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Nintendo is holding another Spirit Board event in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate this week. The event kicks off July 9 at 11 PM PT and features new Spirits based on Square Enix’s retro-inspired RPG, Octopath Traveler.

Throughout the event, four new Spirits representing Octopath Traveler’s main cast–Olberic & Primrose, Tressa & Cyrus, Alfyn & Therion, and H’aanit & Ophelia–will appear periodically on the Spirit Board. If you defeat the new Spirits, you’ll add them to your collection and earn more SP than usual.

The Octopath Traveler Spirit Board event runs until 11 PM PT, July 14. You can read more on Nintendo’s website.

If you missed your chance to unlock the Cuphead and Warframe Spirits during their respective events earlier this year, you’re in luck; those are once again available in the game. You’ll be able to encounter them randomly on the Spirit Board or in Smash Bros. Ultimate’s in-game shop.

Smash Bros. Ultimate’s latest DLC character, Min Min, comes with her own entourage of Arms Spirits to unlock. The new fighter arrived last month alongside the game’s 8.0 update, which made balance adjustments to numerous characters and introduced a new wave of Mii Fighter costumes, including one based on Fallout’s Vault Boy.

In other Smash Bros. news, Nintendo Switch Online subscribers can grab a new freebie for the game. Nintendo is offering another free Spirit Board Challenge Pack, which comes with a handful of helpful items for Spirit Board mode. Nintendo also confirmed that Amiibo figures of Joker and Dragon Quest’s Hero are releasing this fall.

Nintendo’s mobile titles help strengthen its IP and fan base, despite not accounting for a significant percentage of the overall business the company says. During an investor Q&A, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa spoke about the impact of the company’s mobile titles.

Nintendo’s strategy for releasing mobile titles, like Fire Emblem Heroes, and Mario Kart Tour, is to increase the overall interest and player base for those IPs, potentially bringing more people to the console releases. Furukawa specifically cited Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp as introducing many “female consumers and U.S. consumers,” to the series, who would later buy Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

Furukawa also said that sales from mobile games “do not account for a very large percentage of Nintendo’s overall business,” but the games do lead to the creation of more Nintendo Accounts, strengthening the business overall. A recent report suggested that Nintendo would begin winding down the release of mobile games, due to them not seeing as much growth as the Nintendo Switch.

Also during the Q&A, director Shinya Takahashi noted that while some production development has been slowed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, no games planned to be released in the current fiscal year have been affected currently. However, Takahashi also said that if the impact of COVID-19 is prolonged or becomes more severe, games planned for the current fiscal year could be affected.

Nintendo’s most recent mobile title is Mario Kart Tour, which had an extremely successfully launch. Nintendo’s next game, Paper Mario: The Origami King, launches later this month on July 17 for Nintendo Switch. You can learn about the game and its pre-order bonuses in our Paper Mario: The Origami King pre-order guide.

The latest World of Warcraft expansion, Shadowlands, will release later this year, marking the eighth expansion for the popular MMO. In a livestream today, Blizzard revealed a Shadowlands Collector’s edition is available to pre-order now, and it offers a slew of physical collectibles along with digital goodies.

Available for $120, the World of Warcraft: Shadowlands Collector’s edition gets you an Epic edition game code, which unlocks the Shadowlands expansion along with a host of in-game content:

• Level 120 character boost
• Ensorcelled Everwyrm flying mount
• Vestments of the Eternal Traveler transmog set quest
• Anima Wyrmling pet
• Wraithchill cosmetic weapon effect
• Eternal Traveler’s Hearthstone
• 30 days of game time

The Shadowlands Collector’s edition also comes with an art book, a Shattered Sky mouse pad, a four-pin collector’s set, and the digital soundtrack. It’s available to pre-order now at Amazon and the Blizzard Gear Store.

In addition to the Collector’s edition, Blizzard announced a beta test for World of Warcraft: Shadowlands that’s coming next week. The expansion focuses on four Covenants, and choosing one will unlock faction-specific content, a full max-level campaign, and specialized features. Shadowlands also introduces a new epic dungeon area called the Theater of Pain along with a sandbox area called The Maw. For more on the upcoming expansion, see our breakdown of the most important details from Blizzard’s Shadowlands event.

WWE 2K Battlegrounds, the stylized arcade fighter with some of WWE’s most recognizable faces, will launch on September 18 for Xbox One, PS4, PC, Nintendo Switch, and Stadia.

Battlegrounds takes the wrestling action outside of the closed stadiums and puts you in rings in the middle of swamps, military camps, or dingy auto shops. Each arena offers its own unique interactive elements, letting you throw your opponent into the jaws of a hungry alligator if you’re so inclined. Check out some gameplay from the reveal trailer below.

Battlegrounds will feature standard exhibition modes for local and online play, as well as a full campaign featuring seven new WWE hopefuls on the road to impress some of the company’s best. That includes Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, and Paul Heyman.

WWE 2K Battlegrounds is the only wrestling game from WWE expected this year, with the franchise’s annual simulation entry being canceled. After a change of developer for last year’s entry, that’s probably not a bad thing, with our 2/10 WWE 2K20 review saying, “Whether it’s the dull and unenjoyable combat, the fact half the roster look like terrifying goblin facsimiles of themselves, or MyCareer’s obnoxious and tedious story. This is the moment the WWE 2K series hit Rock Bottom.”

AMD has announced a brand new bundle for its latest Ryzen CPUs. If you purchase a qualifying Ryzen CPU anytime between now and October 3, you’ll get a free PC copy of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. All third-gen Ryzen 7 and 9 processors are included in the promotion, as are all desktops equipped with a Ryzen 7 or 9 processor–though you will need to purchase from a participating retailer. If you’re building a PC or looking to upgrade, these CPUs are great options, and you get one of this year’s most-anticipated games for free.

As for the eligible AMD CPUs, you can see them all below. It’s important to note that this promotion is not eligible with any Ryzen 5 processors, including the recently released Ryzen 5 3600XT.

There are a number of Ryzen-equipped laptops eligible as well. Any notebook that comes with a Ryzen 7 4800H or 4800HS or Ryzen 9 4900H or 4900HS also comes with a free copy of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. As far as participating retailers go, you should double-check the listing to see if it comes with Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Most retailers will note which games are included with a CPU, laptop, or desktop.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla releases for PC, PS4, Xbox One, PS5, and Xbox Series X this holiday season. Unfortunately, a more specific date has not been revealed yet. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey and Origins, the last two games, released in October in their respective years, and the promotion ending October 3 may indicate a similar situation with Valhalla. Of course, we’ll report back when an official announcement is made.

Another classic game is making its way to Nintendo Switch later this year: Publisher Dotemu announced Ys Origin will release on the Switch sometime in 2020. In addition to its Eshop launch, Ys Origin is getting a Collector’s edition distributed by Limited Run Games, and it’s pleasantly affordable.

The Ys Origin Collector’s edition for Nintendo Switch went up for pre-order today, and it’s selling for $70. The Collector’s edition gets you a physical copy of the game for Switch, a CD with the soundtrack, a steelbook case, a Collector’s edition perfect bound art book, and an 18″ by 24″ reversible poster. This is a limited-time open pre-order period, and you have until Sunday, September 6 to place your order for the Ys Origin Collector’s edition. Products ship two to four months after the initial sale.

Ys Origin first released worldwide on Steam in 2012 and later released on PS4, PS Vita, and Xbox One. The game takes place in a land called Ys and features three playable characters: a knight called Yunica Tovah, a mage named Hugo Fact, and a mysterious fighter known as “The Claw.” In Ys Origin, the world is on the brink of destruction, and a search party sets off to find the protective goddesses who have disappeared into the night. Playing as each character unlocks more of the story and allows you to experience their distinct combat style and skillset.

If you’re curious to try out the original before shelling out for the Collector’s edition, Ys Origin is on sale on Steam as part of the Steam Summer Sale–you can currently grab it for just 5 bucks.

WWE 2K Battlegrounds isn’t just bringing a different look and feel to the mainline WWE 2K wrestling sims, it’s also bringing a story-based campaign.

Speaking to IGN, executive producer Sean O’Connor explained that the spin-off game’s Campaign mode will see legendary WWE agent Paul Heyman on the search for the next WWE Superstar, with help from ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin. Players will pick from 7 new hopefuls – specially designed for the game – and compete to earn a contract across multiple maps and arenas.

“It’s told through these really cool comics, “says O’Connor, “and you take them through trying to earn a contract, and eventually get to Wrestlemania.”

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O’Connor adds that the mode isn’t just a linear set of matches: “I can’t even remember exactly how many matches and nodes there are – it’s kind of a branching thing. There’s some things you can do off on the side and earn different rewards, or you can just do the golden path straight through the middle to finish it sooner if you want.”

Playing the campaign will earn you new elements to use throughout the rest of the game, too. Per O’Connor: “We unlock a lot of arenas, vanity items for your created characters, different power-ups, things like that as you go along through the campaign.”

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As for what the game will actually play like along the way, Battlegrounds will mix familiar wrestling moves with slightly wilder moves and even power-ups like Flaming Fist, Ice Breath, and an Earthquake that can destroy the ring itself. The game takes inspiration from WWE All-Stars, among other WWE games over the years.

“We’re trying to be over-the-top, arcadey, easy to pick up and play,” explains O’Connor. “A lot of stuff to master, though, so you can really take your game to the next level. It goes very much with the art style […] where it’s kind of a wider appeal – it’s clearly not realistic, right? And our moves are not realistic, as you’ve seen. Think about throwing somebody into a crocodile! That’s not very realistic, but it’s super fun and it’s super over the top, and the power ups play really well into that as well.”

WWE 2K Battlegrounds will come to PC (via Steam), Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PS4 and Stadia on September 18. We learned that release date, and a lot more new details today.

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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 [email protected].