Greg Thomas and Ryan Schubert break down all the ins and outs of Jordan Peele’s second season of The Twilight Zone. In Season 2, Episode 9, When Claudia (Kylie Bunbury) has a chance run-in with Mark (Topher Grace) at a museum, he dazzles her with his seemingly miraculous abilities. After the true source of his charisma is revealed, the encounter takes a dark turn.
Greg and Ryan break down the plot, list the Twilight Zone references and Easter eggs, and give their overall thoughts and reactions to “Try, Try”.
Disclosure: ViacomCBS is GameSpot’s parent company.
On this week’s episode of Wrestle Buddies, GameSpot’s professional wrestling podcast, Mat Elfring and Chris E. Hayner are joined by Ring of Honor’s senior official Todd Sinclair, who tells us all about the life of a referee and the ridiculously important role they play–and how weird that role can get.
Additionally, the Wrestle Buddies dive into the world of mysteries within wrestling, and our first unsolved wrestling mystery looks back at the time WWE blew up Vince McMahon for two weeks. That’s right, Vince McMahon once got into a limousine and it exploded on television.
Photo credit: RING OF HONOR/Robert Bellamy
Finally, we take a lot at WWE’s plans to develop its own hotel and casino in Las Vegas during the ’90s. Do you remember that? Probably not since it never got past the developmental phase. However, WWE had some huge plans. Additionally, we answer a few of your questions.
New episodes of Wrestle Buddies are released every Thursday on the podcast platform or app of your choice, including Spotify, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts. You can also keep up to date with the podcast by following it on Twitter.
Next-generation consoles are nearly upon us. Both Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 are coming before the end of the year–the new Xbox is now confirmed for November–meaning we’re no more than three months away from having new consoles in our hands. Despite that, we still don’t know exactly when they’re coming and, more notably, how much they’ll cost. But you don’t have to look that far back to see the wait for this information isn’t unprecedented.
Nintendo Switch launched on March 3, 2017, but it wasn’t until January 12–less than two months earlier–that Nintendo shared a price or release date. That’s 50 days before launch! It’s wild to think that news came so late in the game, but that didn’t stop the Switch from selling out when pre-orders went live just hours after the date and price were announced (though there were some available at launch). Likewise, Xbox 360’s price wasn’t announced until mid-August, just three months before launch.
I’ve seen people continue to express astonishment that such critical details about PS5 or Xbox remain unknown at this late stage. And I get it: Who can forget PS3’s “five-hundred and ninety-nine US dollars” at E3 2006, five months before release? We heard about pricing for PS4 and Xbox One back to back during E3 in June 2013, again, five months before they hit store shelves. While this year may not have seen an E3, we have already gotten events from both Sony and Microsoft that effectively served as substitutes for their usual E3 press conferences, and yet these details remain unknown as of mid-August.
PS5 and Xbox Series X are going to sell out at launch regardless of their exact release dates and prices. Supply constraints are always the major hurdle for a major new console launch, and that’s certain to be the case once again this fall, Halo Infinite or not.
Sony and Microsoft are playing something of a cat-and-mouse game, but they are reaching a point where they’ll have no choice but to announce pricing. As NPD’s Mat Piscatella points out, retailers need to have this information in order to open pre-orders and to generally handle the logistics of selling a new piece of hardware. Once retailers begin to get that information, it will invariably leak, so it’s likely that both companies would aim to make an announcement around the time retailers are informed.
At some point retail hardware allocations must get locked. Retailers have to know how many they’ll have to sell, and how much they’ll have to spend to acquire the inventory. Once that happens, prices will get out there. But we’re getting late in the game, retail needs to know.
Piscatella does also intriguingly note the prospect of Sony or Microsoft wanting to focus on selling the systems through their own online stores. Of course, that might not sit well with retail partners, and there’s already some question if GameStop–which famously refused to sell the all-digital Xbox One S model–will carry the PS5’s Digital Edition, which lacks a disc drive and thus cuts into GameStop’s lucrative used game business.
We’ve made our own predictions for how much Xbox Series X and PS5 will cost, with many of us here at GameSpot expecting them to come in around the $500 mark. The real wild card will be the still-unannounced Xbox Series S and just how low Microsoft decides to push its price. The goal with that system will surely be to undercut the price of both Series X and PS5, but it can only effectively make that announcement once we know what those confirmed consoles will cost.
One way or another, we’ll be finding out about pricing soon, and once we do, that should set off a flurry of other announcements. Exciting times lie ahead.
The Dark Souls-like action-RPG, Mortal Shell, releases digitally for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on August 18, but if you’re looking to snag a physical edition of the dark-fantasy romp, then you’re in luck. Publisher Playstack announced physical editions for both consoles and PC are coming on October 2 for $30 each. The physical editions will launch in North America and Europe and are expected to be available through major retailers–however, no listings have gone live as of yet.
Mortal Shell’s physical release comes with a few bonuses, including a fold-out poster and softcover artbook that features concept and character art. While the PS4 and Xbox One versions will include discs, the PC version’s physical release will only have an Epic Games Store code in the box. Mortal Shell is exclusive to Epic’s storefront, with a Steam release coming in 2021.
Mortal Shell physical edition
$30
With Mortal Shell’s physical release date being later, it gives you some time to make a decision on actually purchasing the game. It goes live on PS4, Xbox One, and PC on August 18, which means you’ll be able to read reviews before making a decision. In our Mortal Shell hands-on preview, GameSpot editor Phil Hornshaw praised its combat, abilities, and the dark world he explored during the open beta.
“All those elements work to make Mortal Shell deliberate, strategic, and calculating in a way that’s similar to, but not the same as, From Software’s games,” he wrote. “Mortal Shell is a tough and punishing game like those that inspire it, but in the short preview we played, it found ways to take elements of the Dark Souls formula and recombine them into something new.”
The 2020 TV season has been massively affected by production shutdowns. Here are the shows that were forced to ditch epi
Canceled premieres, production hiatuses, and adjusted release schedules have become the norm for the entertainment industry in 2020. We’ve already rounded up every movie that has been postponed because of the pandemic, so now we’re turning our attention from the big screen to the small one. It’s time to take a look at what’s going on on the TV side of the equation.
The truth is that virtually every television production, regardless of size, network, or genre, has been affected in some way by the quarantine protocols, so rather than give you a list of, well, every single TV show currently airing, we narrowed the focus. These are shows that either had to truncate their currently airing seasons all together, like most of the Arrowverse or dramas like Empire, or shows that had to hit the pause button while production was already well underway like Disney+’s Falcon And The Winter Soldier. We won’t be going over shows that are now nebulously delayed after season renewals or shows that are traditionally taped live each week–they obviously won’t be coming back for a while.
So, with that in mind, here are 29 TV shows that have had to make some major adjustments because of the pandemic.
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1. Batwoman (The CW)
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2. Supergirl (The CW)
Supergirl shutdown production, moving its finale to Episode 19 rather than Episode 20 of Season 5.
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3. The Blacklist (NBC)
The Blacklist’s planned 22-episode Season 7 was cut down to 19 episodes.
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4. Dynasty (The CW)
Dynasty truncated its third season from 22 episodes to 20 episodes.
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5. Empire (Fox)
Empire’s final season was cut from 20 episodes to 18, forcing the production team to completely reconfigure the series finale.
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6. The Flash (The CW)
Season 6 of The Flash ended at Episode 19 rather than the planned 22.
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7. The Goldbergs (ABC)
The last episode of Season 7 was never finished, resulting in an Episode 23 season finale rather than Episode 24.
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8. Grey’s Anatomy (ABC)
Season 16 of Grey’s Anatomy ended with Episode 21 rather than 25.
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9. Legacies (The CW)
Legacies cut its second season off at Episode 16 for a “spring finale.”
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10. Nancy Drew (The CW)
The show’s first season ended with Episode 18 rather than the planned 22.
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11. Riverdale (The CW)
Riverdale was able to complete 19 of it’s planned 22 episode Season 4.
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12. Supernatural (The CW)
Only 13 of Supernatural’s 20-episode final season were able to be aired on schedule. Production is hoping to resume in the fall.
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13. Superstore (NBC)
Superstore was unable to complete Season 5’s final episode, ending on episode 21, titled “California (Part 1)” without plans for part 2’s completion.
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14. Fargo (FX)
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15. The Walking Dead (AMC)
Season 10 was placed on hold after production shut down starting at Episode 15. Episode 16 is scheduled to air on October 4.
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16. Doom Patrol (HBO Max)
Doom Patrol was unable to complete Season 2’s final episode, ending with Episode 9 rather than 10.
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17. Barry (HBO)
Season 3 of Barry had to halt production. It currently has no set premiere date.
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18. Legends of Tomorrow (The CW)
Season 5 of Legends of Tomorrow lost its last episode, halting at Episode 14 rather than 15.
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19. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (Disney+)
The first Disney+ MCU show was forced to stop filming and push its premiere back. It was originally scheduled to hit the streaming service in August of 2020, and currently has no new date set.
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20. Glow (Netflix)
Season 4 was forced to halt production and postpone its planned premiere. It currently has no set date to return.
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21. The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu)
Season 4 shut down production and pushed its premiere to 2021.
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22. Lucifer (Netflix)
Season 5’s premiere was delayed after production shut down, but luckily fans won’t have to wait much longer. The first part of the season will premiere on August 21.
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23. Loki (Disney+)
Every MCU show headed to Disney+ that had started filming in 2020 was forced to shut down. Loki’s release date is still, currently, set for May 7, 2021.
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24. WandaVision (Disney+)
Like Loki, WandaVision was forced to halt production in March, but has not been officially delayed. It is currently set to premiere in December 2020.
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25. Russian Doll (Netflix)
Filming on Russian Doll’s second season was halted in March. It is expected to hit a new premiere date in 2021.
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26. Stranger Things (Netflix)
Season 4 of the hit show was scheduled to begin filming in January but production had to be halted in March. It’s currently unknown what sort of delays this will cause for its scheduled 2021 release.
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27. The Wheel of Time (Prime Video)
Production on the first season of the highly anticipated fantasy show actually began in August of 2019, but was paused in March of 2020. It’s not known how many episodes were completed or what sort of delays this will cause.
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28. Lord of the Rings (Prime)
The LOTR TV show began filming in February on location in New Zealand just one month before shutdowns forced it to temporarily close up shop.
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29. Foundation (Apple TV)
The series based on the book by Isaac Asimov shut down production in March, and it’s unknown what sort of delay this will mean for the premiere.
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Disclosure: ViacomCBS is GameSpot’s parent company
Put on your aviator sunglasses, because Microsoft Flight Simulator lands on PC on August 18. The game uses real-time satellite data to create an intricately detailed representation of the planet. It’s peppered with real-life airports, cities, geographical features, and even traffic and animals.
You can fly over your house and see it represented in the game. You can even turn on real-time weather conditions to make the in-game weather match what’s happening IRL around the globe. Or you can tweak the conditions however you prefer. Check out our Microsoft Flight Simulator preview for a deeper look at what to expect.
Microsoft Flight Simulator is available for preorder now. It comes in three editions, the differences of which are detailed in the above image.
Microsoft Flight Simulator Is Included in Xbox Game Pass
You don’t actually have to shell out $60 to play the game. It will be included in Xbox Game Pass for PC, a subscription service that’s currently in beta.
If all you want is the base game, this is the edition to get. Note that you can still land in and fly out of all the airports in the pricier tiers. The difference is that those editions contain specific handcrafted reproductions of those airports.
The deluxe edition comes with everything in the standard edition, “plus 5 additional highly accurate planes with unique flight models and 5 additional handcrafted international airports.” Here’s the extra content:
The premium deluxe edition comes with everything in the standard game, “plus 10 additional highly accurate planes with unique flight models and 10 additional handcrafted international airports.” Here are the extra airports and planes:
Enhanced Premium Deluxe Edition Airports
Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (Netherlands)
Cairo International Airport (Egypt)
Cape Town International Airport (South Africa)
O’Hare International Airport (USA)
Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas Airport (Spain)
Denver International Airport (USA)
Dubai International Airport (UAE)
Frankfurt Airport (Germany)
Heathrow Airport (UK)
San Francisco International Airport (USA)
Additional Premium Deluxe Edition Planes
Diamond Aircraft DA40-TDI
Diamond Aircraft DV20
Textron Aviation Inc. Beechcraft Baron G58
Textron Aviation Inc. Cessna 152 Aerobat
Textron Aviation Inc. Cessna 172 Skyhawk
The Boeing Company 787-10 Dreamliner
Cirrus Aircraft SR22
Pipistrel Virus SW 121
Textron Aviation Inc. Cessna Citation Longitude
Zlin Aviation Shock Ultra
Microsoft Flight Simulator Editions Compared
Here’s a visual guide for which airports and planes you get with each edition.
In comic lore, Cheetah is one of Wonder Woman’s greatest adversaries. In most versions of the character, she’s a rich heiress with a victim complex and a selfish streak, who gains supernatural felinic powers through bad means. Her strength is otherworldly–enough to draw blood from Superman and best Wonder Woman in a physical fight.
Cheetah will be one of the villains in the upcoming Wonder Woman 1984. And although we’ve seen plenty of Wonder Woman’s signature Golden Armor, we still haven’t seen a photo or video of a full-blown Cheetah. This is by design. According to an interview that comedian and actress Kristen Wiig did with InStyle, even Wiig wasn’t allowed to take any photos.
“This was [a] lockdown,” Wiig said. “They have it somewhere, and you will see it. But there are different evolutions to my character. I will leave you with that.”
Based on a recent trailer, in which Wonder Woman gasps to an unseen person, “Barbara, what did you do?” It seems like Warner Bros. wants the final reveal to be a climactic surprise. But if you’re impatient, there are a couple of places where you can get a decent idea of what the final Cheetah will look like.
WW84 Lego Playset
The first is this Wonder Woman vs. Cheetah LEGO playset, a tie-in to the upcoming movie. The set includes three mini-figures: Wonder Woman, Max Lord, and Cheetah, in what appears to be a half-human, half-cheetah hybrid.
Cheetah doll from Mattel
The second is this retail Cheetah doll by Mattel, which is available at retail outlets Walmart, Target, and Amazon.
The doll’s official details state, “This Battle Cheetah doll is inspired by her final transformation into the powerful Super-Villain, and with head-to-toe true-to-movie details, she’s prepared to fight for her claim to power.”
This is probably the most accurate depiction of Cheetah that we’re going to get until October 2, when the movie finally opens in theaters. Starring Gal Gadot in the title role, Wonder Woman 1984 will pit Diana Prince against two classic DC villains: Barbara Minerva aka Cheetah, played by Kristen Wiig, and Maxwell Lord, played by Pedro Pascal.
At this week’s WFH Theater and as part of our Star Wars Week, we’ll be watching Episode VI – Return of the Jedi. Joining us in this digital event are special guests Rahul Kohli and Sam Witwer, a returning duo with a passion for Star Wars that (almost) rivals our own.
This isn’t the first time we’ve had Kohli and Witwer as guests on our show. You may remember our The Empire Strikes Back watch party in May where we celebrated its 40th anniversary. If you enjoyed the show then or if you missed it and would like to join us for their return, here’s everything you need to know to tune in.
WFH Theater Star Wars: Return of the Jedi Start Time
The Star Wars: Return of the Jedi WFH Theater is scheduled for Friday, August 14, and will start at 5 pm PT and 8 pm ET. If you’re joining us from the UK or Australia, that changes to Saturday, August 15 at 1 am BST and 10 am AEST. There will be a 30-minute countdown leading up to the start of the movie which will run about 2 hours and 10 minutes long. The hosts will also stick around after the movie is finished to answer any questions from viewers in the chat.
Where to watch the Star Wars: Return of the Jedi WFH Theater Event
We’ll be hosting this week’s WFH Theater solely on YouTube. Our special guests will be in the chat alongside our hosts responding to viewers as they watch and talk about the movie. Here’s the list of places you can watch the Star Wars: Return of the Jedi WFH Theater event:
If you’d like to know more about our guests, take a moment and familiarize yourself with some of the projects they have worked on.
Rahul Kohli
Rahul Kohli is an actor who’s starred in various British dramas such as Eastenders and Holby City. He’s best known for his roles as Jack Spheer in Supergirl and Ravi Chakrabarti in iZombie, and he’s also voiced characters Fahz Chutani in Gears 5 and the Scarecrow in the Harley Quinn TV series. Make sure to look for him in the upcoming Haunting of Bly Manor and check him out on Twitter.
Sam Witwer
Sam Witwer is an actor known for his role as Professor Ben Lockwood in Supergirl and his Dark Side roles in Star Wars productions such as The Force Unleashed, Solo, and The Clone Wars. He has also voiced characters in video games, some of which include Deacon St. John from Days Gone and Emperor Palpatine in the Star Wars: Battlefront series. Check him out on Twitter.
Final Fantasy XIV‘s Moonfire Faire is now underway, but that’s not the only event players will be able to take part in this month. Square Enix has announced that FFXIV’s Yo-kai Watch collaboration is also returning soon, and it will feature new weapons, mounts, and more exclusive rewards to earn.
To begin the Yo-kai Watch quest, you’ll need to speak to the poor-heeled youth at the Steps of Nald in Ul’dah. You’ll need to have a character that’s at least level 15 to accept the mission and have completed one of the three following main story quests:
The Gridanian Envoy
The Lominsan Envoy
The Ul’dahn Envoy
Upon completing the Yo-kai Watch quest, you’ll receive the Yo-kai Watch itself as well as the Yo-kai Medallium, which will allow you to collect different Yo-kai Medals. Turn these medals over to the wandering executive at the Gold Saucer and you’ll be able to befriend their respective Yo-kai and summon them as minions.
To collect Yo-kai Medals, you’ll need to equip the Yo-kai Watch and participate in FATEs in certain areas around Eorzea. There are 17 Yo-kai in total in FFXIV, and you’ll gain the ability to summon them as minions after you’ve befriended 13. You’ll also receive the Whisper-go mount after hitting that milestone.
In addition to the regular Yo-kai Medals, you’ll also be able to earn Legendary Medals from FATEs. These can be traded for an assortment of different Yo-kai weapons. You can read more details about the collaboration event on the official FFXIV website.
The Yo-kai Watch collaboration kicks off on August 19 and runs until the release of FFXIV’s next update, Patch 5.4. The aforementioned Moonfire Faire, meanwhile, is underway until August 26 and features new summer-themed clothing and other rewards to earn. Square Enix is also holding a free FFXIV trial right now, and if you’re interesting in trying out the MMO, be sure to check out our FFXIV starter guide before jumping in.
Hitman III developer IO Interactive surprised fans when it announced last week that the entire trilogy of stealth titles will be compatible with PlayStation VR when it releases in January 2021 on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. The developer released a four-minute video that gives fans a better look at what to expect when stepping into Agent 47’s virtual shoes. This includes a look at the additional freedom players will have when using the contracted killer’s weaponry and how going first-person impacts the gameplay.
Lead game designer Sidsel Marie Hermansen says playing Hitman in virtual reality feels like an entirely new experience. The immersive nature of VR is aided by the existing level of detail, and the studio making sure that each location feels like a lived-in world with characters that have their own routines. The developer describes the experience as being more “powerful” and that it’s easy to get distracted by side conversations that take place.
“Every little thing wants to take center stage,” senior game designer Eskil Mohl explains. “Before in the third-person game, maybe you got a little distracted from something else but now you can’t escape them anymore. They’re right in your face. I found myself traversing the levels slower and just taking everything in because it’s so dense with detail.”
Since players have full control over Agent 47’s hands when playing the PlayStation VR mode, it has resulted in some gameplay changes. Rather than simply pressing a button to unleash a melee attack, players can now swing a crowbar at enemies and even tap their shoulders with it to get their attention beforehand. Likewise, players can now blindly fire around corners that they reach around. The first-person action also adds some risk to going prone on the ground as any vegetation will block the player’s view, creating new challenges for players to tackle when trying to sneak around.
“We are simulating a living world with a lot of different characters,” creative director Christian Elverdam says. “Witnessing that in VR … you feel a part of that living, breathing world in a completely new way. I think it’s going to be raising a few eyebrows.”
While the VR mode is exclusive to PlayStation platforms, Hitman III is also set to release on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and Stadia.
