Amazon Prime now has more than 200 million subscribers. As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, the figure was revealed by outgoing CEO Jeff Bezos in a letter to shareholders.
Bezos is about to become the company’s chairman later in the year and is handing CEO duties over to Andy Jassy. In his final letter to shareholders in the company, Bezos revealed the huge subscriber number, which puts it only slightly behind Netflix. In January this year, it was reported that Netflix had increased its subscriber base to 203.66 million in 2020. However, it’s worth remembering that access to Amazon Prime Video is included in a standard Prime subscription, so not every Prime member necessarily watches the video streaming platform.
In his letter, Bezos praised Jassy, who will move from running Amazon Web Services. “Andy is brilliant and has the highest of high standards,” he said. “I guarantee you that Andy won’t let the universe make us typical. He will muster the energy needed to keep alive in us what makes us special. That won’t be easy, but it is critical. I also predict it will be satisfying and oftentimes fun.”
While Netflix and Amazon clearly lead the streaming pack, they are facing increased competition from other platforms. In March, it was reported that total streaming subscriptions had exceeded one billion worldwide. Disney+ now has more than a million subscribers, while the combined number of HBO Max and HBO subscribers exceeds 61 million worldwide. NBCUniveral’s Peacock has also racked up 33 million sign-ups since it launched in May last year, although the cost of securing content means that it lost $914 million in 2020.
The new action movie Memory from James Bond director Martin Campbell (GoldenEye, Casino Royale) will feature some big names. It’s been confirmed by Collider that joining the previously announced star, Liam Neeson, will be Guy Pearce (Memento), Monica Bellucci (Spectre), and Harold Torres (ZeroZeroZero).
Neeson stars in the movie as Alex Lewis, who is described as an “expert assassin with a reputation for discreet precision.” That is familiar territory for Neeson, who played a similar-sounding character in the Taken series.
Monica Belluci in a scene from Spectre
Lewis refuses to take a job for a crime organization and then finds himself as the target of a hit, so he must go on the offensive and hunt down his assailants. The twist is that Lewis has memory loss, which complicates his mission at every turn.
Pearce and Taj Atwal (Line of Duty) are set to play FBI agents who track the fallout from Lewis’ actions, while Torres plays the Mexican intelligence officer Hugo Marquez. Bellucci plays a “local tech mogul,” according to the report.
Memory is based on the book De Zaak Alzheimer from Jef Geeraerts and the Belgian movie The Memory of a Killer, adapted for the screen by Dario Scardapane (The Bridge). The movie is currently filming in Bulgaria, but a release date has not been set for the film at this point.
To celebrate the launch of New Pokemon Snap, Pokemon Go is holding an event based on the upcoming Switch spin-off later this month. The event kicks off on April 29 and features various Pokemon inspired by the environments of the Lental region, New Pokemon Snap’s setting.
Throughout the event, Lotad, Cacnea, Ducklett, and other Pokemon that you’d find in deserts, jungles, and underwater will appear in the wild more frequently than normal. Smeargle will also be appearing more frequently when you take snapshots, and you’ll have your first chance to catch a Shiny Smeargle in the game during the event.
In addition to the increased wild Pokemon spawns, Vaporeon, Meganium, Trapinch, and other monsters will appear in Raids. There will also be event-exclusive Timed and Field Research tasks to complete. These, fittingly, will be focused around taking snapshots.
Finally, Niantic says it will be adding a new camera avatar item and camera-themed gift sticker to Pokemon Go’s in-game shop. The Pokemon Snap event runs until 8 PM local time on May 2. You can read more details about the event on the official Pokemon Go blog.
New Pokemon Snap itself launches for Nintendo Switch on April 30. Like its N64 predecessor, it’s an on-rails game about photographing Pokemon in their natural habitats. You can read more about the title in our New Pokemon Snap preorder guide.
Development on Legendary’s Toxic Avenger reboot continues. Actor Peter Dinklage is already set to play the titular Avenger, and now Jacob Tremblay will join him according to Deadline.
The original 1984 film, produced by Troma Entertainment and co-directed by founders Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz, sports Troma’s trademark low-budget visual effects and grotesque imagery. It tells the story of a man named Melvin who, after being pushed into a vat of toxic waste, transforms into a mutant. He has to save his family and town from organized crime and corrupt officials.
Deadline did not specify Tremblay’s role, but it seems likely that the actor will play Melvin/Toxie’s son. Tremblay is best known for his breakout role starring in Room alongside Brie Larson, as well as his role in Wonder, about a child living with Treacher Collins Syndrome.
Toxic Avenger didn’t get much traction during its initial release, but New York’s midnight cinema scene gave it new life, and Toxie appeared in multiple sequels, a children’s cartoon and toys, and video games on NES, Nintendo Game Boy, and the Sega Genesis. Legendary acquired the license in 2018. Alongside Dinklage and Tremblay, Macon Blair is set to direct, while original co-directors Kaufman and Herz are producing the film.
Legendary has not yet set a release date for Toxic Avenger.
As previously revealed, E3 is returning in 2021 as a “reimagined” and “all-virtual” event that will take place June 12 – 15, 2021. As with previous years, major names in the video game industry will be present and showing off their latest games. Of course, E3 is also partnering with major media outlets for coverage, and GameSpot is one of them.
GameSpot will be working closely with E3 to deliver breaking news, interviews, opinions, and more. We’ll be streaming everything, so make sure to tune in right here from June 12 to get exciting content as it happens.
“We are focused on ensuring that E3 continues to be the most innovative and collaborative event in the video game industry, so enlisting some of the industry’s biggest media partners to help deliver the highly-anticipated news, reveals and more is crucial to a successful showcase,” said Stanley Pierre-Louis, president & CEO of the ESA. “Each media partner will be instrumental in driving E3’s reach to more fans than ever before. With this year’s digital format, we’re looking to provide our audiences with exciting and unique ways to experience the magic of E3.”
E3 2021 is just one piece of our summer coverage plans as we’re bringing back Play For All in 2021 too. As with last year, we’ll be bringing in friends from across the industry to put together fun streams where you can watch and also donate to charity. Well-known developers will be making an appearance, alongside notable personalities from other websites, and, of course, the GameSpot faces you know and love too.
Super Mario Maker 2‘s final Ninji Speedrun event is now underway until April 27. This event is called Bowser’s Castle: The Last Dash, and it challenges players to run multiple laps through a vast, trap-laden castle.
As Nintendo describes, “To clear the final Ninji Speedrun course, you’ll need to run a few laps around Bowser’s Castle! It’s packed with tricky gimmicks, putting all of your skills to the test. Keep at it, and go for the best time you can get!” You can check out some screenshots of the new speedrun course below.
The final #SuperMarioMaker2 Ninji Speedrun event is here! To clear the final Ninji Speedrun course, you’ll need to run a few laps around Bowser’s Castle! It’s packed with tricky gimmicks, putting all of your skills to the test. Keep at it, and go for the best time you can get! pic.twitter.com/Tc9omxd3mo
As Nintendo previously announced, this final event is “bigger than usual.” As such, it runs for two weeks rather than the usual one, concluding at 7 PM PT / 10 PM ET on April 27. You’ll still be able to play the course after the event officially ends, but your time won’t be counted.
This event seems to mark the end of Nintendo’s support for Super Mario Maker 2. The game’s final content update was released last April and introduced a World Maker mode, as well as a plethora of new enemies, power-ups, and other tools with which to make your courses. Since then, Nintendo has regularly held Ninji Speedrun events in the game, although no other new content has been added.
This event also comes less than a month after Nintendo officially wrapped up its Super Mario 35th anniversary celebration. After that campaign concluded on March 31, Nintendo delisted two limited-time releases: Super Mario 3D-All Stars and Super Mario Bros. 35. The latter was succeeded one week later by Pac-Man 99, a new battle royale-style game that’s free for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers.
As if you needed another reason to jump into Final Fantasy XIV–the popular MMORPG from Square Enix–the PlayStation 5 version of the game just went into open beta this week. It’s available for all players who have a PS4 copy of the game or are currently running the free trial with their account, and it comes with a slew of perks afforded by the more powerful hardware. From super-fast load times to crisper visuals, FFXIV can now take full advantage of the PS5 as opposed to simply running the PS4 version through backwards compatibility.
When running the PS5 version, you have three graphics options: “Full HD” that does 1080p and prioritizes hitting 60fps, “WQHD” that uses a 1440p resolution while targeting up to 60fps, and “4K” that runs native 4K resolution and improves overall draw distance but will experience lower frame rates. I spent a few hours hanging in the Limsa Lominsa lower decks with the large and rather enthusiastic crowds and ran a few dungeons to get a feel for how the PS5 handles high player counts in each mode. Even though it can struggle at times, this is a major improvement over the PS4’s capabilities and a worthy upgrade for those who play on console.
In 4K mode, you’ll notice the game chugging to what feels like around 30fps in the huge Lominsan crowds, and doesn’t always hit a silky smooth frame rate when out and about in the less dense areas of FFXIV’s world. However, the visuals are crisp, akin to running maximum settings on the PC version at native 4K. Although you’re not getting 60fps, I felt the experience was consistent enough as to not detract from gameplay, which I gathered from running The Twinning dungeon.
When using WQHD (1440p resolution), the frame rate picked up noticeably–this is what I would recommend PS5 players to use. While 4K can make an aged game look a bit fresher, visuals were never really FFXIV’s strong suit. The boost in frame rate lets you have a better handle of things, especially in battle. Even in just navigating the world, playing the game is much easier on the eyes when things are moving smoothly and consistently. This still comes with some hiccups here and there: Encountering dense crowds in popular zones during peak hours result in some noticeable performance drops. They’re just not as pronounced as they are in 4K.
PS5 players who haven’t made the jump to a 4K display yet get a bit of a treat with the 1080p Full HD mode which seems to keep the frame rate closer 60fps more consistently. Of course, those on 4K displays will notice visual compromises.
The PS5 graphics options in the system configuration menu.
What’s a constant for all PS5 players are the ultra-fast load times. While the console’s SSD makes loading for backwards compatible games much shorter, native PS5 versions of games are capable of tapping into more of the hardware’s potential. Warping from zone to zone only takes a matter of seconds, regardless of where you’re going in FFXIV’s world. It only took five to seven seconds to teleport between each different zone, like from Limsa Lominsa to New Gridania to Kugane to The Crystarium. On the PS4’s HDD, loading in these instances often took more than 20 seconds. The PS5 rivals the NVMe SSD I’ve been using on my PC, and it’s great to see that the console (which is using the same tech) can flex its power to provide a more seamless experience.
One more PS5-specific thing worth mentioning is the DualSense capabilities. The subtleties of controller vibration come through in this updated version of FFXIV, which is a neat feature. Rumble reacts to the surfaces you’re stepping on, but it’s more pronounced with mounts. I could feel the wings of my Yol mount flap through the sides of the DualSense. I could also sense the impact of mounts lifting off and landing on the ground. Although it’s a non-essential feature, it’s something that could encourage me to spend time on the PS5 version, especially if future updates add more extensive DualSense features.
I’ll admit that I’ve been spoiled by spending almost all of my 800+ hours in FFXIV on PC with mostly high-end hardware. This is a thing very specific to FFXIV, but if you’re not using a display with pronounced colors, the game can look rather washed out–I get around this by using the Reshade mod on PC that offers a slew of options like bloom, richer colors, and better contrast. So with that being my point of reference, I still acknowledge that the PS5 version stands strong. After all, FFXIV is a tremendous game, and even though it can show its age from a visual standpoint, the PS5 provides some noteworthy upgrades for console players.
Taking down The Tycoon in The Twinning dungeon on PS5. You must increase the music volume.
Also, keep in mind that Square Enix said we can expect more performance updates over time through subsequent patches–it’s tough to say exactly what this is going to mean. This is currently a beta, but Square Enix stated that if all goes well, it’ll simply roll the beta into full service. But for now, the free upgrade is a great perk for PS5 owners that enhances the console experience in meaningful ways.
Now, this is where I direct you toward all our FFXIV coverage and, yes, the hefty free trial that includes the full base game and first expansion Heavensward, which lets you play through all content up to level 60. If you’re looking to jump in, check out my FFXIV beginner’s guide to get started on the right foot. Patch 5.5 just dropped and while I will have thoughts and feelings to share soon, you can catch up on everything we know about the upcoming Endwalker expansion and read my interview with director/producer Naoki Yoshida about FFXIV’s past and future.
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The Fast & Furious franchise has never been afraid to raise the stakes, even if that meant racing souped-up muscle cars against airplanes, tanks, or even nuclear submarines. With the latest trailer for F9: The Fast Saga, though, a long-running fan theory has officially been confirmed: The Fast & Furious crew is going to space. Is this a terrible idea for the franchise, though?
The final shot in the new trailer sees Roman (Tyrese Gibson) and Tej (Chris “Ludacris” Bridges) seemingly blasting off to space in a muscle car that’s been turned into a rocketship. While you could argue that’s the next (il)logical leap for the franchise to make–and it’s something fans have been asking for in recent years–it’s possible this could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
After all, taking a hot rod into outer space seems utterly ridiculous, even for Fast & Furious. Though, it could potentially be grounded in some kind of reality.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, director Justin Lin definitely makes it sound somewhat possible, explaining, “I’m on the phone with scientists, learning about fuel and physics… It was great, having the scientists on the other line going, ‘ Wait, what? What are you trying to do?’ I love it.”
Still, just because something can happen doesn’t mean it should. There are (at least) two more Fast & Furious movies after 9 and, honestly, once you’ve gone to space, what else is left? This certainly feels like something you save for the final chapter, if you’re going to do it at all. What’s more, there are other earthbound places for the movie to go–including something that was first introduced in Fate of the Furious, the 8th installment of the franchise.
Why wouldn’t you go underwater? Sure, they tinkered around with a nuclear submarine in Fate, but there are depths that have gone unexplored. Imagine Dom and the family racing hot rod submarines, avoiding krakens, massive whales, and maybe even a meg or two while chasing yet another Shaw sibling who’s done something heinous but will be forgiven within two movies’ time. Who doesn’t want to see that?
Or perhaps it’s time to properly make use of the skies. They’ve dropped cars out of planes and crashed through them, but why not turn Dom’s Dodge Charger into a fighter plane and let him rip through the skies chasing Cypher’s mysterious jumbo jet?
Instead, the movie is going to space, and anything that comes next will be (pun absolutely intended) a downshift in terms of the over-the-top ridiculousness the Fast & Furious family is so keen to deliver us every few years. And sure, maybe F9 simply introduces the idea of sending them to space and in F10 they’ll face hot rodding aliens or Biker Mice from Mars. But ultimately, it feels like a lot of excellent material is being left behind due to going as big as they possibly can, skipping a few steps.
Does this mean F9 will be bad? Of course not. It’ll probably be the greatest movie of all time. After all, John Cena is there, Han is alive, and the Tokyo Drift gang is getting back together. What more can we ask for? But this feels like a short-term gain at the expense of the long term.
In fact, there’s really only one way to top going to space. In F10, Dom is going to have to drive so fast that he goes back in time to the first movie, where he meets his former self. He can then tell past Dom about all of the insanity that has happened to him in the two decades since the initial The Fast and the Furious movie, which would ultimately change the timeline. After all, we can’t forget that in the first film, Dom was merely a street racer who stole DVD players. My, how far he’s come. From there, in F11, which is supposed to be the final film in the main series, the two Doms will have to work together to correct the timeline and establish the universe.
That’s right, if we’re going to space in F9, then F11 needs to be starring Vin Diesel… And Vin Diesel. Then we can properly say goodbye to the most ridiculous and wonderful movie franchise of them all. That is, until they do a revival in a few years and the gang gets back together to save the planet from a massive asteroid that threatens to wipe everything out of existence.
In the meantime, we’re just going to keep thinking about these possibilities while we wait for F9: The Fast Saga to hit theaters on June 25.
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It’s been a few years since Resident Evil 7, so with Resident Evil Village is nearly here, let’s recap what went down in the Baker house all those years ago with Ethan and Mia Winters.
It’s been a few years since Resident Evil 7, so with Resident Evil Village is nearly here, let’s recap what went down in the Baker house all those years ago with Ethan and Mia Winters.