Watch Ultra 4, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Persona 3 Reload, Pikmin 4, Star Wars Zero Company, and more. Check out our top picks for Sunday, November 1, below.

Gears of War: E-Day for $60.99

Gears of War: E-Day is one of the best games of the year, and today, you can save a few dollars on a physical Xbox copy at Amazon. We gave the game a 9/10 in our review, writing, "Gears of War: E-Day’s stellar story campaign is complemented by an excellent multiplayer suite, particularly its evolved Horde Siege PvE mode."

Save $100 Off Apple Watch Ultra 4

Amazon has the Apple Watch Ultra 4 smartwatch on sale for $799.99 this weekend. This saves you $100 off MSRP. You'll get the Black Titanium Case and the Black Titanium Milanese Loop with this watch, which can easily complement any outfit. If you've been on the hunt for a new smartwatch, the Ultra 4 is one of the best you can buy.

Save $10 off Ocarina of Time Remake Physical Copies

Similar to previous Nintendo Switch 2 physical releases, Amazon has The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time available for $59.99 right now. This deal will end on release date, meaning this is the last weekend you have to score this deal. If you've yet to experience this masterpiece or are diving back into Hyrule, the Ocarina of Time remake is sure to be one of the most talked-about games of 2026.

Pikmin 4 for $39.88

Walmart has digital copies of Pikmin 4 for Nintendo Switch on sale for $39.88 today. This is just in time before next week's release of Pikmin 4 – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Dandori Academy. If you grab a copy today, you'll be able to score the Switch 2 upgrade pack for $9.99. That beats paying $70 for a copy any day.

Dune: Awakening for $39.99

Physical PS5 copies of Dune: Awakening are on sale for $39.99 right now at Amazon. This is the perfect time to jump in, especially with Dune: Part Three just a few months away. In our 8/10 review, we wrote, "Dune: Awakening is an excellent survival MMO that captures Frank Herbet’s sci-fi world incredibly well, mostly to its advantage and occasionally to its detriment. The survival climb from dehydrated peasant to powerful warlord of Arrakis is a joy almost every step of the way, and the story and worldbuilding filled this nerd with absolute joy."

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 + Expansion Pass Bundle for $39.94

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is one of my favorite games of all time. The expansive world, gripping narrative, incredible cast, and spectacular soundtrack are just a few of the things you can look forward to in this adventure. Walmart has a digital bundle of both the base game and the Expansion Pass (which includes Torna: The Golden Country) on sale for $39.94. If you have a Switch 2, you can then upgrade your copy to the Switch 2 Edition for $10, which adds 4K and 60 FPS support. I cannot recommend this one enough, especially if you're a fan of JRPGs.

Persona 3 Reload (Switch 2) for $24.99

Persona 3 Reload Switch 2 copies are available at Amazon for $24.99 this weekend. This is a pretty great price for an expansive RPG that you can easily sink 100 hours into. The Switch 2 version had a rocky launch with frame pacing issues, but those have been resolved. Atlus also did add support for 60 FPS in docked mode.

Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail Art Book for $19.18

Amazon has the Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail - The Art of Succession -Relics of Heritage- art book on sale for $19.18 today. This book includes over 300 pages of art from Dawntrail, and you can even score a exclusive code for a Wind-up Erenville minion in-game!

Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake for $19.99

Maybe I'm just a fan of classic JRPGs, but Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake is still one of my favorite RPGs released in the last few years. Square Enix beautifully remade this classic with the HD-2D art style that breathes new life into the adventure of Erdrick. Numerous quality-of-life features make this a game that's much more digestible than ever for genre newcomers, and the orchestrated soundtrack is a treat, too. Pick up a PS5 copy today for just $19.99.

Star Wars Zero Company for $47.97

Star Wars Zero Company is one of the biggest sleeper hits of the year, and you can save $12 off a physical copy today at Amazon. In our 9/10 review, we wrote, "Star Wars Zero Company is an excellent tactical game that does a fantastic job of slathering on the same cinematic look and feel we saw in Respawn's Star Wars Jedi games, incorporating strong characters and a storyline that's refreshingly centered on non-Force users and a non-traditional villain."

Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter for $39.99

Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is the first entry in the beloved Trails series, and last year's remake brought new life to the original game. With 2nd Chapter out now, today is a great time to dive into this wonderful RPG series.

Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Complete for $15.39

It's been 21 years since the original release of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. This 4K Remaster of the Complete edition packs in multiple bonus features, in addition to the revised cuts and over 25 minutes of added content throughout the movie. Advent Children is a critical piece in the Final Fantasy VII Remake project, and there's never been a better time to check it out.

Save on Mouse: P.I. For Hire Physical Copies

Amazon has Mouse: P.I. For Hire copies on sale for $24.99 this weekend. This was one of the most anticipated games of the year, with its 1930s cartoon-aesthetic very eye-catching. In our review, we wrote, "Mouse: P.I. for Hire nails the aesthetics of both the 1930s cartoons and the detective stories that inspired it, and it’s also an amusing boomer shooter that largely feels good as you’re playing it."

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Hoyoverse’s Cozy Sim Petit Planet Coming to Nintendo Switch 2 in 2027

Rejoice, Nintendo Switch 2 owners with a taste for the cozy, because Hoyoverse, the studio behind Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail, is bringing its new intergalactic life sim Petit Planet to Nintendo Switch 2 in 2027. The free-to-play game is already releasing on PC, iOS, and Android on December 4, 2026, but it never hurts to have more cute and cozy content on your Switch.

The news came as part of a special update on the game from Hoyoverse, which also gave us a deep dive into some of the Petit Planet neighbors you can encounter, the home decor features, and some of the mini-games available as you live your life in Starsea. You start out taking care of your own planet, but can then explore the little islands in the skies around Starsea or visit the hub-style Galactic Bazaar for things like in-game auctions and community features.

Petit Planet was announced back in September 2025, and IGN got to play it a few months later, with our writer describing it as Animal Crossing meets The Little Prince.

"In my short time of about five hours with a preview of the closed beta, Petit Planet offered a charming, "The Little Prince"-themed take on Animal Crossing: New Horizons with an emphasis on clear progression and multiplayer. While these are two things some seemed to crave and were left empty in ACNH, the Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail studio may offer an answer – with potential caveats."

The special update also revealed a bunch of chances for players to score pre-registration prizes as well as a "Launch a Planet" event on the game's official website that starts today.

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Anthropic Blocks AI Game Clones in Claude Opus Update

Anthropic has issued an update for Claude that puts a stop to the AI-generated game clones that have filled platforms like Steam.

The term 'AI slop' is something we've heard a lot in the past few years, but it became especially prevalent in the gaming community after Valve launched Steam Next Fest earlier this month. PC users quickly launched complaints that their feeds had been filled with low-effort clones not only of pre-existing games but even some titles that had only just released their own demos.

As players trudged through the slop, developers faced a reality that threw months or even years of hard work into jeopardy. Some, including Drunken Goddess Reflux developer Alliance Arts and Who You, even took action by canceling their Steam demo plans in favor of private playtests. It's a situation that rapidly spun out of control, prompting a response from Valve itself as it said it would be "thinking about how to solve this problem."

ANTHROPIC IS CRACKING DOWN ON VIDEO GAME REWRITES 🚨

Claude Code picked up a new rule around Oct 27, sent from Anthropic’s servers under a flag called "tengu_heron_brook". There’s no setting to turn it off.

The full rule: “Do build original games, games in a genre, and games from the user’s own designs and assets. Don’t build a recreation of a specific existing game, even if it is renamed or called original.”

Is this the end of game rewrites, modding and everything in between?

— chasm (@chasmmmmmmmmmmm) October 30, 2026

As reported by Game Developer, X/Twitter user Chasm was one of the first to share evidence of tech company Anthropic taking action against video game copycats. Based on their findings, Claude, the company's AI assistant, recently received an update featuring a new rule. The full rule can be read below:

"Do build original games, games in a genre, and games from the user’s own designs and assets. Don’t build a recreation of a specific existing game, even if it is renamed or called original."

When reached for comment by Game Developer, Anthropic pointed to a post shared by Addy Osmani, a member of its technical staff. Osmani's explanation can be read below:

"We added two sentences to Claude Code's prompt on Opus 5.5 to steer it away from recreating someone else's specific game because using Claude to infringe IP is against our usage policy. Original games, genre games, and games built from your own designs and assets are meant to keep working. We'll continue to iterate to ensure we're striking the right balance. In the meantime, if Claude turns down something that's yours, send it my way."

Whether there was a specific event or reason that prompted Anthropic to make these changes is unclear.

Game developers and game enjoyers will no doubt find comfort in Anthropic's changes, though it's worth noting that how impactful any of this will be remains to be seen. At the very least, those who use Claude to rip ideas directly from those who used their minds and time to bring them to life should have a tougher time trying to profit off of the work of others.

The industry is struggling to come to grips with artificial intelligence. Some, such as Epic Games' Tim Sweeney, have insisted that Valve should stray from asking developers to disclose games utilizing generative AI materials. Others, including Super Smash Bros. mastermind Masahiro Sakurai, have compared AI-generated games to "low-quality goods." The developers behind VRChat, meanwhile, recently came under fire for how they are handling AI content.

Getty Images credit: Kenneth Cheung.

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Persona 1 Remake Footage Seemingly Leaks Online

What appears to be gameplay footage from an unannounced Persona 1 remake has leaked online.

A little less than two minutes of video depicting what looks a lot like a modern version of Sega and Atlus' original Persona game was first published on Reddit before being spread around various social media platforms today. The developers behind the RPG franchise have broached the topic of remakes for early installments in the past but never confirmed work was underway, meaning this could be our first look at the series' next remake.

The original post says the footage is tied to a Persona: Be Your True Mind remake. In the age of AI-generated fakes, you can never be too skeptical about things like this, but fans generally seem to be under the impression that the footage is authentic. We won't share it here, but you don't have to look too hard on places like X/Twitter or YouTube to see what everyone's talking about.

Yea that Persona 1 remake leaked footage gotta be 100% real. I refuse to believe someone would do that much work to make a fake leak.

— Johnny 🔥 (@JohnnyLockson) October 31, 2026

There are a few reasons players suspect this to be our first glimpse at a not-so-secret Persona 1 remake from Atlus. Aside from the music, effects, and art, which all fall right in line with much of the studio's recent work, the video on display is much longer and more detailed than any fake leak would typically be. The smoking gun for many, though, is the character animations.

It's specifically Eriko that people are calling out, as she seems to share a summoning animation with Persona 4 Revival's version of Yukiko. Atlus' Persona 4 remake, of course, won't be out until February 18, 2027. There's also the issue of the appearance of Persona 2 protagonist Tatsuya, who seems to be standing in for what may be an unfinished character model.

So, what can we make of all of this? Well, unfortunately, without confirmation from Sega or Atlus, not much. There is always the chance this could be an elaborate fake, with some of these odd details serving as evidence for that argument. On the other hand, it's possible placeholder assets and familiar animations are here specifically because the alleged Persona 1 remake is still very much in development.

Persona 1 leak looks credible, not sure why people are reporting Tatsuya is replacing Masao, that's just complete bogus.

This is most likely an internal investor pitch for remakes of Persona 1 and 2, and not actually Persona 1.

There are Persona 4 Revival animations in the gameplay footage, which definitely helps the case of it being real.

— MeovvCAT (@osu_MeovvCAT) October 31, 2026

That sure is a persona 1 remake trailer. Why is tatsuya there

— julie (@droolvana) October 31, 2026

We don't know when this footage would have been captured, even if it does turn out to be real. That means this could be from yesterday or years ago, with some speculating that the video we've seen today is little more than a proof-of-concept or pitch video.

IGN has reached out to Sega for comment.

If the Persona: Be Your True Mind remake footage is authentic, it wouldn't be the biggest surprise to see it announced. Sega released its Persona 3 remake, Persona 3 Reload, in 2024, and will release Persona 4 Revival in just a few months. Atlus' P-Studio producer, Kazuhisa Wada, stopped short of confirming development for Persona 1 and 2 remakes in August of this year but still admitted that, as far as he's concerned, it's something "we have to do."

Meanwhile, Atlus has absolutely suffered leaks before. The Persona 3 remake had in-development footage questioned by fans when it showed up online back in 2023. The upcoming Persona 6, which, officially, we've seen little of so far, had images leak in June. A massive Steam leak in September then seemingly revealed a list of trophies – including story spoilers – for the upcoming installment.

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Joe Manganiello Says He 'Will Never Give Up Hope' on His D&D Dragonlance TV Series

Joe Manganiello, one of the most famous Dungeons & Dragons players in Hollywood, said he still wants his Dragonlance TV series to come to fruition despite its cancellation several years ago.

The Justice League and One Piece actor was hired as showrunner and screenwriter on the show years ago, promising a live-action adaptation of one of the stories that helped introduce him to tabletop role-playing. After a series of snags, though, Manganiello eventually went on to confirm that his live-action Dragonlance would no longer come to be.

IGN asked Manganiello about his ill-fated D&D project during a conversation at Lucca Comics and Games 2026. He walked us through how, after five years of work, things fell apart, while also teasing that the door for a Dragonlance TV show – and even his documentary – will never close.

"When both of those got put on the shelf due to a change of leadership – due to shuffling going on within [Entertainment One] – those projects became nobody's child," he explained. "I mean, I was hired by Michael Lombardo, who was my old boss at HBO. He hired me to create a television show, to create the next Game of Thrones for him, but then he was gone.

"He's my guy. He's the guy who understood my pitch. He's the one who believed in me. He's the one who saw what it could be, and he's gone. And then, my other producing partner, he was gone, too. So, the two people that I was there with are gone, and the people there had different ideas. All of a sudden, those things become the priority as I'm turning in my script. Now, my people aren't there. Same with the documentary."

Manganiello went on to say that, as his hands-on time in the D&D universe began to fall apart, he had "nobody helping to fight with" him to bring then-in-development projects to life. With Dragonlance officially confirmed to be canned in 2024, it was around this time the actor thought "OK, I'm out," but as he told us, "there is new hope."

"[President of Wizards of the Coast & Hasbro Digital Games] Dan Ayoub is a fantastic leader. He gets it, and we work really well together," he continued. "I think there are talented people within the building now that are doing some amazing things, and we're going to do some amazing things together.

"The dream was always, always to be off running a Dragonlance series, and I will never give up hope on that. And I think there's a lot of people that share that vision. I think the documentary with Danny Ayoub is actually going to be closer to getting out as well."

That's two big updates on two D&D projects that many fans believed were destined to never see the light of day. Still, as the pieces move into place on the board behind the scenes, it's best not to get hopes up too high until Manganiello and the rest of his team have more to announce. For example, Ayoub took up his position as president just four days ago after previously serving as senior vice president of Dungeons & Dragons. It's unclear how this title change may have affected any plans Manganiello mentioned during our interview.

The world of Dungeons & Dragons is trying to come to the live-action world in more ways than one. After a movie adaptation, Honor Among Thieves, launched to critical success and lackluster commercial response in 2023, we've still yet to see a sequel. There is allegedly a second script floating around somewhere, but whether it will leap off the page remains to be seen. For more on Manganiello, you can read about what he had to share from his time working as Deathstroke on Ben Affleck's canceled Batman movie.

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Struggling To Buy Magic’s Foundations Commander Decks? Wizards Confirms Reprints Are Likely

Magic’s new sets are great, but one of the most impressive (and surprising) products of the year has been the Foundations Commander decks.

The five mono-colored preconstructed offerings have just started to sneak back down closer to MSRP, but with markups across the board and some (usually the mono-green Tramplesaurus Rex deck) still hard to find, we reached out to Wizards of the Coast to confirm what the state of play with additional printings would be.

Foundations Commander Decks To Be Evergreen

Brandon Kreines, game producer on Magic: The Gathering at Wizards of the Coast, had good news for fans looking to grab each of the precons.

“The new Foundations Commander Decks are definitely intended to be an evergreen offering,” Kreines explained.

“We can’t commit to specifics, but if players are as excited about these decks as we are, they should expect to see them get reprinted so they can be used as an introduction point into Commander.”

That’s good news for just about everyone. After all, if you want to get into Commander, you’ll want to do it for MSRP where possible, and while some decks have been marked up to over double what they should cost, more printings will mean a drop in price.

It’s also worth considering that there are no new cards in any of these decks. As a starter product, they offer a cohesive game plan in your color choice, but the more they’re printed, the more resellers will need to look elsewhere for their margins.

As we said back when these were announced, Starter Decks for Commander are not a new notion, but they’ve not been printed in so long that those ones climbed in price in the years since. If a reprint is coming, then we can likely expect more new players to the hobby which, in turn, benefits all of us.

For more on Magic: The Gathering, be sure to check out Reality Fracture’s most expensive cards, as well as all we know about the Warhammer 40K Commander decks seeing a reprint at long last.

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Apex Legends Update Lets You Dual Wield the Wingman, Brings Back Lifeline Revive Shield

Apex Legends: Cipher is coming on November 3 and it’s bringing a new weapon style that makes me scared. The Wingman is a semi-automatic revolver that utilizes Sniper Ammo, and it’s been the bane of my existence since Apex Legends launched.

Some people are absolutely cracked with the Wingman. And now they’ll be able to use two at once. Cipher introduces Akimbo Wingman, which trades off some of the accuracy for big(ger) damage.

The Wingman has wavered a bit in recent seasons and sits as the 19th most effective weapon in DPS terms, but it’s still deadly in accurate hands, across basically any distance. It’s two-to-four headshots for a Wingman kill depending on the armor they’re wearing, which is what makes it so deadly in the right hands.

The Akimbo Wingman will push players in closer to barrel stuff your face. It’s going to be interesting to see where the weapon ends up with this new option — famously, the Akimbo Mozambique was famously nerfed quickly after it went from a barely used gun to the game’s dominant weapon.

On top of the dual revolvers, Crypto is getting a rework dubbed Crypto Rewired, which sees him role switch from a drone-camping git to a push-forward intel machine. His Surveillance Drone now runs on batteries instead of a cooldown, meaning it can be picked up and redeployed without a long wait, along with a new Sentry Mode that tags enemies on sight. On top of that, his EMP Ultimate can now be deployed with the press of a button.

Cipher also introduces Strongholds, which Respawn is calling the “evolution of care packages.” To access them you have to raid the Stronghold to haul out crate weapons, corrupted attachments, and EVO shield boosts for the squad. It’s a timely endeavour, and nearby enemies will hear the alarm.

Revenant and Lifeline are also getting buffs. For Rev, there’s a shorter Ult cooldown and faster Tactical, as well as new upgrades that allow him to extend his Ult with each knock. Another upgrade lets him Silence players with Shadow Pounce.

Lifeline is getting a reduced drone cooldown, self-healing while gliding, an Ult cooldown reduction, and improved flight mobility. On top of that, Respawn is bringing back her revive shield.

Elsewhere there are new Ranked updates, with Legend Bans in Diamond lobbies and above. Players vote to ban certain Legends, and the ones with the most votes can’t be picked for the match.

Apex Legends: Cipher launches November 3.

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