Gaming

The developers of The Simpsons: Hit & Run finally sat down to discuss why the cult classic open-world game never got a sequel, and honestly, it sounds like they’re just as confused as fans.

Programmers Cary Brisebois and Greg Mayer, producer Steve Bocska, designer Darren Evenson, executive producer John Melchior and designer-writer Chris Mitchell dove into the details of what happened in a call with reporter Ben Hanson. A three-minute clip of the interview was posted November 20 on the MinnMax YouTube channel.

As it turns out, a follow-up game was in the works by Radical Entertainment, the developers revealed. But when asked about the rationale behind the decision to halt production on the sequel, Melchior said, “I don’t know.”

“It was a five game deal for less money than I think Vivendi paid for the first game,” Melchior continued, detailing how his boss at the time was similarly befuddled by the game being tabled. “He was just like, ‘I don’t understand. I gave it to you on a silver platter, why aren’t you just saying yes and doing these games?’ It was just a really bizarre decision. I’ll never understand it. Most people on the production level never understood it.”

The original game — also developed by Radical Entertainment — was released by Vivendi Universal Games in 2003. As word of an alien conspiracy breaks out in Springfield, players can participate in a variety of quests to investigate the series of strange events that unfold. And as fans of The Simpsons: Hit & Run know well, one of the most iconic features is the game’s Grand Theft Auto-inspired racing missions.

The plan for the sequel was to expand on players’ driving capabilities by allowing them to tow objects from vehicles. Mayer even created a prototype for the new feature prior to the game’s disbandment.

This prototype, a Powerpoint presentation and a couple of assets were the extent of the work that had been done on the new game by the time the news broke that the project was being cancelled. Even the plot had yet to be fleshed out, Mitchell admitted: “It was all over the map.”

“In those early days, kind of everybody just imagines what they want, so I’m sure there were 12 competing storylines at that point,” Mitchell went on. “Who knows what the final story would have been?”

Back then, the possibility of the game not reaching fruition was unthinkable — especially with four more potential games on the horizon, the developers agreed: “This was going to be a franchise, no doubt in anybody’s mind,” Melchior said.

“It was a no-brainer; it was like, well of course we’re going to be doing this,” Evenson added. “The stars are aligned, we’re treading down this path. And then it was just like a, ‘Huh, I guess we’re not.'”

Melchior credits Vivendi failing to obtain a license for the video game rights to The Simpsons as one of the primary factors in the sequel game’s downfall. By the same token, the executive producer pointed out that Vivendi was able to secure the rights to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, a similarly popular franchise, without issue.

EA signed a contract for the video game rights to The Simpsons in 2005, but the last time the publisher released a game based on the series was in 2007.

“It was sad because there was no momentum loss between the shipping of this game and the work being done on the sequel,” Melchior mourned.

So there you have it; it looks like a sequel to The Simpsons: Hit & Run is officially ruled out as long as EA retains the rights to the franchise. But at least we can still keep hoping for a remaster of the original.

Katie Reul is a freelance writer at IGN.

Amazon is offering one of the best subscription deals we’re going to see for Black Friday and the holiday season. First time Audible subscribers can get 4 months of Audible Premium Plus membership for only $5.95 per month. That adds up to $23.80. You also get a free $20 credit that’s good for any audiobook at Audible, which means you actually only end up paying about $4 for your entire 4 month subscription. If you’re not sure whether or not you’re eligible, simply click on the link; if you see the promo then you’re eligible and if you don’t then you’re not. This deal ends on Cyber Monday, November 27, so you better hurry!

4 Months of Audible Premium Plus + $20 Audible Credit for $23.80

Amazon Prime Exclusive

3-Months of Audible Premium Plus for Free

New members only. Log into your Amazon Prime account to see this deal.

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Audible is a subscription service that gives you access to hundreds of thousands of the best audiobooks without ever having to purchase them. There are two paid membership plans: the lower tier Audible Plus ($7.95/mo) and the higher tier Audible Premium Plus ($14.95/mo). The biggest difference between the two is the size of the audiobook library. Whereas Audible Plus only lets you listen to a selection of about 10,000 audiobooks, the Audible Premium Plus plan gives you access to a whopping 500,000 audiobooks. These include all-time classics like Harry Potter, Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire), Witcher, The Sandman Series, The Lord of the Rings, Brandon Sanderson’s The Stormlight Archives, Mistborn, and much more.

Although the seriously expanded library is the main draw of the Audible Premium Plus membership, there are some other nice perks as well. Every month Premium Plus members get to pick one audiobook to keep in their library indefinitely, even after the membership expires. Also, Premium Plus members can get 30% off any additional audiobooks they wish to purchase, in addition to exclusive limited-time discounts.

On a regular day, new subscribers are eligible for a 30-day free trial of either Audible membership. But why settle for one month when you can get four months? If you were planning to purchase a couple of audiobooks anyway, then it makes more sense to jump on this deal and enjoy the subscription at least for a little while.

Looking for more Black Friday deals like this? Check out our guide to Amazon Black Friday deals.

Early Black Friday deals have officially kicked off in the UK, with Amazon leading the charge with some tremendous discounts. In case you are confused, yes Black Friday is officially on November 24 this year, but everyone thought it would be a good idea to extend these deals out even further. So, in 2023, all the Black Friday sale offers you will be seeing are likely running from November 17-27 (live right now!).

For now, here’s all the best Black Friday deals we could find online, including some stellar gaming and tech deals, a PS5 for just £379, Fire TV Sticks for £24.99, Apple AirPods for £199, one of the best airfryers for £179, and plenty more to consider as well. Happy shopping, and if you’re looking for more deals, check back in with us here or follow @IGNUKDeals on Twitter/X. For US sales, check our Amazon deals breakdown here.

TL;DR – Best Black Friday Deals in the UK

Black Friday: Best PlayStation 5 Deals

Black Friday Deal

PS5 Spider-Man 2 + Free Game Bundle

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Black Friday Deal

Crucial P5 Plus 2TB Gaming SSD w/ Heatsink

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PS5 is getting special treatment as Sony is officially going live with all their deals today. So, Xbox and Nintendo fans, don’t feel disheartened if they’re getting a little bit of special treatment right now — the deals are pretty amazing. For starters we’ve got the PS5 for £379, or the PS5 bundles including two free games for £400; unbelievable jeff.

There’s also a PS5 2TB SSD for less than £100 to maximise that storage, and a DualSense controller for just £39.99. PS Plus is also up to 30% off right now for new and current members, but you can save even more with a ShopTo gift card deal. For example, new members can get 12-months of PS Plus for £83.99 (down from £99.99), but the ShopTo £84 gift card costs just £74.85 so you’re securing a total saving of £25.14.

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Black Friday: Best Apple Deals

Black Friday Deal

Apple Watch SE (2nd gen) – (GPS + Cellular, 40mm)

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Apple is another one of those brands where to can 100% expect their products to be on sale during big events like Black Friday, and this year has not disapointed either. You can currently secure a set of Apple AirPods Pro (2nd Gen) with MagSafe Case for just £199. There’s also the Apple Watch SE for just £199 as well, down from £289 at Amazon.

Black Friday: Best Amazon Device Deals

Black Friday Deal

Amazon Fire TV 55-inch 4-series 4K UHD smart TV

For Prime Members: request an invite to access the discount.

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Amazon device deals are like death and taxes, you can’t avoid them. Every single sale you’re going to see thes beauties get a mega discount, and honestly you’re a fool if you buy them at any other time of year. Fire TV Sticks have secured an amazing new model and the 4K stick now includes Wi-Fi 6 support — it’s down to £34.99 right now and is the perfect streaming device. Echo Dot is also down to £21.99 which is one of its best price ever, so snap these up ASAP.

Black Friday: Meta Quest 2 + £50 Amazon Voucher for Just £249

Black Friday Deal

Meta Quest 2 VR Headset + £50 Amazon Voucher

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The Meta Quest 3 makes this deal look a little less spectacular, but let me tell you how popular these were the past two years — that this deal would sell out within the hour. It likely won’t be the same this year, but this is still a marvellous deal and essentially a brilliant VR headset (everything built in) for just £199 if you’re using the £50 voucher to buy other stuff this Black Friday. I love this deal, and I also think this would make a wonderful gift for any budding young gamers out there this Christmas.

Black Friday: Most Popular Airfryer Is Back on Sale (For Now)

Black Friday Deal

Ninja Foodi Dual Zone Air Fryer MAX

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Black Friday Deal

Ninja Foodi MAX Dual Zone Digital Air Fryer

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Let’s be honest, we all love our airfryers. These beauties have taken the UK by storm, and for good reason. If you haven’t yet jumped on the bandwagon, or if you’re looking for an upgrade or the perfect gift — then I’ve got a sweet deal to show you. Ninja Foodi Dual Zone Air Fryer Max always sells out when it gets a big discount like this during the sales, and right now this is down to just £179.99 at Amazon (was £269.99). That’s some big savings, and one of the best airfryer deals you’ll find between now and Black Friday on November 24.

Black Friday: Best Xbox Deals

While the deals haven’t truely kicked off just yet for Xbox, we’re already seeing some rather lovely deals to consider. There’s some Xbox Series X bundles that you should seriously be considering, or if you’re looking to upgrade your storage, you can also get a WD Black 1TB Expansion Card for just £129.99 right now from Amazon. More Xbox deals are on the way, however, so if you’re looking for more ensure you check back in with us or follow @IGNUKDeals on Twitter for more updates.

Robert Anderson is a deals expert and Commerce Editor for IGN. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter.

Believe it or not, Black Friday deals are already in full swing at several of the big retailers. If video game Black Friday deals are what you’re after, you’ve come to the right place. While we’ve already broken them out by platform in other articles, you can find all of the deals gathered together below. That might be handy if you own multiple a PS5 and a Nintendo Switch, for instance.

Shortcuts

PS5 Deals

There are plenty of PS5 Black Friday deals available at all the major retailers.

PS5 Console Deals

Early Black Friday Deal

PS5 Spider-Man 2 Bundle (Slim Model)

1TB SSD Storage and Spider-Man 2 for free.

See on Amazon

Early Black Friday Deal

PS5 Call of Duty Modern Warfare III Bundle (Slim Model)

1TB SSD Storage and Modern Warfare III for free.

See on Amazon

This is the new slim PS5 model, and it comes with a free game, either Spider-Man 2 or Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

PS5 Game Deals

PS5 Controller Deals

Early Black Friday Deal

DualSense Controller – Cobalt Blue

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Early Black Friday Deal

DualSense Controller – Volcanic Red

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Early Black Friday Deal

DualSense Controller – Midnight Black

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Early Black Friday Deal

DualSense Controller – Galactic Purple

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More PlayStation Deals

PS5 Compatible

Crucial P5 Plus 2TB PCIe Gen4 M.2 SSD (7300MBps) with Heatsink

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PS5 Compatible

Nextorage Japan 2TB PCIe Gen4 M.2 SSD (7300MBps) with Heatsink

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PS5 Compatible

WD Black SN850X 4TB PCIe Gen4 M.2 SSD (7300MBps)

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Nintendo Switch Deals

If you’re in the Mario camp, you’ll probably want to know what Nintendo Switch Black Friday deals are available. Quite a few, as it turns out.

Nintendo Switch Console Deals

Nintendo Switch Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Bundle

Includes Switch console, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (digital), and 3 months individual Nintendo Switch Online.

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Nintendo Switch Game Deals

Amazon

Best Buy

Xbox Deals

Xbox Series X and S Console Deals

These are some of the best deals we’ve ever seen on Xbox Series X and Series S.

Xbox Controller Deals

Black Friday Deal

Xbox Wireless Controller – Stellar Shift Special Edition

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Black Friday Deal

Xbox Wireless Controller – Astral Purple

See on Amazon

You won’t find better prices on Xbox controllers any other time of the year. If you want another player or two to join you for local co-op or competition, this is the time to stock up.

Xbox Game Deals

Amazon

Best Buy

Whether you have a Series X or Series S (or are in the market for one), you can find some terrific Xbox Black Friday deals at various retailers.

It seems that each year, Amazon’s Black Friday sale has begun going. Best Buy’s Black Friday sale is basically in full force. Walmart’s Black Friday sale will begin soon.

Chris Reed is a commerce editor and deals expert for IGN. He also runs IGN’s board game and LEGO coverage. You can follow him on Threads.

Kingdom Hearts’ 21st anniversary in the U.S. has passed, and Kingdom Hearts 4 still won’t be out until next year at the earliest. You could play every Kingdom Hearts game to hold you over, but here we’re exploring six recommendations for games outside of the franchise that share gameplay and/or thematic elements with Kingdom Hearts.

Kingdom Hearts thrives on action-based combat, with each game employing different gameplay techniques than the last. Likewise, these games outside of the series, whether they’re published by Square Enix or not, have wild combat mechanics for players to experiment with and themes such as the power of friendship, the nature of memories, self-determination, emotional health, self-acceptance, and partaking in a cause greater than oneself — themes that are similar to the Disney-Square Enix franchise, no matter what circumstances the characters are facing. Here are six games that may be of interest to fans of the Kingdom Hearts series.

Final Fantasy VII Remake

The Kingdom Hearts franchise wouldn’t be where it is today were it not for Final Fantasy — specifically, Final Fantasy VII.

Released at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Final Fantasy 7 Remake centers on ex-SOLDIER Cloud Strife working as a mercenary for the eco-terrorist group Avalanche. Per the request of his childhood friend Tifa Lockheart, Cloud must stop Shinra Electric Power Company from usurping the planet of Mako, its life source, for profit. The gameplay involves spell-casting, party-based combat, and an improved Active Time Battle (ATB) that enables the use of special attacks, magic, and items. It’s got everything a Kingdom Hearts fan could want, plus additions to certain characters’ lores.

The World Ends With You

The World of Ends With You is the goth/emo cousin of Kingdom Hearts. The Nintendo DS RPG was created by Square Enix in collaboration with Jupiter, the developer behind Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, and the characters were designed with a cocktail of alternative and Y2K coolness by Kingdom Hearts creator Tetsuya Nomura. The plot involves anti-social Shibuya teen, Neku Sakuraba and his deceased peers being forced to play the Reapers’ Game over the course of a week (or more) to determine whether they should come back to life or transcend to a higher plane of spiritual existence.

Each mission has a time limit, but it’s not linked to the passage of time for the player, and certain sections are closed off until you fulfill the requests of a nearby Reaper. Fighting the Noise creatures that Neku scans is rhythmic, and the efficiency of your gameplay depends on the pins and clothes you wear. It’s a clever design scheme that imparts some life lessons along the way. Neku and company even paid Sora and Riku a visit in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.

Epic Mickey

Directed by Warren Spector in collaboration with Walt Disney Animation Studios, Epic Mickey blends unexpectedly macabre design with Disney’s expectedly colorful palette, sprinkling pieces of Disney history in between. The game centers around Mickey Mouse as he saves Wasteland, a world created by Yen Sid where forgotten characters and concepts live — such as the obscure Disney character Oswald the Lucky Rabbit — after accidentally destroying it with his paintbrush.

Just as King Mickey wields the Keyblade in Kingdom Hearts, this iteration of Mickey wields a paintbrush that grants him the power to draw or erase objects to help players through levels. Enemies can be dealt with by getting erased from existence or befriending them. The Wii game was an attempt by Disney to rebrand Mickey from a pleasant and cheerful character to one more mischievous and adventurous. It gave Disney the opportunity to use Oswald for the first time since 1927 after the company bought him back from Universal in 2006.

NieR: Automata

Developed by PlatinumGames, the studio behind Bayonetta and Astral Chain, NieR: Automata is still a relative of the Kingdom Hearts series on account of being published by Square Enix. Set thousands of years after the original, NieR: Automata contains branching storylines about a post-apocalyptic proxy war between human-made androids and an army of Machines from an alien world. Automata’s band of heroes includes combat android 2B, scanner android 9S, and rouge prototype A2, who navigate the desolate landscape to find value in life and understand why people kill in the first place.

The plot is just about as convoluted as Kingdom Hearts and the hack-and-slash combat takes a while to master, but the good news is you get assistance from a flying Pod robot whose attacks range from simple gunfire to heavy-hitting hammer attacks. Not bad company for getting through a dark world, right?

Final Fantasy XV

Just like Kingdom Hearts 3, Final Fantasy 15 made it out of a tasking development cycle. It began as a PS3 spinoff titled Final Fantasy Versus 13, only to have the scope and name changed to be the next mainline Final Fantasy for PS4 and Xbox One. The plot revolves around Noctis, the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Lucis, as he is accompanied by his friends to Altissia, where he is set to marry Lunafreya, only to go on a quest to rescue the Crystal from Niflheim and save the world of Eos from eternal darkness.

Final Fantasy XV’s battle system was inspired by Kingdom Hearts 2, with Noctis’ moves being limited to basic attacks, parrying, warping, and using items — all while battling in the current environment rather than transitioning to a separate arena. Eos can be explored on foot, by Chocobo, or the Regalia, Noctis’ royal car that lets you play songs from the entire Final Fantasy series, including “Braver” by Afrojack. Hikaru Utada and Afrojack collaboration, when?

Persona 5 Strikers

Persona 5 Strikers is like Kingdom Hearts in that you’re tasked with saving people’s hearts from total corruption. A year after the events of the original Persona 5, Joker and the other Phantom Thieves of Hearts’ summer vacation plans are beset by an investigation into mysterious events involving people and their Shadow selves.

Just like Sora wields multiple Keyblades, Joker wields multiple personas, which he can acquire from random drops or beating mini-bosses in dungeons. Persona 5 Strikers thrives on action-based combat and hack-and-slash gameplay, and like Kingdom Hearts, active party members can be swapped with standby members outside of battle.

Cristina Alexander is a freelance writer for IGN. She has contributed her work to various publications, including Digital Trends, TheGamer, Twinfinite, Mega Visions, and The Escapist. To paraphrase Calvin Harris, she wears her love for Sonic the Hedgehog on her sleeve like a big deal. Follow her on Twitter @SonicPrincess15.

The Amazon Black Friday Sale has officially started, and currently the best deal on a PS5-compatible solid state drive is this Crucial P5 Plus 2TB PCIe Gen4 x4 M.2 solid state drive for only $94.99. Not only is the Crucial P5 Plus fast enough to exceed the specs of the PS5’s stock internal SSD, it also has a preinstalled heatsink that’s slim enough to fit and does a fine job of keeping things cool.

Crucial P5 Plus 2TB SSD with Heatsink for $94.99

Crucial P5 Plus 2TB PCIe Gen4 x4 M.2 SSD with Heatsink

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The Crucial P5 Plus meets all the requirements for your PS5 SSD upgrade. It supports transfer speeds of up to 6,660MB/s which is well above the 5,500MB/s minimum threshold. Yes there are faster SSDs out there, but if your intention is to put this in your PS5, then that extra speed is worthless because you’re bottlenecked by the original PS5 SSD. The integrated heatsink is robust and entirely made of aluminum for effective heat dissipation. It’s also slim enough to fit in the PS5 bay with the cover on. If you’re worried about opening up your PS5 case, don’t worry it’s very easy. Crucial has an official YouTube PS5 SSD install guide.

Looking for more Black Friday deals like this? Check out our guide to PS5 Black Friday deals for 2023.