Dailyposts

It’s that time of the week again. If you’re not too busy scrambling for Spider-Man: Brand New Day tickets, there’s a lot of stuff you can watch from home, whether you’re renting or catching the latest streaming release. source https://www.polygon.com/new-movies-to-watch-stream-peacock-hbo-max-hulu-july-31-august-2-2026/

Magic: The Gathering brought in $1.72 billion in annual revenue in fiscal year 2025, and much of its recent success can be attributed to massive sales of its Universes Beyond sets. While some of the game’s most dedicated fans have expressed frustration with the many crossovers, tapping into the fandoms of Final Fantasy , Marvel , and Avatar: The Last Airbender has proved hugely profitable. Now Wizards of the Coast is extending the strategy to Dungeons & Dragons , kicking off its own version of Universes Beyond with the book Dungeons & Dragons: World of Warcraft . source https://www.polygon.com/dnd-dungeons-dragons-world-of-warcraft-universes-beyond-crossover/

It's a new age for Dungeons & Dragons , or at least, that's the message that the game and its parent company, Wizards of the Coast, are pushing after the D&D Vision Keynote 2027 at this year's Gen Con. Among the news and exciting announcements that will shape the course of D&D for the next year or more, one stands out as the most hardcore: D&D is going back to Dark Sun, and no punches will be pulled. source https://www.polygon.com/dnd-dark-sun-dungeons-dragons-return/

If anyone needed more confirmation that Xbox is not in a good place right now, the financial report for the final quarter of this fiscal year makes it brutally clear. Although Microsoft's overall revenue has increased, the company's latest fiscal report reveals a significant decrease in Xbox services and content sales for the fourth quarter of 2026. source https://www.polygon.com/xbox-2026-revenue-drop-invest-what-players-value/

GPTRACK50, an independent studio founded by former Capcom developer Hiroyuki Kobayashi ( Dragon's Dogma , Resident Evil 6 ), has today announced the release date for its upcoming action-RPG Stupid Never Dies , which arrives in October. source https://www.polygon.com/stupid-never-dies-game-release-date-hiroyuki-kobayashi/

The long-awaited follow-up to perhaps the single most beloved animated series of the late 2000s was supposed to be a huge theatrical event. Then in December, its wide release was canceled in favor of a straight-to-streaming release on Paramount Plus. A few months later, the entire movie leaked online following a server breach in April 2026. Fast-forward to today, mere days after its July 25 streaming release date, and it’s a massive hit on Paramount Plus as the platform’s number one movie both in the U.S. and worldwide. source https://www.polygon.com/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender-paramount-plus-number-1-streaming-movie/

Multiple endings have become a tradition for Konami’s Silent Hill series. 2025’s widely acclaimed Silent Hill f had five endings, one of which is more comedic in nature. 2024’s Silent Hill 2 remake features a whopping eight endings, five of which can only be accessed in a second playthrough. The latest installment, Silent Hill: Townfall , developed by Screen Burn Interactive, is no exception to that rule. At a preview event earlier this month in Los Angeles, we learned the upcoming game will also have five endings, depending on the choices you make throughout the story. source https://www.polygon.com/silent-hill-townfall-director-five-endings/

The last thing I expected from Amazon’s new shark movie was for it to meditate upon this exact kind of often toxic codependent relationship. Long before a bull shark gets dumped into a freshwater tunnel system in Thailand and starts mauling tourists, The Devil’s Mouth is already simmering with tension between best friends Max (Lana Condor) and Sara (Kathryn Newton). The origin story of their friendship is a complex one, and the relationship already feels strained when they start their once-in-a-lifetime vacation fresh out of college with three other chums: Max’s boyfriend James, along with another couple, Greg and Adrienne. (While Sara is ostensibly a fifth wheel, she and Max’s bond is the strongest connection on display.) source https://www.polygon.com/devils-mouth-movie-review-amazon-shark-horror/

Baldur's Gate 3 is packed with ways for you to fully immerse yourself in Faerûn, the Dungeons & Dragons continent that serves as the primary setting for Larian Studios' popular RPG. A new camera mod that recruits a true third-person view to your party might just be the game's most powerful immersion method yet. source https://www.polygon.com/baldurs-gate-3-camera-mod-bg3/

Grand Theft Auto 6 is one of the most highly anticipated games of the decade, so when pre-orders went live, fans moved fast to secure their copy. It is a timed exclusive on consoles, so players who want to get their hands on it on day one will have to play it on Xbox Series X/S or PlayStation 5. While many fans already have a preferred platform for the game, others still have to decide where they want to play it. And there is one detail that might just help them make their choice. source https://www.polygon.com/gta-6-region-locked-xbox-ps5/

Halo: Campaign Evolved is a new remake of a 25-year-old game. It is, by many accounts , great: faithful where it needs to be while also charting a new course forward for a series that has been the face of Xbox for as long as it has existed. In theory, the discussion about Halo: Campaign Evolved as a game should amount to, “yep, pretty good!” And yet, it has found itself at the eye of the culture war hurricane du jour. source https://www.polygon.com/halo-campaign-evolved-lieutenant-williams-culture-war/

For the last month, Dungeons & Dragons fans have been wondering about a mysterious new setting created by actor and D&D superfan Joe Manganiello for the tabletop role-playing game. First spotted in the description of an event taking place at GenCon later this week, "Death Saves" is a world inspired by Manganiello's clothing line of the same name. Now, the actor has shared more details in a post on X ahead of the setting's debut. source https://www.polygon.com/joe-manganiello-dnd-dungeons-dragons-new-setting-death-saves-blood-war/

Morty Smith has been through a lot over the course of nine seasons of adventuring with his grandpa Rick Sanchez in Rick and Morty . He’s had his consciousness fragmented into a video game’s NPCs, fled his own dimension, buried himself, and met his brilliant, evil doppelgänger. Season 8 ended with Morty facing his greatest fears, and the season 9 finale was another brutal episode that forced Morty to face some dark truths. source https://www.polygon.com/rick-and-morty-season-9-finale-interview/

Aside from some major deaths, some of the toughest drama to watch in House of the Dragon season 3 has everything to do with the fabled Sea Snake, Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint), reckoning with his life and legacy. After his wife, Princess Rhaenys Targaryen (Eva Best), died at the Battle of Rook’s Rest in season 2, something in Corlys changed. He acknowledged that Alyn and Addam were his sons, and especially after his near-death experience in the Battle of the Gullet — during which his castle, High Tide, was ransacked — Corlys looked to the future even more. After Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) successfully took over King’s Landing and claimed the Iron Throne, he pleaded with her to legitimize Alyn (Abubakar Salim) and Addam (Clinton Liberty) as his rightful heirs. Yet she refused. source https://www.polygon.com/house-of-the-drag...

The 2000s were a great time for cheesy vampire movies . Shortly before the Twilight franchise turned bloodsuckers into tortured romantic heroes for young adults, countless vampire flicks were released, filled with cringy dialogue and shlocky action sequences. Films like Van Helsing and Queen of the Damned aren’t the sharpest of what the genre can offer, but contain amazing moments of vampire lore, like an eerie masquerade ball depicting vampires without their reflection, or an undead rockstar climbing the walls to terrorize his groupies. source https://www.polygon.com/sam-neill-daybreakers-cheesy-vampire-movie-2000s/

Marvel 's San Diego Comic-Con panel wasn't all about Avengers: Doomsday , as Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige and writer-director Ryan Coogler confirmed on stage that a third Black Panther film is in the works. Better yet, it'll feature the son of T'Challa as the Black Panther. source https://www.polygon.com/black-panther-3-announcement-marvel-comic-con/

Ryan Gosling got his wish. On Saturday at San Diego Comic-Con , Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige confirmed that Marvel 's supernatural hero Ghost Rider is returning to the big screen and will be played by none other than Ryan Gosling ( Blade Runner 2049 , Project Hail Mary ). source https://www.polygon.com/marvel-ghost-rider-movie-ryan-gosling-comic-con/

One of the most important science fiction works of the 20th century is getting a TV adaptation for the first time in 42 years: William Gibson's Neuromancer , the novel widely recognized as the birthing cry of the cyberpunk subgenre, is getting a show on Apple TV. Created by Graham Roland and J. D. Dillard, the show was first announced in 2024 , and now we finally have a trailer and a 2027 release date. source https://www.polygon.com/apple-tv-neuromancer-trailer-2027-release/

Splatoon Raiders has only been out for a day, but the series’ most dedicated fans are already hard at work. I was already matchmaking with players nearly at level 50 just 12 hours after launch. Other fans, though, have bigger fish to fry: they’re busy shipping its heroes, despite the fact that there are four characters in the whole game. (And one is a manta ray.) source https://www.polygon.com/splatoon-raiders-fan-shipping-shiver/

The Tomb Raider franchise suffers yet another delay. Similarly to Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis , Tomb Raider: Catalyst has now been pushed back by a year and is set to release in 2028 instead. source https://www.polygon.com/tomb-raider-catalyst-delayed-to-2028/

Sometimes kids crawl through a wardrobe and wind up meeting a talking lion, like in The Chronicles of Narnia . Or maybe there’s an impossible train platform like in Harry Potter . Even a rundown bathhouse can be a world of wonder in the case of Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away . That’s the brilliance of fantasy: it leaves open the possibility that something larger-than-life is lurking just beneath the surface of our waking world. What’s really between those towering glass buildings, beneath grimy subway stations, or maybe even under the floorboards of our own homes? source https://www.polygon.com/john-wick-is-secretly-one-of-the-best-fantasy-franchises-of-the-last-decade/

Star Wars ' unreleased animated comedy series, Star Wars Detours , has been the object of fans' desire for more than a decade. Produced in 2013 by Lucasfilm Animation in collaboration with Seth Green and Matthew Senreich, the show never aired due to concerns that its parody nature would not be the best introduction to the franchise for new fans. Now, fans finally have a chance to have a look at this gem from the Star Wars vault. source https://www.polygon.com/star-wars-detours-rarest-show-released-available/

Just when everyone thought that Larian Studios had left behind Baldur's Gate 3 to focus on the new game in the Divinity series, the Belgian studio is once again associated with its Game of the Year-winning RPG. On July 23, during San Diego Comic-Con , publisher Dark Horse announced an upcoming Baldur's Gate 3 comic series. source https://www.polygon.com/larian-baldurs-gate-3-new-comic-series-dark-horse/

After spending nearly two decades in development, Motor City has finally reached the big screen. Starring Alan Ritchson as an ex-Army Ranger seeking revenge after being framed and sent to prison, the film tells much of its story with little dialogue, relying instead on physical performances, visual storytelling, and a soundtrack of classic rock needle drops that become as important as the characters themselves. source https://www.polygon.com/motor-city-director-potsy-ponciroli-interview/

It's been six years since Game of Thrones writer George R.R. Martin last graced the world with a new book or novella. The fantasy writer likes to periodically remind the public that the beleaguered Winds of Winter is making some kind of progress, sure . The whole thing has been such a saga, though, that some fans are losing hope Martin will ever publish something again. The good news is that Martin is writing something that isn't a TV show. Whether the specifics will actually make fans happy is a different story. source https://www.polygon.com/game-of-thrones-winds-of-winter-update-knight-seven-kingdoms/

Splatoon Raiders puts a big twist on the usual turf war formula and changes some of the series' most fundamental aspects. Sub-weapons aren't tied to primary weapons anymore, and you can mix and match different types together and with your main weapon, regardless of what it is. You've got a little robot buddy to help out in tough fights, and picking the right weapon for the job is more important than ever. source https://www.polygon.com/splatoon-raiders-beginner-tips-tricks/

The Trojan horse is one of those indelible images. It’s a tale that most of us are acquainted with, whether we studied it in school, saw it in a movie, read about it in books, or heard it mentioned in a song . In Greek mythology, the Trojan horse was a trick devised by Odysseus in the Trojan War, resulting in the end of a struggle that had dragged on for a decade. The giant wooden horse was presented as a peace offering to the Trojans and was dragged inside the city's impregnable walls, only for Greek warriors to crawl out of it and destroy the city in one night. source https://www.polygon.com/the-odyssey-trojan-horse-drew-inspiration-from-planet-of-the-apes/

Pokémon archivists just released footage of a never-before-seen documentary about the making of 2007's Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl , and it's proven to be a treasure trove of trivia for hardcore fans. There's an inside look at how Game Freak develops starters, early Pokémon designs for some of the most iconic characters, and surprisingly, tidbits that shed light on modern Pokémon games. Developers at Game Freak came up with ideas 20 years ago that did not see the light of day until the release of Pokémon Pokopia . And the idea might reappear when Pokémon Winds and Waves is released next year. source https://www.polygon.com/pokemon-winds-waves-leak-diamond-pearl-doc-monster-design-pokopia/

When it comes to Magic: The Gathering and its controversial Universes Beyond branch, players have diverging opinions. While Universes Beyond is an undeniable commercial success , a portion of the Magic audience expresses frustration with the growing range of external IPs appearing in the game. The most common criticism is that these universes often don't feel like they belong in Magic at all; from ninja turtles lurking in the sewers to spider-heroes swinging over New York's skyline, it's a wild leap compared to Magic 's established fantasy aesthetic. source https://www.polygon.com/magic-mtg-universes-beyond-more-fantasy/

After an epic opening salvo, X-Men '97 season 2 has settled into the villain-of-the-week format that the original Animated Series did so well. Eventually, we'll get back to Apocalypse and his evil schemes, but for now, why not have some fun? source https://www.polygon.com/x-men-97-season-2-episode-6-danger-room-evil-ai/

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds premiered in 2022 as a spin-off of Star Trek: Discovery offering a throwback approach to the franchise that focused on episodic storytelling and serialized character growth, rather than the season-long plotlines that had defined the franchise's Paramount Plus era. But while showrunners Akiva Goldsman and Henry Alonso Myers have delivered some hilarious and poignant stories over the course of the show’s run, they’ve also focused too much on gimmick episodes while letting some of their core cast stagnate. As season 3 made some progress on the main arc leading up to Captain James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley) taking command of the U.S.S. Enterprise from Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), it rushed some of its character-driven stories in favor of turning everyone into Vulcans, doing a holodeck murder mystery, and having omnipote...

Alan Ritchson is an industry unto himself. The Reacher star launched a hit Prime Video series that's returning next month with a spinoff in tow. Meanwhile, his upcoming revenge thriller Motor City already looks like a gritty cult classic. But it turns out that we may already know what Ritchson's biggest success of 2026 will be. source https://www.polygon.com/netflix-biggest-movie-streaming-2026/

Long before both web series and crowdfunding became commonplace, Felicia Day used PayPal donations to fund the first season of The Guild , a show about a group of MMORPG players. Fans of the series have come through again in a big way, pledging more than $2.5 million in less than 24 hours to produce a feature film to celebrate The Guild ’s 20th anniversary in 2027. source https://www.polygon.com/the-guild-renfaired-kickstarter-funded/

The Splatoon Raiders release time is just over the horizon, as Nintendo gears up to launch the series' first spinoff. Raiders sends you out to Salmonid-infested islands to search for heaps of treasure, and while you can complete the entire game solo thanks to some help from in-game characters like Big Man and Shiver, you can invite friends to join you as well. source https://www.polygon.com/splatoon-raiders-release-time-edt-pdt-preorder-preload/

The Odyssey is every bit the epic film we all expected. In its opening weekend, the movie brought in $264.1 million internationally, and most of the credit is rightfully going to Christopher Nolan , who wrote and directed the film. However, Matt Damon also deserves a great deal of praise for leading such a star-studded cast and for playing the legendary Odysseus as a relatable, guilt-plagued hero. Presumably because of the success of The Odyssey , another truly great Matt Damon movie has entered Prime Video's top 10 streaming movies, currently sitting at number 6, according to Flix Patrol . source https://www.polygon.com/as-the-odyssey-conquers-the-box-office-another-great-matt-damon-film-is/

DC announced a new fighting game on Monday and — nope, calm down. It's not Injustice 3 . I know you want Injustice 3 . I too really want Injustice 3 . This is not Injustice 3 . source https://www.polygon.com/dcko-fighting-game-mobile-announced-dicko-injustice-3/

Trick question: How many Final Fantasy games are there? Sure, Square Enix has made plenty of sequels and spinoffs over the years in addition to the mainline 16 games. But you might not realize there’s been more than 100 Final Fantasy games since the series got its start on the NES back in 1987. Even if you’re a series superfan, odds are you haven’t played most Final Fantasy games. source https://www.polygon.com/final-fantasy-games-underrated-overlooked/

George R.R. Martin ’s fantasy books set in the world of Westeros are full of political intrigue, and HBO has brought that to life with relative ease in Game of Thrones , House of the Dragon , and even in the more commoner-oriented TV series, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms . From Aegon’s Conquest of Westeros to Robert’s Rebellion against the Targaryen dynasty, the fragile alliances and endless scheming that hold Westeros together are a big part of what keeps audiences coming back for more, and obsessing over the story in between new seasons. source https://www.polygon.com/house-of-the-dragon-season-3-episode-5-dorne-meria-martell/

At its core, this story — attributed to Homer — has always been about homecoming. The cunning Odysseus is forced to contend with the forces of predetermined fate, which shape his 10-year struggle to return to Ithaca and reunite with his loved ones. The meat of this tale lies in the clash between free will and destiny, along with the larger-than-life presence of gods, monsters, and everything in between. source https://www.polygon.com/best-anime-like-the-odyssey/

Patch Notes is a weekly newsletter bringing you the best of Polygon, sent on Fridays and published on the site on Sundays. You can subscribe here . source https://www.polygon.com/patch-notes-the-odyssey-christopher-nolan/

If your impulse is to turn to video games, good idea — but there are still fewer options than you might think. Surprisingly, ancient Greek mythology isn't used as a setting for games as often as you'd expect. There are some all-time classics though, and there's also a good spread of genres represented. Here we've picked out nine great Greek classics, plus a tenth game that has nothing to do with the era but has a strong kinship with Nolan's movie in pure vibes terms. source https://www.polygon.com/video-games-like-the-odyssey-christopher-nolan/

There are plenty of anime protagonists I'd gladly spend an afternoon with, whether it’s Megumi Fushiguro from Jujutsu Kaisen or Kikuri Hiroi from Bocchi the Rock! Yet Yaniko, the titular star of Netflix’s Chainsmoker Cat , isn't one of them. The young “beastfolk” is filthy and reeks of stale cigarettes. Her apartment is a biohazard of overflowing ashtrays, empty bottles, and garbage that seems to have fused with the floor. She's perpetually behind on rent, chronically broke, and so dependent on nicotine that she'll rifle through discarded cigarette butts just to get another drag. source https://www.polygon.com/chainsmoker-cat-addiction-and-poverty/

Chances are you haven’t seen Craig Gillespie’s Supergirl in theaters. The film about Superman’s cousin (Milly Alcock) accompanying a teenager (Eve Ridley) on a quest for vengeance was a box office flop , despite having some bright moments like Alcock’s performance and Jason Momoa playing the bounty hunter Lobo. If you didn’t rush to buy a ticket to see the space Western but still want to be caught up on everything happening in the DC Universe before Man of Tomorrow , you’re probably wondering when you can watch it at home. source https://www.polygon.com/dc-supergirl-movie-streaming-release-date-vod-hbo-max/

Despite the fact that my girlfriend and I both play video games, it’s rare that we sit down to play a proper co-op game together. We just enjoy different speeds of games, so there aren’t a lot of titles that cater to both of our tastes. What I have found throughout our relationship, though, is that our best multiplayer options are games that don’t actually have multiplayer modes at all. source https://www.polygon.com/best-puzzle-games-co-op/

As many horror aficionados will tell you, if you’re looking to watch something truly disgusting, bloody, and gut-churning, all you have to do is pull up director Eli Roth’s filmography. Best known for the sadistic Hostel series, along with genre classics like Cabin Fever and Thanksgiving , Roth has never shied away from whipping up controversy with his theatrical use of gore and body horror. Critics and fans alike often cite his projects as ‘ torture porn ’, most of which prioritize shock value over storytelling. source https://www.polygon.com/the-bloodiest-horror-film-of-2026-ice-cream-man/

Throughout Christopher Nolan ’s epic The Odyssey , there are plenty of threats both seen and unseen. From the towering Cyclops to the wrathful god Poseidon, Odysseus and his soldiers must contend with all of them. Perhaps the most ominous threat though is the “Sea People” or the “People from the Sea,” a force mentioned throughout the film as a danger to Ithaca and its neighbors in the Mediterranean. source https://www.polygon.com/who-are-the-sea-people-in-christopher-nolans-the-odyssey/

It’s finally the end of the week. As we head into the weekend, there are numerous movies available on streaming, keeping you with plenty to watch as you enjoy your days off. source https://www.polygon.com/new-movies-to-watch-this-weekend-streaming-peacock-netflix-hulu-july-17-19/

In the internet era, plenty of movies have gotten a sort of secondary fame by virtue of what you might call excerpt culture. One scene, or one joke, or even just one frame can go viral, independently of the movie that it's in. Everyone's seen that GIF of Chow Yun-fat giving a thumbs-up , but only a relative handful of people know it's from A Better Tomorrow II . There's a lot going on in Tobe Hooper's Lifeforce , but most horror fans only know of it because of Mathilda May's nudist vampire. source https://www.polygon.com/scarlett-johansson-under-the-skin-free-on-tubi/

It's a well-known saying that there are no new ideas in Hollywood, but sometimes, two movies come out shortly after one another that truly feel like the exact same film, just with different fonts. Think of Ready or Not 2: Here I Come , and They Will Kill You — two thrillers about a pair of sisters who must avoid being hunted by a Satanic cult of wealthy elites. Or Armageddon and Deep Impact in 1998. While this can often be a gleeful case of ‘ Hey, two cakes! ’ if you like the premise, it can also spark competition among film studios. One has to do better than the other, after all. source https://www.polygon.com/the-last-house-the-end-of-oak-street-differences/

Deadline reports that Amazon Prime Video's God of War TV show has suffered a major setback: The role of Kratos will be recast after lead actor Ryan Hurst suffered a serious injury during shooting. source https://www.polygon.com/god-of-war-tv-show-kratos-recast/

Earlier this month, Xbox outlined plans to lay off over 3,200 staff throughout this fiscal year, in what it called "the most significant restructure" in the company's history. Today, as originally reported by Game File , we've learned that over 200 of those layoffs are happening at ZeniMax Online Studios, the team responsible for The Elder Scrolls Online (ESO). source https://www.polygon.com/elder-scrolls-online-eso-zenimax-online-studios-xbox-cuts-leadership-team/

If you’re looking for something new to play on Switch 2 this week, you’ve got more options than you can handle. Denshattack! , D-topia , Moss: The Forgotten Relic , and more lead a busy week for indie games. Dig deep through the stack of new releases, though, and you’ll find an unexpected retro revival in the mix: Culdcept Begins . source https://www.polygon.com/culdcept-begins-impressions/

Supergirl was a box office bomb , earning just $116 million since its June 24 release against its reported $290 million production and marketing budget. This has renewed talk about “ superhero fatigue ” and led to plenty of speculation about the future of the DC Universe , but a big streaming success might show the way forward for both Supergirl and the DC Universe. source https://www.polygon.com/hbo-max-streaming-hit-july-14-2026/

The first significant depiction of a black hole in film was in The Black Hole (1979), where two spacecraft react differently to the phenomenon after reaching the event horizon. This early portrayal wasn’t big on scientific accuracy, much like 2009’s Star Trek , which uses black holes to build tension and resolve its central conflict through time-travel shenanigans. source https://www.polygon.com/robert-pattinson-scifi-christopher-nolan-streaming-tubi-free/

Crunchyroll, one of the world's biggest anime streaming platforms, has just announced big changes coming to its retail branch, the Crunchyroll Store. Starting this August, the Crunchyroll Store will be available exclusively to subscribers to the Mega and Ultimate Fan tiers, meaning non-subscribing Guests and users on the Fan tier won't be able to make purchases in the store. source https://www.polygon.com/crunchyroll-store-policy-change-subscription/

Before showing the audience the dinos, Spielberg shows Neill, mouth agape, eyes transfixed but uncomprehending, sweeping his hat off his head, slowly standing up and then — Neill’s coup de grace — snatching his sunglasses off with trembling, claw-like fingers. Seconds later, in the perfect audience communion Spielberg is famous for, Neill’s amazement becomes our own. The actor effectively authors how the audience feels about the movie. It’s the ultimate example of Spielberg Face . source https://www.polygon.com/sam-neill-in-the-mouth-of-madness-horror-what-to-watch/

Christopher Nolan did an impressive job of bringing Batman villains to the big screen. Heath Ledger’s Oscar-winning performance as the Joker in The Dark Knight set the high-water mark for the series, but other highlights included Cillian Murphy’s appropriately creepy Scarecrow, the sinister paternalism of Liam Neeson’s Ra’s al Ghul, and the dark charisma of Aaron Eckhart’s Harvey Dent. Tom Hardy’s take on Bane was the low point of the series, thanks to his bizarre voice and the character’s convoluted schemes. But now a new Batman trilogy is finally doing justice to one of Gotham’s most terrifying villains. source https://www.polygon.com/dark-knight-rises-batman-knightfall-comparison/

When the first trailer for The Force Awakens hit the internet, there was a surge of excitement. A new trilogy was on the way, led by fresh talent like Daisy Ridley as Rey, a scavenger with a huge destiny ahead of her, joined by other newcomers to the franchise like John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, and Adam Driver. But even better: these new faces would be joined by legacy icons like Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford. Star Wars fans were hopeful about a new era of greatness for the beloved franchise. source https://www.polygon.com/star-wars-legacy-novel-review/

Jason Statham has a lot of enemies, or at least his characters do. There are the human traffickers Mr. Kwai and Darren "Wall Street" Bettencourt in The Transporter , and Statham squares off with corrupt tech executive Derek Danforth in The Beekeeper . There's also Jose Pablo Cantillo from Crank , who injects him character with poison. Statham's even fought the likes of Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel in the Fast and Furious franchise . source https://www.polygon.com/jason-statham-meg-2-netflix-global/

Avengers: Doomsday , Disney 's scorching-hot new entry from directors Anthony and Joe Russo in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, is only a few short months away from its debut on the silver screen — which makes it even more shocking that we've yet to see a full trailer for the movie, only a bunch of (admittedly very exciting) teasers. source https://www.polygon.com/avengers-doomsday-tickets-sales-infinity-vision/

At this point in his career, you would think that every Stephen King story that could be adapted to film has been — aside from the half-dozen he cranked out since the start of this sentence. Most filmgoers would cite something like It or The Shining here, but King’s also responsible for classic dramas like The Shawshank Redemption or Stand By Me . source https://www.polygon.com/this-stephen-king-the-long-walk-hbo-max/

Most of the time, the success of a manga leads to an anime adaptation being produced and released while the original work is still ongoing. Other times, fans have to wait for 16 long years before seeing their beloved characters come to life on a screen. This was the case for Toshiaki Iwashiro's Psyren , a mystery/supernatural manga that was serialized in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump from 2007 to 2010. Despite good commercial success, with over 4 million copies sold, the series never received an anime adaptation until one was finally announced in 2025. source https://www.polygon.com/psyren-anime-crunchyroll-release-trailer-16-years/

At the end of season 2 of the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon , Master of Whisperers Larys Strong (Matthew Needham) secretly flees King’s Landing with the grievously injured King Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney). Larys stole most of the kingdom’s gold and his plan is to wait out the Targaryen civil war in Essos and return with Aegon once Rhaenyra (Emma D'Arcy) and Aegon’s ruthless younger brother Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) have sufficiently weakened each other. But in season 3, that plan is not going great. source https://www.polygon.com/house-of-dragon-matthew-needham-tom-glynn-carney-interview/

Most reboots are obviously a reboot. After all, the whole point of a reboot is usually to take a well-known intellectual property and squeeze some more cash out of it — a tried-and-true formula for Hollywood movies . But occasionally, a more obscure property gets reimagined that most people don’t even know is based on something that existed before, or the reboot is so good that it completely overshadows the original. source https://www.polygon.com/denzel-washington-equalizer-trilogy-on-hbo-max/

Patch Notes is a weekly newsletter bringing you the best of Polygon, sent on Fridays and published on the site on Sundays. You can subscribe here . source https://www.polygon.com/patch-notes-remakes-assassins-creed-black-flag-resynced/

Matt Damon has always had a knack for playing extraordinary leading men in movies . His casting as the cunning, resourceful Odysseus in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey makes perfect sense once we consider Damon’s decades-spanning filmography. Films like Good Will Hunting (1997), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), and the Bourne (2002-2016) series showcase Damon’s incredible range in playing larger-than-life characters with varying moral compasses. source https://www.polygon.com/matt-damon-elysium-streaming-free-july-2026/

By the time Hades 2 arrived in early access in May 2024, everybody knew to watch it closely. The first Hades had presented thrilling roguelike RPG gameplay that had us saying “just one more run” well past bedtime. The sequel, released in full for PC and consoles the following September promised more of the same and wound up delivering one of the very best games of 2025 . source https://www.polygon.com/bastion-supergiant-15th-anniversary/

Whether you're introducing a new alien species or even a new planet, there are only so many "firsts" you can introduce in Star Wars . For Star Wars: Acolyte , it was a whip lightsaber. For the Star Wars Holiday Special , it was the traditional Wookiee celebration of Life Day. source https://www.polygon.com/andor-star-wars-design-secrets-toilets/

One of the biggest perks of Pokémon Go 's Go Fest: Global 2026 event is the free Timed Research, "Genetic Mastery." This research is only available on July 11 and 12, but it gives you a free Mega Mewtwo of your choosing , so you should make sure to complete it while you can. source https://www.polygon.com/pokemon-go-fest-2026-genetic-mastery-timed-research-mega-mewtwo-x-y-which-to-pick/

Happy weekend. There are numerous movies available on streaming that will hype up your days off, from one of our favorite slashers of the year to a thrilling martial arts movie you’ll wish you caught in theaters. source https://www.polygon.com/new-movies-to-watch-backrooms-july-10-2026/

Magic: The Gathering ’s latest set, Marvel Super Heroes, once again encourages players to get chocolate in their peanut butter as Universes Within and Universes Beyond dovetail in surprising new ways. source https://www.polygon.com/mtg-marvel-super-heroes-magic-mr-fantastic-infinite-combo/

There's a new Assassin's Creed game, which means one thing: people are about to argue over which era of Assassin's Creed games are the best. On one side, you'll have the stalwarts, the players who believed that a series about assassinating historical figures should be true stealth-action games. On the other, you'll have the newer adoptees, who say that 2017's Assassin's Creed Origins kicked off a grander era for the series, with games featuring dizzyingly large open worlds and complex menus of stat fiddling. source https://www.polygon.com/stealth-games-like-assassins-creed/

The live-action Naruto movie, based on the best-selling manga by Masashi Kishimoto, is ramping up production at Lionsgate studios. Director Destin Daniel Cretton ( Spider-Man: Brand New Day ) announced that a worldwide casting search is about to kick off to find the actors who will play the iconic shinobi of Team 7: Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. source https://www.polygon.com/naruto-live-action-film-announcement-worldwide-casting/

German director Uwe Boll is infamous for his so-bad-they're-actually-just-bad movie adaptations of video games like Bloodrayne , Postal , and House of the Dead . Now, in a surprising twist, Boll's latest single-digit-score Rotten Tomatoes movie is getting an official video game adaptation. It's perfectly timed to capitalize on the controversy surrounding the filmmaker's new pic, Citizen Vigilante . source https://www.polygon.com/citizen-vigilante-movie-video-game-ps5-uwe-boll-armie-hammer/

The "And My Sugar?" quest in Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is your first test of stealth. Eavesdropping, blending in with the crowd, and finding alternative ways to get what you need are essential skills for locating the confiscated goods and clearing the Castillo in Havana. source https://www.polygon.com/assassins-creed-black-flag-resynced-and-my-sugar-quest-walkthrough/

Back in February, the Muppets made a huge comeback with their critically acclaimed new special The Muppet Show , hosted by Sabrina Carpenter. Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the original variety series, The Muppet Show garnered an audience of nearly 8 million views in just eight days. At the time, it was suggested that, if the special succeeded, it may lead to a relaunch of The Muppet Show, and while Muppet fans are still awaiting that announcement, the special just received six Emmy nominations, including ones for Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded) and Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special, as well as technical nominations for Outstanding Sound Mixing, Outstanding Picture Editing, and Outstanding Production Design. source https://www.polygon.com/muppet-show-kermit-emmy-nomination/

I'm confused: Is Nintendo back in on mobile gaming, or all out? Barely more than a month ago, the company released smartphone game Pictonico! , its third new mobile game in the space of a year, suggesting it was once again dipping its toes in a market that it had rushed into during the dark Wii U days and then quietly dropped after the Switch took off. source https://www.polygon.com/mario-kart-tour-shut-down-end-of-service/

Black Flag Resynced is halfway between a remake and a remaster of 2013's Assassin's Creed 4 . It's less of an almost-RPG than Ubisoft's more modern Assassin's Creed games; more action-heavy than the Ezio games and Mirage . It falls just about in the perfect spot between balancing stealth and more direct approaches. Black Flag Resynced functions much like any other Assassin's Creed game. You take on missions, sneak your way to the objective (or blow your cover and find a more violent path), and then do some selective murder to get what you came for. In between all that is an abundance of collectibles to track down, if you're so inclined. In Black Flag and Black Flag Resynced , all this takes place during the Golden Age of Piracy in the Caribbean Sea. source https://www.polygon.com/assassins-creed-black-fl...

When anime fans talk about the biggest series ever, most conversations turn to a “Big Three”: Bleach , Naruto , and One Piece . With all due respect, only one of the three remains as relevant within the anime scene than ever before. source https://www.polygon.com/one-piece-fans-are-eating-well-right-now/

When Sony announced it would cease making physical PlayStation games in 2028 , it seemed like the end of an era. It isn't. Polygon spoke with Circana senior director and video game industry advisor Mat Piscatella over email about the timing of Sony's decision and what prompted the company to focus so heavily on digital media. And a more accurate framing of the development is that it continues trends that have shaped the games industry for nearly a decade now, pushing Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo further into their respective niches for better or worse. source https://www.polygon.com/playstation-all-digital-games-industry-future/

Jason Statham has one specific character that occupies an interesting point along the evolutionary path of action heroes. He's at the middle of a spectrum between that one guy Jackie Chan always plays, who is incredibly dangerous for someone who doesn't want trouble, and the borderline psychopaths of the '80s like Marion Cobretti . source https://www.polygon.com/transporter-3-jason-statham-free-streaming/

One of the biggest criticisms Magic: The Gathering fans have regarding Secret Lair is that the limited print run of its drops makes it very hard to buy a product before scalpers stock up and start reselling it at much higher prices. This won't be an issue for the latest drop: Their Magic Is Limitless will be printed to demand and available for two weeks, July 20–Aug. 3. source https://www.polygon.com/their-magic-is-limitless-secret-lair-print-to-demand-charity/

Xbox as we know it is about to look very different, CEO Asha Sharma announced Monday in a publicly distributed memo detailing the company’s new plans. 3,200 layoffs. Four (maybe five) studio divestments. Sweeping changes to management structures. And broad implications about how Xbox will approach its business over the next 12 months. source https://www.polygon.com/xbox-restructure-game-pass-changes/

Vampires are one of the most flexible monsters in the Western canon. If you want hedonistic monsters, watch Interview With a Vampire . If you want just plain monsters, there's the Blade trilogy, From Dusk Till Dawn (but not its sequels, never its sequels), 2024's Abigail , or you could go older-school with Kathryn Bigelow's underappreciated Near Dark . If you're in the mood for unaccountably sexy vampires, there's Interview again, or 1995's Embrace of the Vampire . If you just want a really good vampire movie, watch Sinners . source https://www.polygon.com/this-slow-sad-love-song-of-a-vampire-movie-is-now-available-on-tubi/

Meccha Chameleon , the viral hide-and-seek game in which players paint themselves the same color as the environment, has sold 15 million copies in just 25 days. source https://www.polygon.com/meccha-chameleon-sales-15-million/

At the end of season 2 of House of the Dragon , Queen Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) cut a deal with her childhood best friend-turned-political rival Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) that would allow Rhaenyra to take over King’s Landing but protect Alicent’s children. The bargain quickly went wrong as King Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) secretly fled the city. Alicent and her daughter Helaena were caught trying to do the same. House of the Dragon season 3 episode 3 deals with the fallout from the failed escape, as Alicent finds herself a prisoner in her old palace and tries to figure out how to work with Rhaenyra to protect her family and the Seven Kingdoms. source https://www.polygon.com/house-of-the-dragons-season-3-episode-3-interview/

Rick and Morty season 9 ends on July 26, but fans won’t have to wait long for more wild animated sci-fi adventures. The season finale will be followed by the premiere of President Curtis , a spinoff following U.S. President Andre Curtis (Keith David) and his efforts to protect America from a mix of occult and alien threats. Here’s what we know about the series and how you can watch it. source https://www.polygon.com/rick-and-morty-president-curtis-premiere-release-date-story/

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End has swiftly become one of the most beloved fantasy anime. It's a story that doesn't focus on the age-old hero’s quest, but instead begins long after the storied battle of good over evil has ended. With the Demon King long buried, the series aims to ask what happens when the greatest adventure of a lifetime becomes nothing more than a memory. It’s a deceptively simple premise that has evolved into one of the medium’s most emotionally resonant stories, blending breathtaking action with a meditation on grief, friendship, and the passage of time. source https://www.polygon.com/frieren-season-3-anime-expo-panel-announcement-release/

Few anime carry the weight of Ghost in the Shell . Since Masamune Shirow’s manga first appeared in 1989, the franchise has shaped decades of science fiction storytelling, inspiring filmmakers, game creators, and anime directors alike. From the landmark 1995 film by Mamaru Oshii to Stand Alone Complex and even the more recent series, every new installment arrives with its own intriguing perspective on what the Ghost in the Shell should look like. source https://www.polygon.com/ghost-in-the-shell-new-anime-vision-anime-expo/

Ryan Condal has proven that he's not afraid to be bloody and brutal when it comes to killing characters, major or otherwise, in House of the Dragon . That shouldn't be a surprise given that it's an adaptation of George R.R. Martin's 2018 novel Fire & Blood , which, spoiler alert, features many deaths throughout Targaryen history, particularly during the civil war between the Blacks and Greens. source https://www.polygon.com/how-does-helaena-die-in-house-of-the-dragon-fire-and-blood/

With Anime Expo 2026 happening this weekend, it was likely that some big Demon Slayer anime news was around the corner. While it wasn't the big announcement about part 2 of Infinity Castle that fans were hoping for, there's still something good on the horizon: Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba The Movie: Infinity Castle finally has a streaming release date. source https://www.polygon.com/demon-slayer-infinity-castle-movie-streaming-release-crunchyroll/

For decades, Yoshitaka Amano’s unmistakable artwork has shaped fantasy itself, from Final Fantasy to Vampire Hunter D . Despite influencing generations of artists, one of his own original stories has remained largely untouched. That changed at Anime Expo 2026, where Amano and his collaborators unveiled the first proof-of-concept footage for ZAN , an ambitious hand-drawn adaptation of his fantasy novel that feels determined to swim against the current of modern anime production. source https://www.polygon.com/zan-yoshitaka-amano-anime-expo-hand-drawn-series/

Few modern anime have evolved as dramatically as Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation . What began as the story of a deeply flawed man getting a second chance in another world has steadily transformed into an expansive fantasy saga about consequences and growing up, without ever losing sight of the messy humanity at its core. source https://www.polygon.com/mushoku-tensei-season-3-anime-expo/

Back in 2017, when Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle came out, I assumed it would be yet another pale imitation of a movie I loved from my youth. The idea of Jumanji being a video game instead of a board game just seemed wrong. How could a video game ever give off the ancient, haunted vibes the original board game had? Plus, I’m not really a huge fan of either Dwayne Johnson or Kevin Hart . They’re fine, but they’ve got nothing on Robin Williams , the biggest comedic voice of my childhood and someone whose movies still make me laugh today. source https://www.polygon.com/best-jumanji-movie-dwayne-johnson-the-rock-vs-robin-williams/

For five years, Star Wars: Visions has been home to some of the franchise’s boldest ideas, but few episodes have lingered in fans’ minds quite like volume 1 episode 5, “The Ninth Jedi." Kenji Kamiyama’s sweeping tale of a galaxy where lightsabers have become legend stood taller even than some of Lucasfilm's own projects. Now, The Ninth Jedi is back as an eight-episode series, premiering Aug. 5 on Hulu and Disney Plus. Fans got a sense of what to expect at Anime Expo, where Lucasfilm unveiled the first trailer for Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi. source https://www.polygon.com/new-article-1783041545/

Dragon Striker quietly premiered on Disney Plus in June, and it's one of the easiest recommendations I'll make all year. Disney barely marketed the fantasy sports series to its Lilo & Stitch -enamored mainstream audience, but without exaggerating, it deserves to be mentioned alongside the best family animation on television. source https://www.polygon.com/dragon-striker-season-2-release-date/

The back end of 2026 is absolutely stacked when it comes to excellent video games, and one of the standouts is Onimusha : Way of the Sword . This upcoming Capcom game is an action-adventure RPG set in ancient Kyoto, Japan, where you play as a samurai wielding a gauntlet that allows you to slay Genma, mysterious monstrosities that have risen from the underworld. source https://www.polygon.com/onimusha-way-of-the-sword-release-date-change-forward/

Star Trek is in a tough spot. The 59-year-old sci-fi franchise launched a series of streaming shows over the past decade in an attempt to build Paramount Plus into a true Netflix competitor. Now, that effort is winding down as Trekkies prepare for the Original Series' 60th birthday this September. But before then, the last show standing from Star Trek's streaming era will take one more big swing this summer. source https://www.polygon.com/strange-new-worlds-season-3-plot-explainer/

After a long wait, the Rhythm Heaven series is finally getting another title in Rhythm Heaven Groove . This rhythm game will test your inner metronome and ability to stay on beat, as you jump through hoops, open umbrellas, and even jump over windshield wipers. source https://www.polygon.com/rhythm-heaven-groove-beginners-tips-tricks/

A lot has changed between the launch of Rhythm Heaven Fever in 2011 and Rhythm Heaven Groove , the latest installment in the quirky music series on Nintendo Switch. While the series once felt like the wackiest thing in the world, Rhythm Heaven Groove is now fairly average on the weird-o-meter. Its brand of musical minigames isn’t unique anymore either; plenty of games inspired by Rhythm Heaven have sprouted out in the past 15 years, and even raised the bar it set in every way. source https://www.polygon.com/rhythm-heaven-groove-review/

Mario Kart World , the flagship Nintendo Switch 2 game that so many people own thanks to it coming bundled with consoles at launch, has received a new update today. source https://www.polygon.com/mario-kart-world-update-1-7-0-knockout-tour-new-routes/

If there's one thing the X-Men love, it's getting caught up in time-travel shenanigans. Dating back to the formative 1981 comic storyline Days of Future Past by Chris Claremont, science-fiction tropes like alternate timelines and temporal displacement have been a mainstay of the franchise. X-Men '97 season 2 is no exception. source https://www.polygon.com/x-men-97-season-7-mother/