As we get closer to the summer season of video game livestreams, it looks like the "GOAT" of them all is preparing to get the party started early. Goat Simulator developer Coffee Stain North has revealed that a Goat Direct will be broadcast on April 1 at 7 AM PT / 10 AM ET through its YouTube channel, and fans can expect announcements for Goat Simulator 3 and a number of of reveals from its partners. Yes, we know that this event has been announced for April 1, but publisher Coffee Stain has assured us that this is definitely happening and it won't be a repeat of the Goat Simulator musical that failed to materialize.

"Come one, come all to the grand finale of Goat Simulator's anniversary year," Coffee Stain North creative director Santiago Ferrero said in a press statement. "2024 will always be the 'Year of the Goat' in our hearts, but we can’t wait to celebrate even more exciting revelations coming in 2025. We do realize that announcing lots of new things on April Fools' Day isn’t always the best of ideas--but we think we’ve truly outdone ourselves this year--so please believe us and tune in to Goat Direct."

Coffee Stain added that the Goat Direct will include an update on the previously revealed Goat Simulator: The Card Game alongside several secret announcements. Will that include a Goat Simulator reality show about finding love called The Baaaa-chelor? An art exhibit featuring the works of Vincent van Goat? More silly Billy puns? Probably not.

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Lego has revealed its new Lord of the Ring Shire set, a kit that will allow fans of the film trilogy to build the iconic home of the Hobbits. Priced at $270, it'll go on sale starting April 2 for Lego Insiders first and then roll out to everyone else starting April 5. Lego Insiders will also get a free Lord of the Rings gift valued at $40 with their purchase.

Lego The Lord of the Rings: The Shire $270

This set contains 2,017 pieces and nine minifigures, and as you'd expect, it contains various details from the Lord of the Rings films it appeared in. The bulk of the pieces are dedicated to rebuilding the home of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins--Bag End-- and you'll be able to build various rooms. The collection of minifigures here includes Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo, Frodo, and Samwise Gamgee, so you can relive moments from the Fellowship of the Ring. Other parts of the set include Gandalf’s cart, the dragon fireworks, and the party tree where Bilbo celebrated his 111th birthday.

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For the free gift, Lego Insiders will get a cute little set that captures one of the darker moment from the films. This is a quick-build 181-piece kit that recreates the tragic scene where Smeagol and Deagol discover the One Ring that was thought to be lost.

While Lego hasn't produced as many Lord of the Rings sets in recent years as it used to--the majority of these have been retired--we have seen impressive kits roll out lately. The enormous replica of the Barad-Dur tower is a space-stealing structure composed of almost 5,500 pieces, but it is pricey at $460. If you're looking for something that'll take several hours to build, this could be worth picking up as it features numerous rooms like Gollum's hideout, Sauron's throne room, and a prison for Orcs, all with several cool Easter eggs hidden inside of them. Once fully built, it reaches nearly three feet in height.

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In a new showcase, Capcom has announced a limited-time event coming to Monster Hunter Wilds that will see the game's new Grand Hub area cosmetically overhauled, with rewards to be earned.

Each season, a unique celebration will be held in the Grand Hub, an area introduced in the first Monster Hunter Wilds title update. From April 23 to May 7, Festival of Accord: Blossomdance will be the first event to take place in the area. The space will be cosmetically transformed, with tens of beautiful cherry blossom trees spilling flowers into the area, and the available meals changing.

Blossomdance adds plentiful cherry blossom trees to MHW

Hunters can earn limited-time equipment, gestures, camp decorations, and more. For Blossomdance, these are aptly flower-themed, with pink and white colors being prevalent. While Capcom didn't detail the specific activities or challenges available during Blossomdance, it did reveal that events that have previously appeared in the series will return too, giving us a good guess at what we may have to undertake to earn these rewards.

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Ahead of its launch later this week, InZoi has overtaken Hollow Knight: Silksong in order to become the most wishlisted game on Steam.

This was spotted by VGC, who monitored data directly from Steam and third-party websites like SteamDB. Although Hollow Knight: Silksong technically has more followers on Steam, according to SteamDB, that data shows that over 52,000 people have wishlisted InZoi prior to its March 27 launch, skyrocketing its follower total to over 244,000. That's enough to make it display as the most wishlisted game on Steam. The top five is rounded out, in order, by Hollow Knight: Silksong, Deadlock, Elden Ring Nightreign, and Mecha Break.

InZoi is a life sim game that clearly draws inspiration from series like The Sims. Players can create and customize virtual humans called "Zois," before watching them go about their daily lives. When InZoi comes out this Friday, it'll be part of the Steam Early Access program. GameSpot's early-access review of InZoi saw potential in what it played, praising its visuals and customizations, but noted that there's still much to improve regarding gameplay.

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The first title update for Monster Hunter Wilds has been announced by Capcom, and comes with a brand-new area, new monsters, and time-ranked Arena Quests.

The Monster Hunter Wilds update release date is April 3, 2025, and is free for all players. A new event, Festival of Accord: Blossomdance, is also on the way soon.

The Grand HubThe Grand Hub

The Grand Hub, which can be unlocked after Hunter Rank 16, is a gathering place packed with more activities and socializing for Hunters to do. Capcom promises Hunters will be able to interact with each other in new ways, including arm-wrestling competitions and the new Barrel Bowling minigame. Hunters will have to roll barrels into targets, with varying rewards available for higher scores. To start the game, you'll need Barrel Bowling vouchers, which can be earned in various ways including login bonuses.

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A fun myth to hear about relates to a friend's uncle working at Nintendo to get the scoop on secrets. But what if your buddy's aunt actually did work at Valve, and his CD-burning gifts to you sparked Valve's utilization of DRM decades ago? That's apparently what happened, according to former Valve chief marketing officer Monica Harrington.

PC Gamer reports that Harrington told the unlikely Valve DRM origin story featuring her 19-year-old nephew at the Game Developers Conference. "At the time, consumer-level piracy was just becoming a real issue," Harrington said. "My own nephew had just used a $500 check I'd sent him for school expenses and bought himself a CD-ROM replicator, so he sent me a lovely thank you note essentially saying how happy he was to copy and share games with his friends."

Keep in mind that CDs were the distribution model for PC games decades ago, before digital storefronts existed. So the fact someone could easily rip a game and share unlimited copies with friends was a threat to companies. As such, Harrington credits her nephew's antics for sparking Valve to act with a DRM strategy.

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Season 2 of The Last of Us introduces a new character created for the show, Gail, who is a therapist based in Jackson, Wyoming. Played by Catherine O'Hara, Gail was originally envisioned to appear in Season 1, but it didn't work out for a variety of reasons. In Season 2, viewers will see Pedro Pascal's Joel go to therapy--and he might not always tell her the truth.

"Now that Joel and Ellie have settled into Jackson, we really wanted to make Jackson a character," writer Neil Druckmann told The Hollywood Reporter at the Season 2 premiere. "This sense of community. It felt like, 'Oh, a therapist could be part of Jackson.' It's something everyone would need in the apocalypse after the trauma they've experienced."

Photograph by Liane Hentscher/HBO

Druckmann also teased that the team found a way to weave Gail into the narrative, being that she is the wife of Eugene, who is played by The Matrix actor Joe Pantoliano. Eugene was referenced in The Last of Us: Part II the game, but never seen.

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The GTA modder and superfan who goes by the handle Dark Space caught the attention of fans by recently releasing a playable recreation of the Grand Theft Auto 6 map in Grand Theft Auto 5. However, he has announced that he has ceased all work on the project after being struck by a takedown from Rockstar owner Take–Two.

Dark Space created the free-to-download map solely based on the official trailer shots of GTA 6 and some unverified leaks, then uploaded gameplay footage to his YouTube channel. GTA fans who have been feeling deprived of any new information about the upcoming game downloaded the modded map off FiveM en masse. That's when he noticed messages from YouTube about his videos being taken down due to a copyright strike.

In an explanation video, the creator says that Take-Two requested that his videos be removed, resulting in his first copyright strike. Multiple strikes can result in the termination of an entire channel.

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The Last of Us Season 2 has seven episodes, compared to nine for Season 1. Why is Season 1 shorter? And how many seasons will the show have overall? The key creatives behind the series have now weighed in to share some insight on both topics.

Speaking at the Season 2 premiere, showrunner Craig Mazin said it was clear early on that the story of The Last of Us: Part II the game would not have fit nicely in one season, so the decision was made to break it into at least two seasons. "We just sort of thought, 'How would we want to lay this out going forward all the way to the end, and where is an interesting point to end a season?,'" he said.

"It could have been nine episodes; it could have been six. It happened to be seven because that's where the story went to for this season," Mazin added. "Next season? We're not actually sure how many it might be because we have to lay it out again."

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The undead walkers of The Walking Dead are invading the islands of Fortnite Creative, and they're bringing with them the first new Walking Dead item shop skin since 2021: Negan, who lands in the shop on April 4.

The Walking Dead Universe is the latest franchise to pitch its tent in Fortnite's metaverse by adding assets that can be used in Fortnite islands made using Unreal Editor for Fortnite, the big ones being the walker NPCs, and a prison island template based on that prison that TWD's protagonists had to live in early on in the series. And starting with the next patch, on April 8, Negan will be usable as a Creative NPC as well.

There are some goodies for all of Fortnite Creative as well, like Lucille--Negan's barbed wire-wrapped bat--and a Shiva Shotgun inspired by King Ezekiel's tiger BFF. To really give your island a despairing vibe, creators can make use of the Heavy Linework post-processing effect to make the whole place look like it popped out of the pages of the black-and-white Walking Dead comics themselves.

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Just a week after launch, Assassin's Creed Shadows appears to be the success story that Ubisoft is in need of right now. Just hours after it arrived, Ubisoft confirmed that 1 million people were playing the game, and after the crucial first weekend, that figure jumped to 2 million players. One of the big metrics that the game has been judged by is its concurrent players on Steam, and while it hasn't yet surpassed the numbers set by 2020's Assassin's Creed Valhalla, that might be an unfair comparison to make.

Speaking to IGN, a Ubisoft source revealed that Shadows was responsible for the second-highest day-one sales revenue in the Assassin's Creed franchise, while Valhalla held onto its top spot. According to the internal email shown to IGN, 27% of Shadows' total "activations" were on PC--covering various distribution channels on that platform--with Steam playing a major role as this was the first Assassin's Creed game in several years to launch day-one through that storefront.

On console, Shadows was Ubisoft's best ever day-one launch on the PlayStation Store. Ubisoft also noted that player engagement is at "record levels" and feedback across "moderated, verified platforms" remains very positive.

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Over five years ago, Paradox Interactive announced Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2, the long-awaited sequel to 2004's Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines. As the game faced multiple delays and switched developers, fans had to wait even longer. But now, the World of Darkness looks a little brighter and Bloodlines 2 may be arriving soon.

The Entertainment Software Rating Board has given Bloodlines 2 an M rating, which could mean that a release date announcement will come soon. The only details about the story from the ESRB's description are that players will be tasked with helping two vampires regain their memories and lost powers while facing an uprising among the undead.

Bloodlines 2's Mature rating appears to largely be due to the game's combat, which allows players to violently dispatch enemies using physical and vampiric powers. Beheadings, claw-slashing, and snapping necks are all options, and player-characters will be able to feed on human NPCs to sustain themselves. Somewhat humorously, the ESRB also shared a few samples of the game's sexually suggestive dialogue.

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A Nintendo Direct is reportedly set to air sometime this week, right before the scheduled Switch 2 Nintendo Direct on April 2.

According to insider NateTheHate2, the Direct will be on or around Thursday, but but he is not sure if it will be formatted like a traditional Nintendo Direct or something like an Indie World Showcase. Another Chinese leaker, who revealed the entirety of the June 2024 Nintendo Direct, said that there will be a show focusing on the original Nintendo Switch "in three days."

It's possible that Nintendo would want to showcase what's still coming to Switch this year before showing off the Switch 2. Not everyone will be early adopters of Switch 2, and analysts predict that it won't sell as well as its predecessor. Having two separate Directs lets Nintendo focus entirely on its upcoming system during its April 2 show.

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Perhaps the biggest addition to the cast of HBO's The Last of Us for its second season is Kaitlyn Dever in the role of Abby. One person who is particularly excited to see Dever play the role is Halley Gross, the co-writer of The Last of Us: Part II the game.

Speaking at the Season 2 premiere, Gross sang Dever's praises, saying she predicts her performance as Abby will raise the bar for women on TV.

"We're all curious to see how people are going to react to Abby. Kaitlyn Dever is a profoundly magnetic actress. She brings so much to Abby," Gross told Variety. "I think she's an incredible, complex depiction of female rage. But also just female passion. She is this dimensional female character that I think is going to broaden our idea of what women can do in TV."

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Pedro Pascal, who plays Joel in HBO's The Last of Us, has discussed the "sometimes sick pleasure" of working on the post-apocalyptic series and how "storytelling is cathartic" when the real world is undergoing change and upheaval as it is today.

"There's a very healthy and sometimes sick pleasure in that kind of catharsis and a safe space to see human relationships under crisis and in pain and intelligently draw a political allegory, societal allegory, and base it off of the world that we're living in," he said, as reported by Variety.

Also during the call with reporters, Pascal discussed why he's excited to see The Last of Us come back for its second season, after the first was such a hit.

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After being unavailable for a while, you can now snag the recently released Vault Boy plush duck by Tubbz at Amazon with Prime shipping. This nine-inch plush launched in February and sold out multiple times when it first became available to preorder in January. Amazon had originally priced the Vault Boy plush duck at $30, but it's currently listed for $25.

Tubbz Rubber Duck Plush - Fallout Vault Boy $25

Like several other Tubbz plushies, these duck-ified versions of famous movie and TV characters are made from high-quality plush fabric and are designed to be cuddled. They also have a weighted base so that they can be displayed upright and they're machine-washable as well. Unlike the rubber duckies, these aren't meant to accompany you in the bathtub, unless you'd like a soggy duckie that'll take forever to dry out.

This particular model is based on the design of Vault Boy, the mascot of the Fallout series. He typically stars in informative videos that guide players through the crumbling remains of a post-apocalyptic world, never losing the smile on his face.

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Tubbz has several other collectible duck plushies figures based on popular franchises available. You can grab huggable duckies of characters like Chucky from Child's Play, several Jurassic Park dinosaurs, and even Pennywise from Stephen King's It. This version of Pennywise is based off of the clown's appearance in the recent two-part film adaptation. He is both cute and creepy in duck form.

Lord of the Rings fans can get plush duck versions of Frodo and Gandalf the Grey with a glorious beard.

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Samsung 1TB Pro Plus microSD Card (180MB/s)

$80 (was $120)

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Samsung 1TB Evo Select microSD Card (160MB/s)

$70 (was $100)

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Samsung's 1TB Pro Plus microSD Card is on sale for a new all-time low price at Amazon as part of the retailer's Big Spring Sale. Normally $120, the 1TB Pro Plus is discounted to only $80. If you really like Sonic the Hedgehog, you can get the same 1TB card with Sonic's face emblazoned on it for $90 (was $126). Speedy and reliable--we're talking about the microSD card, not Sonic--the Pro Plus is one of the best options for expanding the storage space on your Steam Deck or handheld PC. But since Samsung only entered the 1TB microSD market last summer, we haven't seen as many steep discounts on these cards as we have on SanDisk's popular cards.

Alternatively, you can grab Samsung's 1TB Evo Select microSD for $70. This price matches the card's all-time low, whereas the previous low price for the Pro Plus was $90. The Evo Select is up to 20MB/s slower than the Pro Plus, but it's still a great card for Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck as well as handhelds running Windows or Android.

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8BitDo Retro Mechanical Keyboard - Xbox Edition

$102 (was $120)

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Retro R8 Mouse with Charging Dock - Xbox Edition

$60

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8BitDo's Xbox-inspired transparent green keyboard is on sale for the first time since its release earlier this year. The Retro 87 Mechanical Keyboard, which is officially licensed by Xbox, launched in January for $120, but Amazon's limited-time deal drops the price of this stylish and versatile wireless gaming keyboard to $102. You can You can pair the Retro 87 with the matching Retro R8 Wireless Gaming Mouse for $60.

• 8BitDo Xbox Edition TKL Mechanical Keyboard -- $102 ($120)
• 8BitDo NES-Inspired TKL Mechanical Keyboard -- $76 ($100)
• 8BitDo Famicom-Inspired TKL Mechanical Keyboard -- $80 ($100)

Amazon also has deals on several other retro hardware-inspired 8BitDo keyboards, including the Nintendo Entertainment System-themed N Edition for $76 (was $100).

8BitDo Retro 87 Wireless Mechanical Keyboard - Xbox Edition

$102 ($120) | PC, Mac, Android

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Persona 5 + Persona 5 Royal: Official Design Works

$62.20 (was $75)

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Persona 5 + Persona 5 Royal: Official Design Works is on sale for its lowest price yet. Published by Udon Entertainment last November with a retail price of $75, this 500-page doorstopper of a book is discounted to $62.20 at Amazon. It's marked as a limited-time deal, though it's unclear when the promotion expires.

If you're interested in picking up a book that takes an in-depth look at the art direction of one of the most stylish games in its genre, you probably shouldn't wait too long. Official Design Works books covering older entries in the Persona and Shin Megami Tensei series have been out of print for years.

Persona 5 + Persona 5 Royal: Official Design Works $62.20 (was $75)

This is essentially a two-in-one art book, as you're getting a look at both Persona 5 and its enhanced and expanded edition, Persona 5 Royal.

Because it covers two games, this newly translated work is bigger than the average video game art book. The 544-page hardcover is filled with artwork from the earliest stages of development to materials used to promote the finished games.

The concept art, sketches, character illustrations, and design drawings are accompanied by commentary from the development team throughout. It also includes an exclusive interview with Persona series artist Shigenori Soejima.

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If you haven't played it, Persona 5 tells the story of the Phantom Thieves, high school students who save people from the twisted desires of those around them by awakening the power of their true selves. It's wonderfully weird stuff, and worth checking out. It's available on all modern platforms, and since it has been out for a few years, you can get a pretty good deal on a game that'll keep you occupied for dozens of hours. If you really want to spoil yourself, you can also check out this collector's edition for Persona 5 Royal. The 1 More Edition is sold out for Nintendo Switch and Xbox, but Amazon still has a few PS5 copies.

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Stephen King's The Dark Tower - 8-Book Box Set

$68.90 (was $161)

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Amazon has a terrific deal on Stephen King's epic dark fantasy series The Dark Tower. For a limited time, you can get all eight novels in one box set for only $68.90, which is nearly $100 off its original retail price. The Dark Tower 8-Book Box Set often sells for around $100-$120, though the price has shot up to around $150 multiple times in recent months. The $69 deal is the best price we've seen in a long time and just a few bucks shy of the all-time low.

The Dark Tower is Stephen King's longest and most iconic series. It debuted in 1982 with The Gunslinger and finally wrapped in 2004. The series garnered critical praise and earned the author legions of new fans. The Dark Tower deftly blends fantasy, science fiction, and western genres to tell the story of the last gunslinger Roland Deschain's quest to find the eponymous Dark Tower.

Stephen King's The Dark Tower - 8-Book Box Set $68.90 (was $161)

All told, the eight book box set eclipses 4,700 pages across the seven mainline novels and Book 4.5, The Wind Through the Keyhole, which was published in 2012. This box set includes trade paperback editions of the complete series. On their own, the paperbacks carry list prices of $16-$20--though you can typically save a few bucks on each.

• The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger
• The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three
• The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands
• The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass
• The Dark Tower 4.5: The Wind Through the Keyhole
• The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla
• The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah
• The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower

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Along with the books, you’ll get a collectible case to keep them safe on your bookshelf.

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