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Bob Iger, who served as CEO of The Walt Disney Company since 2005 and oversaw some of the company’s biggest acquisitions like Marvel and Lucasfilm, has stepped down from his executive role effective immediately. Replacing Iger is Bob Chapek, the former Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products.

Iger was originally set to retire in the summer of 2018, but the Board of Directors extended Iger’s contract until 2019 to oversee the acquisition of Fox and the launch of Disney+. That contract was extended even further until 2021, though as evidenced by today’s news, Iger will not be serving the full extension as CEO.

In a press release sent out today the Walt Disney Company Board of Directors announced that Chapek will step up into the CEO role starting today. Iger will remain with the company as Executive Chairman until December 31, 2021.

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“With the successful launch of Disney’s direct-to-consumer businesses and the integration of Twenty-First Century Fox well underway, I believe this is the optimal time to transition to a new CEO,” Iger said in a statement. “I have the utmost confidence in Bob and look forward to working closely with him over the next 22 months as he assumes this new role and delves deeper into Disney’s multifaceted global business and operations, while I continue to focus on the Company’s creative endeavors.”

Chapek has been with the Disney company for nearly three decades serving as the head of its Parks, Experiences, and Products since 2018 and as Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts since 2015. Chapek oversaw the opening of Shanghai Disney Resort, doubling the Disney Cruise Line fleet, and overseeing Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

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Iger, who served as CEO of Disney since 2005, has defined his tenure with expansive growth for the company. Iger oversaw the 2006 acquisition of Pixar for $7.4 billion, the 2009 acquisition of Marvel for $4 billion, the 2012 acquisition of Lucasfilm for $4.06 billion, and the $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox in 2019.

Iger also saw the launch of Disney’s direct-to-consumer streaming service called Disney+ which the company plans to use as the one-stop destination for all things Disney. For everything else, Disney also acquired a controlling stake in Hulu where it plans to host content from other businesses like 20th Century Studios which was formerly Fox.

During a conference call, Iger announced that as Chairman he will be ensuring a smooth transition while still overseeing some of the company’s creative endeavors.

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Matt Kim is a reporter for IGN. You can reach him on Twitter.

Fire Emblem: Three Houses wasn’t just one of the best Nintendo Switch releases of last year; it also made our list of the top 10 games of 2019. The Japanese tactics game expanded on the popular series in fresh and surprising ways while delivering a fantastic story with four different available routes (and this time, Nintendo didn’t make players pay for different versions as it did with Fire Emblem Fates). Unlike some Nintendo Switch releases where fans have complained about an unwavering $60 price tag given the amount of content included (the Link’s Awakening remake, Pokemon Sword and Shield, etc.), Fire Emblem: Three Houses feels worth every penny. That’s why it’s even more exciting to see the game on sale for just $45 right now at Amazon and Best Buy, a rare deal for any first-party Nintendo game.

In Fire Emblem: Three Houses, your character is a mercenary and professor at Garreg Mach Monastery, where you’ll choose between three houses of students to train and lead on the battlefield. The game is split between time in the monastery, where you can freely explore, build relationships with students, and take part in various activities; classroom instruction, where you can set goals for your students and develop certain strengths; and battles, which follow the same turn-based format on a grid-like map. For longtime fans, Fire Emblem: Three Houses feels both comfortably familiar and wonderfully new, and if you’re new to the series, this is an excellent entry to start with. I’m currently on my third playthrough with over 150 hours sunk into this game, and I’ve still got another full route to play through after this one.

While certainly not necessary to enjoy the game, Fire Emblem: Three Houses also has a hefty expansion pass available for $25 that unlocks additional outfits, items, challenges, and, most recently, a brand-new side story that unlocks a new area below the monastery and introduces four new recruitable characters from the secret Ashen Wolves house. It might be worth trying out the game first before buying the expansion pass right away, but if you do fall in love with Fire Emblem: Three Houses, you’ll definitely get your money’s worth out of the expansion content. The new side story just released this month, so there’s no better time to dive into Fire Emblem: Three Houses if it’s been in your backlog since last year.

February 27 is Pokemon Day, the anniversary of the series’ debut in Japan, and Pokemon Go is kicking off the festivities a little early with a new event. The Pokemon Day celebration is now live in Niantic’s hit mobile game, bringing back party hat-wearing Pokemon, a special Legendary, and more.

Throughout the event, you’ll be able to find party hat-wearing versions of Pikachu and Eevee in the wild. You’ll also be able to hatch party hat Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle from 7 km eggs or encounter them in one-star Raids. Moreover, there’s a chance any of these Pokemon could be Shiny.

Those aren’t the only festive monster you’ll be able to encounter during the Pokemon Day event. On Sunday, March 1, Niantic will hold a special Raid Day featuring party hat-wearing versions of Nidorino and Gengar, the two Pokemon that famously battled during Pokemon Red and Green‘s opening movie. From 2-5 PM local time, you’ll be able to encounter the monsters in Raids, and these may likewise be Shiny.

On top of that, Armored Mewtwo has also returned to the game to tie in with the upcoming Netflix release of Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution. The Legendary Pokemon will appear in five-star Raids throughout the event, and this time it’ll know the Psychic-type Charged attack Psystrike.

To go along with Armored Mewtwo, Clone Pokemon have also made their debut in Pokemon Go. You can encounter Clone versions of Venusaur, Charizard, and Blastoise in four-star Raids, while Clone Pikachu may photobomb any Go Snapshots you take during the event.

The Pokemon Day celebration runs until 1 PM PT / 4 PM ET on March 2. You can read more details about the event on the official Pokemon Go website.

WWE has suspended Nuufolau Seanoa (Samoa Joe) for 30 days effective Monday, February 24, for his first violation of the company’s talent wellness policy.https://t.co/3PiiutkI32

— WWE (@WWE) February 25, 2020

A Mass Effect mash-up pack is coming to Minecraft. Players can take control of 36 unique skins, including iconic Mass Effect characters like Commander Shephard, Liara, Illusive Man, and Garrus. The pack also contains unique locations like the Mars Base Camp, custom-made game textures, Mass Effect-themed menus, and a Mass Effect 3 soundtrack compilation.

Longtime Minecraft fans may know that this isn’t the first time a Mass Effect pack has made its appearance in the game. The discontinued legacy console edition received a similar pack back in 2014, but the Bedrock edition has not received it until now. Time will only tell if Minecraft will continue to release past packs from legacy console editions.

Minecraft also recently went through a big update on February 14 called the “Nether Update.” New crafting materials like an ore called Ancient Debris, wood materials, soul soil, and more blocks were added. Additionally, three new biomes–Crimson Forest, Soulsand Valley, and the Warped Forest–opened up for exploration and provide Netherite and new types of vegetation for players.

At the 2020 Toy Fair, new Minecraft figures by Mattel were also revealed, including a Redstone Monstrosity with spring-loaded arms from Minecraft Dungeons. Boost Minis from Minecraft Earth also will be for sale, and they can be scanned for in-game perks. Check out GameSpot’s full coverage of Mattel’s Minecraft toys.

The first expansion of 2020 for the free-to-play, Diablo-style action RPG Path of Exile has been announced, and it sounds like a treat for fans of the game. Path of Exile: Delirium is launching on March 13 for PC before coming to PS4 and Xbox One the week of March 16.

Delirium features areas with a new item called the Mirror of Delirium. Touching the mirror causes your character to enter a state of “delirium” which adds a a creepy mist to the map and other spooky, otherworldly elements that are based on your character’s deepest fears. In short, this mist invades the player’s mind and creates new, more challenging scenarios that adds dynamic difficulty and tougher enemies.

The monsters that appear in Delirium spawn their own demons that are extra powerful, while the regular monsters get buffs that make them even deadlier. Additionally, the effects of the delirium affect every encounter, including bosses, so players should expect an even bigger challenge.

One of the major draws of the Delirium expansion is that it makes Path of Exile even more replayable than it already was. The delirium effects also map to all previous League content, so you can re-visit encounters from a new, more challenging perspective.

For their efforts, players will earn special, randomized rewards that can include things like currency items, map items, armor pieces, and more.

Another major change coming to Path of Exile with the new update is the new “cluster jewels” that can be found in the Delirium league. These jewels can be placed on sockets of your skill tree to create additional passive skill groups that can each contain even more sockets. According to Grinding Gear founder Chris Wilson, this is the biggest change to the level of control and customization you have over your character since Ascendancy classes were added in 2016.

Path of Exile has always been a hardcore game for hardcore players, and the new jewel system ramps this up even further in the area of depth and complexity of character builds. There are millions of possibilities unlocked with the new jewel system, Wilson says, and this will impact the build guides that players can find on YouTube or through a Google search. It will no longer be so easy to find an easy path toward creating the best character. This should help Path of Exile feel fresh and exciting, and more mysterious, Wilson says.

The story elements for the Delirium expansion are being kept under wraps so as to preserve the mystery, Wilson tells GameSpot. As for the theme and tone of the expansion, it’s focused on bringing the game back to its roots with a focus on action combat and difficulty. Delirium is a “core, foundational” expansion that will challenge veterans, Wilson says.

The Path of Exile: Delirium expansion is also introducing a series of new skills, the first of which is Blade Blast. As its name suggests, this skill creates a whirling circle of blades that defends the player while also attacking enemies. Another new skill is Kinetic Bolt, which is a wand attack. Players have been asking to live out their Harry Potter fantasies in Path of Exile for a while now, Wilson says, and the new Kinetic Bolt was created in response to that. It’s not strictly a casting skill, however, as the “forking bolt” that shoots out of your staff does elemental and physical damage.

The Delirium expansion includes two more skills and three additional support gems that will be announced later. What’s more, there are new items coming to Path of Exile in the expansion, including “Perfidy,” which is a melee-focused body armor, as well as “Algor Mortis,” which is a set of gloves that can be used with characters that focus on cold/lightning builds.

For lots more on Path of Exile: Delirium, check out this in-depth blog post on the Grinding Gear website. [ADD LINK]

In addition to ongoing support for Path of Exile, Grinding Gear is working on a full-on sequel, Path of Exile 2, as well as a mobile version of Path of Exile.

The latest patch for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare has gone live, adding a new map and several fixes along with balance tweaks. It’s now available for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.

The biggest item on the patch list is the new map, Bazaar. Shoot House has been added to a playlist with Shipment and Rust 24/7, and you can also play Rust as 3v3 Snipers. It also adds the earlier promoted Boots on the Ground War variant, using realism rules with no tanks.

Weapon balance has gotten some slight buffs and nerfs. The Crossbow has increased reload speed, the SA87 got reduced recoil, among others. The Under Barrel Shotgun got readjusted in some key ways–increased pellet count, increased shell count, increased range, but reduced rate of fire–so whether that counts as an upgrade or downgrade probably comes down to personal preference.

If you haven’t yet checked in with Modern Warfare and would like to give it a go, it’s included in GameStop’s Tax Refund Sale for $38. Currently the game is in the second season of its battle pass, and rumors have circulated that it’s preparing to launch a battle royale mode. GameSpot’s Modern Warfare review said the new multiplayer modes are great and the campaign “lays a strong foundation for where the Modern Warfare series could go from here.”

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Feb 25 Patch Notes

WHAT’S NEW

• New map, Bazaar!
• Added Shoot House to an existing playlist with Shipment and Rust 24/7 (“Dirty Old House Boat”)
• 3v3 Snipers on Rust!
• Giant Infection!
• “Boots on the Ground War” (Realism rules. No tanks.)

GENERAL FIXES:

• Fix for a bug where friends who are online in Social Tab were not always appearing at the top of the list
• Various map exploit fixes
• Fix for some players seeing an incorrect Career Level
• More fixes to Regiment tags
• Fix for some players encountering an issue where their mouse stopped working after the last title update
• Fixed a bug in 3v3 Gunfight that allowed players to shoot through the center structure on King while using the AX-50
• Fixed an error that could occur when Hardline was earned in Specialist
• Quality of life backend fixes to help the Regiments and Social menus run smoother
• Fix for a spawn exploit on Vacant
• Fix for White Phosphorous killing all players instantly when in Realism modes

Trials: Fix for the score at the end of “Fire in the Hole” not tallying up properly

Challenges:

• Fixed a bug for the “Kills with Enemy Weapon” Karma challenge not tracking properly
• Fixed Daily Challenges that require you to get an X number of kills with an enemy weapon
• Fix for an objective when completing Golem’s Operator Mission that requested 5 Kills with lethal equipment but was tracking with killstreaks.
• “Alliance” Objective 6: Complete any 4 Co-Op Operations has been fixed
• “Alliance” Objective 2: Requires 50 Juggernaut kills with Otter as your Coalition Operator. This has been fixed

Weapons:

• Fixed a bug where weapons stopped showing level progress 1 level before their max rank, giving the appearance that they are no longer gaining XP
• Striker 45: Fixing range and ADS speed to match the description of the 300mm Poly Barrel
• Model 680: Slight range increase
• Model 680 XRK 30.0 Sport: range increase
• Slight Range decrease and ADS increase to the following:
  • Model 680 – XRK 18.0” Liberator
  • R9-0 Force TAC Sentry
  • Origin 12 Forge TAC Precision
• Under Barrel Shotguns: increased pellet count, reduced rate of fire, increased shell count to 8, tuned autoswap after ammo is complete, range increase
• Crossbow: Increased reload speed
• Fixed a bug where the Akimbo Snakeshot .357s did not register damage for both guns when fired on the same frame
• Reduced recoil to the SA87 12.4 Factory Barrel
• Increased close and mid-range damage for the AK 5.45x39mm round mags

Classic Special Operations: Fix for a graphical bug that could occur on mission “Disinform” while on Xbox

Special Operations: Survival

• Piccadilly: Fix for a bug where helicopters could clip through buildings
• Adjusted Cluster Strike damage towards enemy helicopters
• Fix for a bug where destroying the enemy helicopter/pilot was not awarding money as intended

Special Operations:

• Operation Crosswind: Fix for a bug that could prevent players from using the Cruise Missile while having the Thermite Launcher equipped
• Operation Crosswind: Fixed an issue where the Juggernauts outside the airport might not pursue players after breaking stealth
• Operation Crosswind: Fixed a bug where a player would have infinite ammo and standard weapons if jumping out of the plane with the Juggernaut suit

Call of Duty League:

• When CDL Rules are enabled, the Restrictions warning icon will be displayed next to the buttons that contain CDL banned items, even if they are in sub menus. This should make it easier for players to know what parts of their loadouts need to be replaced in order to follow CDL Rules.
• Domination: Round timer set to 5 minutes (previously 6)
• Search and Destroy: Round timer set to 1 minute 30 seconds (from 2 minutes)
• Restricted Thermite, Throwing Knives, and Killstreaks to CDL playlist

CoD Caster: Reintroduced the Data View feature, allowing KBM Codcasters to view player information by pressing the keybind assigned in the Options menu.

PC: Several fixes to prevent crashes and improve stability