Scientists have picked up on a strange radio signal coming from outer space which seems to repeat in a noticeable pattern.
The Independent reports that although these aren’t the first fast radio bursts scientists have observed, they may well be the most unusual thanks to the regular and predictable pattern in which they occur. Fast radio burst is a term used in radio astronomy to describe very short transient radio bursts, usually under a few milliseconds long. They are said to be caused by unknown, extreme, and unusual places in space.
These oddly regular bursts were picked up by the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment, which looks specifically for fast radio bursts to determine their origin. In a paper, the scientists described the repetition and pattern as “an important clue to the nature of this object”. They repeat in a 16-day cycle, appearing frequently for four days, occurring at least every hour, and then dropping quiet for the other 12.
While researchers aren’t sure exactly what’s causing it, they have narrowed the signal down to likely be emanating from the edge of a huge spiral galaxy around 500 million light years away. It is also likely to be from a binary system and could potentially be being disrupted by a black hole, based on previously detected objects with similar characteristics.
Other theories for sources of fast radio bursts even include potential communications from far away alien races, though probably unlikely.
Two SNES game never before released in the United States are being added to the Nintendo Switch Online lineup for February 2020.
According to Business Wire, the two SNES games coming to Nintendo Switch Online on February 19 – Pop’n TwinBee and Smash Tennis – have never had official releases in North America before now. They will be joined by two NES titles – Shadow of the Ninja and Eliminator Boat Duel.
Pop’n TwinBee is a vertically scrolling top down shooter developed by Konami which released in 1993 in Japan and then also in PAL regions but never made it to the United States. Smash Tennis also released in 1993, but was under the name Super Family Tennis in Japan and made by Namco. It gained the title Smash Tennis when it released in Europe in 1994.
These two titles bring the number of SNES games available on Nintendo Switch Online to 52 since they became available back in September 2019. This makes it a grand total of 78 games on the service which include other cool unreleased games like Star Fox 2, which came out in last December’s offering.
Warning: this review contains full spoilers for The Flash: Season 6, Episode 11. If you need a refresher on where we left off, here’s our review for Season 6, Episode 10.
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It’s almost Valentine’s Day, which usually means The Flash is taking a break from weightier matters to dabble in romantic drama and more lighthearted hero/villain conflicts. And given that we’re only two episodes removed from Crisis, why not? What’s the harm in a little goofy fun before the show dives headlong into its new Mirror Master storyline? “Love Is a Battlefield” manages to shift the series in a sillier direction without completely losing sight of the threads introduced in the midseason premiere. In the process, it even manages to do something fun with one of the series’ more frustrating villains.
Though “Love Is a Battlefield” builds directly on the terrific cliffhanger ending from last week, it makes a point of not resolving that cliffhanger. If anything, there’s a fun dose of tension to this followup. We don’t know what exactly happened to Iris when she was dragged into Eva McCulloch’s mirror dimension. What does she remember? Is this even the real Iris? Those questions become all the more urgent as Iris begins acting strangely hostile and reckless and pushing Barry away in a time when they should be savoring the holiday and their happy ending from Crisis.
The tension works because Mirror Iris is never portrayed in such a way as to seem totally out of character. It’s not unreasonable to assume that Iris really is fed up with being the damsel in distress and having Barry’s metahuman woes constantly getting in the way of their relationship. Nor is it a huge leap to believe Iris would take the end of Crisis as an opportunity to reinvent herself and carpe diem her heart out. If anything, this series has established that a gung-ho, aggressive Iris is the way to go.
So with that in mind, it’s almost a disappointment to get confirmation in the closing stinger that the real Iris has been replaced by a mirror version. I wouldn’t necessarily mind if this transformation were a genuine evolution for her. But a lot rests on how the series proceeds with the Mirror Master conflict. We need a better sense of how Iris and her mirror self are linked and what makes these mirror clones different from alternate universe doppelgangers. There’s no point in casting judgment just yet.
This episode also stands out for making unusually solid use of Amunet Black. Katee Sackhoff has always been enjoyable in the role – clearly she’s having a blast hamming it up in each and every scene – but Amunet always tends to be reserved for the most forgettable, throwaway storylines. Granted, this week’s conflict is a very low stakes one. The writers practically have to bend over backwards to justify Barry not bringing Amunet to justice in a split second. But it’s a fun conflict nonetheless, and one that makes excellent use of the romantic tension between Amunet and her equally ostentatious ex-lover, Goldface. And however silly the main story is this week, it does succeed in giving Amunet something resembling depth and humanity.
Unfortunately, while the main Iris/Amunet conflict this week works as both a fun romp and a prelude of things to come for the Mirror Master conflict, the B-plot falls completely flat. Season 6 has yet to really justify adding Allegra to the mix. Even the reveal that she’s apparently the long-lost daughter of Nash is doing nothing to boost Allegra’s standing. Like I said last week, we’ve already done the “Harrison Wells tries to reconnect with his angsty daughter” shtick, and there’s little appeal in returning to that well now. Why is this plot twist even needed? Those few moments this episode spends in exploring Nash’s lingering guilt over his role in Crisis argue that the character already has all the dramatic fodder he needs without the family angle.
Even ignoring the Nash factor, Allegra’s struggle this week fails to make her a more interesting character. Heck, most of her arc happens off-screen, in between pep talks with Frost. It’s enough to wish Frost herself had been the focal point of this subplot, as she tries to embrace her newly independent existence by trying her luck at love. Maybe next year.
Both titles arrive in the Switch’s US eShop on February 19. With the new additions, there will be 52 NES games in the library and 26 SNES titles for a total of 78 freebies for subscribers.
Check out the video above to see these titles in action. GameSpot’s managing editor, Peter Brown, speaks highly of Shadow of the Ninja in particular. He says, “Shadow of the Ninja is a sick-ass NES game and you can quote me on that.”
Pokemon Home, the cloud-based Pokemon storage service, is now live on Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android.
Pokemon Home allows trainers around the world to manage their collection of Pokemon across multiple games, trade with others, participate in Wonder Box and the Global Trade System, and much more.
After downloading the free Pokemon Home App on either Nintendo Switch,iOS, or Android, users will also be given the option to upgrade to a Premium Plan for $2.99 (£2.69 on Switch / £2.99 on smartphones) for one month, $4.99 ($4.49 on Switch / £4.99 on smartphones) for three months, or $15.99 (£14.49 on Switch / £15.99 on smartphones) for 12 months.
The Premium Plan allows for transferring of Pokemon from Pokemon Bank to Pokemon Home, raises the deposited Pokemon limit from 30 to 6,000, lets users place 10 Pokemon in Wonder Box instead of 3 and have 3 Pokemon in Global Trade System instead of 1, allows for players to host in addition to participate in Room Trade, and gives the ability to utilize the Judge function.
It’s also important to note that there are differences between the Nintendo Switch version and mobile phone versions. The Nintendo Switch version of Pokemon Home does not allow for trading, receiving Mystery Gifts, and checking Battle Data and News.
The mobile version, on the other hand, does not let trainers move Pokemon from Pokemon Sword, Pokemon Shield, Pokemon: Let’s Go, Pikachu!, and Pokemon: Let’s Go, Eevee! or exchange Pokemon Home Points for BP (Battle Points).
Pokemon Home will not be compatible with Pokemon GO at launch, but that functionality is currently being worked on. Unfortunately, there is no time table for its release.
While the fans and critics have all weighed in on Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker to divisive results, there are many who have been waiting to hear what The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson thinks of the film. Now, the wait is over. Johnson spoke to MTV while walking the red carpet for the 2020 Academy Awards and shared how he felt after watching JJ Abrams complete the Skywalker Saga.
“I had a blast, man,” Johnson said. “Made me so proud and seeing the heart and soul that JJ put into it. And seeing my friends who were in the movie just like, bring the whole thing to a conclusion. Yeah, for me as a Star Wars fan, it was a really special experience.”
Johnson clearly enjoyed himself watching the film, although he didn’t get into any specifics. If anything, Johnson would have reason to be miffed at how The Rise of Skywalker unfolded because it seemed to contradict, ignore, and outright retcon numerous things he did in The Last Jedi, from Rey’s parentage to the restoration of the Skywalker saber. Much has been made about how Abrams and co-writer Chris Terrio’s story went out of its way to “fix” things that certain fans didn’t like about The Last Jedi, but Johnson seems unbothered by any of that.
Joshua is Senior Features Editor at IGN. If Pokemon, Green Lantern, or Game of Thrones are frequently used words in your vocabulary, you’ll want to follow him on Twitter @JoshuaYehl and IGN.
If you’ve been following the pre-release buzz around Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers, then you’re probably aware that it’s as close to a direct sequel as you could get to the original RPG. Developed in conjunction with Koei Tecmo and Omega Force (makers of Dynasty Warriors games), Atlus is bringing an action game that continues the story of the Phantom Thieves while still delivering the core Persona experience of exploring cities in Japan during free time and making connections with characters (both old and new) throughout the story.
However, you might be wondering how the game actually plays, this being a Musou-style action game and all. Persona 5 Scramble certainly shows elements of the Warriors games, namely tearing through ridiculously large enemy hordes. But based on what we’ve seen from previews in Japan and our own experience playing the demo that’s only available on the Japanese Eshop and PSN, its combat is shaping up to be more than hack-and-slash by incorporating many of the RPG elements found in Persona 5.
While you have basic attack combos, Persona 5 Scramble includes spell casting based on the persona(s) equipped on the character you’re controlling. By holding R1, you bring up your list of abilities and time stops, allowing you to aim the spell’s area of effect before setting it off. What’s more, Scramble retains the mechanics of exploiting enemies’ elemental weaknesses to do increased damage and stagger them. Guns are another option, letting you lock-on targets to get off a few shots; it’s not the most effective attack, but it’s great against enemies weak to the gun element.
After hitting a weakness, you can initiate the series’ signature all-out attack where all party members jump into the scuffle to lay down heavy damage on staggered enemies and any others within range. You also build up a separate meter to initiate Showtime attacks which include a quick, flashy cinematic cut before dealing a ton of damage. Bosses present a slightly different challenge as they have armor that needs to be broken by exploiting their weakness continuously while dealing with mobs. Much like Persona 5 itself, fights are hyper-stylized but move fast to keep the action moving at a brisk pace.
There’s a lot going on in the chaotic battles of Persona 5 Scramble.
Mobility is another key piece that Scramble doesn’t seem to overlook; you have the ability to dart across high-up places like streetlights and scaffolding to get the drop on enemies with a sort of whirlwind attack. And there’s something liberating about having a dedicated jump button (as opposed to context sensitive actions) for platforming and navigating the chaos, which emphasizes the slick, acrobatic sensibilities of Persona 5.
There’s still more we haven’t seen from Persona 5 Scramble, though it’s nice to see how the core RPG’s battle mechanics make the gameplay dynamic. The demo itself only showed a snippet, acting mostly as a tutorial but we now had hands-on with Atlus’ approach to a Persona action-RPG. We’ll get a better picture of the game when it launches for PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch on February 20 in Japan and later this year in the West.
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Quentin Tarantino’s latest movie, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, featured a long list of famous actors like Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio, and it could have featured one more big name. Home Alone star Macaulay Culkin revealed in an interview with Esquire that he auditioned for a role.
Unfortunately for Culkin, however, he bungled the audition. It was so bad that he wouldn’t have cast himself if he was the casting director. “It was a disaster. I wouldn’t have hired me,” he said. “I’m terrible at auditioning anyway, and this was my first audition in like eight years.”
Culkin did not share which role he was going for or any other details about his audition.
Brad Pitt won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance as Cliff Booth in Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, marking Pitt’s second Academy Award win and his first in an acting role.
The movie also features Leonardo DiCaprio, Margot Robbie, Timothy Olyphant, Dakota Fanning, Austin Butler, Al Pacino, and Luke Perry in his final movie role before his death.
The Once Upon A Time In Hollywood movie may expand to a new medium. Quentin Tarantino told Deadline that he plans to direct a spin-off TV show focused on Leonardo DiCaprio’s Rick Dalton character from the fictional TV show Bounty Law.
Surprising absolutely no one, Activision Blizzard has confirmed that a new Call of Duty game is set for release in 2020; however, curiously, the company has not yet confirmed which team is developing the title. For eight years, Activision Blizzard has maintained a strict pattern when it’s come to Call of Duty’s development cycle. So when, on the February 2019 Activision quarterly call, the publisher remained coy about which of its developers is working on the Call of Duty game scheduled for 2020, it led to speculation that something unexpected may be afoot this time around.
To delve into what could be in the works for 2020’s Call of Duty, we’re going to have to look back at several years of Call of Duty history and examine how Activision has traditionally handled reveals for the franchise.
Activision has managed to get a new Call of Duty game out the door every year since 2005’s Call of Duty 2 (though you could argue that, technically, a new game has come out every year from the very beginning if you count 2004’s Call of Duty: Finest Hour, the console version of the original 2003 PC game). There are four Activision studios currently associated with Call of Duty development–Infinity Ward, Treyarch, Raven Software, and Sledgehammer Games. The first two have been mainstays, while the latter two initially served as support studios. For Sledgehammer, that changed in the last decade, as Activision made the developer the main studio behind Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare and Call of Duty: WWII.
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Initially, Activision went back and forth between Infinity Ward and Treyarch, having the two complete Call of Duty games in two years while Sledgehammer and Raven supported the two where needed. From 2012 through 2019, however, Activision adopted and maintained a new pattern with Call of Duty: Treyarch releases a Call of Duty game, then Infinity Ward, then Sledgehammer, and then the three repeat in that order. This gives each studio a buffer of about three years between each game they make, which probably makes it easier for Activision to maintain its annual Call of Duty release schedule.
In 2012, Treyarch released Black Ops II, and went on to make 2015’s Black Ops III and 2018’s Black Ops 4. In 2013, Infinity Ward released Ghosts, and then followed with 2016’s Infinite Warfare and 2019’s Modern Warfare. Sledgehammer released Advanced Warfare in 2014 and then WWII in 2017–the developer should be scheduled to release its third Call of Duty game in 2020, assuming the trend continues, and followed by Treyarch releasing its next game in 2021.
Or at least, that should be the plan, but Activision hasn’t confirmed whether that’s the case. According to Kotaku, Activision was already handling the release of 2020’s Call of Duty a little differently, partnering up Sledgehammer with Raven to tackle the project together, similarly to how Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer partnered on Modern Warfare 3. A slight change, but nothing that would disrupt Activision’s pattern.
But, according to that same Kotaku report, things have not been on track for Sledgehammer and Raven, so Treyarch is now the studio in charge of 2020’s Call of Duty. Sledgehammer and Raven were reportedly working on a Call of Duty set during the events of the Cold War but tensions between the two teams (combined with both Sledgehammer co-founders leaving the studio and several additional devs following suit) resulted in delays. Both Sledgehammer and Raven are reportedly reassigned as support studios for Treyarch, which is rumored to be working on Black Ops 5, and the game is now coming in 2020–a whole year early.
Activision hasn’t confirmed any of this, but recent announcements have at least lent greater credence to the idea that 2020’s Call of Duty will, in some capacity, break from the tradition the publisher has maintained these past eight years.
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So perhaps that’s where Treyarch comes in. Treyarch decided to forgo a traditional single-player campaign in 2018’s Black Ops 4 and instead included a battle royale mode called Blackout (which turned out to be popular). So perhaps Activision is tapping Treyarch to develop a new Call of Duty game that is focused around battle royale–one that can be bought as a standalone game but is still connected to Modern Warfare in some capacity.
Of course, because Activision hasn’t confirmed any of this, all of what we say here could end up being false conjecture. Activision may have just held out on announcing which developer is working on 2020’s Call of Duty because it just doesn’t want to say which one it is yet. Which is a boring explanation but still entirely possible.
If, however, the disruption to Activision’s Call of Duty schedule is true, it raises questions about the future of the franchise. Prior to 2012, Activision just went back and forth between Treyarch and Infinity Ward–would the publisher return to only two studios headlining new Call of Duty games? Could it maintain its annual release schedule if that were the case? Should it even try to maintain that schedule when both Modern Warfare and (the immensely successful) Call of Duty Mobile are great examples of how individual Call of Duty games can continue to excel via regular post-launch support and content updates?
Regardless of what happens, something at least seems to be up with 2020’s Call of Duty, because Activision is being oddly coy about who’s actually responsible for the game. Or maybe we’re just thinking too hard about all this.
