Month: September 2021

After months of issues, the team responsible for the upkeep of LittleBigPlanet announced today that several games’ servers have been shut down permanently.

In a tweet posted on the official LittleBigPlanet account, the development team confirmed that servers for the PS3 versions of LittleBigPlanet 1-3, as well as the PS Vita version of LittleBigPlanet, have been shut down permanently, citing a decision to ensure the game’s “online environment remains safe.”

The statement also notes that the developer has rolled out Game Update 1.27 for the PS4 version of LittleBigPlanet 3, which will remain playable online. The latest update restores the LittleBigPlanet online server to the PS4 game, meaning over 10,000,000 community levels are playable again. Those levels are inclusive of all content created for the entire mainline LittleBigPlanet series as the games are tethered together such that LittleBigPlanet 3 players can play any user-created levels, including ones from the first two games.

An update on the LittleBigPlanet server and online services: pic.twitter.com/vUrvHcZvIs

— Sackboy: A Big Adventure | LittleBigPlanet (@LittleBigPlanet) September 13, 2021

Despite that update, the news is a major blow for the LittleBigPlanet community with fans in the replies of the announcement tweet expressing sadness that they will not have the chance to play LittleBigPlanet 1 & 2 in the same way again. The server shutdown doesn’t render the games totally unplayable – single player campaigns remain playable, and users can create their own levels, but they can no longer upload or download levels. Some fans have replied sharing memories they have of playing the games and creating their own levels.

For most of 2021, the LittleBigPlanet series has suffered significant server problems. In late April, the LittleBigPlanet Twitter account shared an update noting that the servers were being taken down to test out new security updates for the first game. Despiute briefly returning in late May, the servers would be disabled once more following ongoing attacks that included hackers posting offensive content in-game.

It appears the hackers have at least partially gotten their way, with the team forced to abandon work on earlier games in the series. Hopefully, this move means that efforts to protect the PS4 version of LittleBigPlanet 3 can be more focused, and that user-generated content can be preserved in at least one location.

I lost track of how many gaming laptops I’ve reviewed here at IGN over the years. For all I know, it could easily be close to the century mark. And in all that time, I’ve used some laptops I grew fond of, and even felt a tinge of sadness as I boxed it up and shipped it back to its rightful owner. But this laptop, dear reader, this laptop is special.

After using the Asus ROG Zephyrus S17 (2021) for the last two weeks, I can confidently say it checks nearly every box that I would put on my dream gaming laptop list. RTX 3080? Latest generation Intel Core i9? A stunning display with a fast refresh rate that looks downright amazing? An optical-mechanical keyboard with individually lit RGB keys? Check. Check. Check. And… check.

I’ll stop there. My point is, after spending time getting to know this $3,300 version of the S17, I don’t ever want to part with it. Ever. Come and get it, Asus. I’m just kidding. Kind of.

Asus ROG Zephyrus S17 – Design

I hadn’t done much research about the S17 before it arrived and I unboxed it, and I’m glad I didn’t. In addition to realizing how large of a laptop it is – with a 17.3-inch 2K display – the keyboard immediately jumps out at you once you open it. Literally. As you lift the lid of the S17, the keyboard slightly raises up off the deck, putting the keys at a comfortable angle as you rest your wrists on either side of the trackpad.

Just above the keyboard on the left side is a scroll wheel that adjusts system volume by default, but if you press and hold the wheel in, a menu shows up on the display that gives you the option to use the scroll wheel to navigate or activate various tasks, like display brightness or the task manager.

I particularly like the ease of adjusting volume just by reaching up above the keyboard, or pressing the wheel in to instantly mute any gameplay if someone walks into the room and starts talking to me.

On the right side atop the keyboard is the power button that doubles as a fingerprint sensor, but you’d never know just by looking at it. I didn’t until a few days into testing and I was digging around in the Device Manager and found it listed. Sure enough, it’s there and it works really well. Asus did a great job at disguising it.

Below the keyboard is a large touchpad that’s quick and responsive to single swipes or taps, as well as multi-finger gestures. Its overall size fits the design of the S17; it doesn’t look out of place.

On either vertical edge of the screen, you’ll find two fairly thin bezels that stay out of the way, with a slightly thicker bezel going horizontal across the top of the screen. There’s a 720p webcam centered on the screen that looks just okay. If you’re wanting to stream or look a little more professional on a work Zoom call, you’ll definitely want a dedicated webcam.

There are plenty of modern ports on the S17, giving you many options to connect accessories, displays and peripherals to it. On the left side of the deck, from front to back, is the audio jack, a Thunderbolt 4 port, a USB-C port, a USB port, an Ethernet jack, an HDMI port and the charging port.

Both USB-C ports – that includes the Thunderbolt 4 port – can be used to connect external monitors or used as a power delivery port for quick charging. On the left side, you’re left with two lone USB ports.

You’ll want to have a spacious bag to carry the S17 around it. It measures 15.5 x 10.4 x 0.8-inches and weighs 5.7-pounds. That’s not huge given this is a laptop with a 17.3-inch screen, but it’s noticeable in any bag.

Asus ROG Zephyrus S17 – Performance and Gaming

Inside the S17 build I reviewed is an 11th Gen Intel Core i9-11900H, a Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 GPU with 16GB of GDDR6 memory, 32GB of 3200MHz RAM, and a 2TB PCIe Gen 4 SSD. It’s stacked, and the performance shows it. Here’s a look at the benchmark scores from the S17 up against the Razer Blade 15 Advanced Edition and MSI GS66 Stealth. As you can see, it’s not even close pretty much down the line.

The Eyes of Tammy Faye was reviewed out of the Toronto Film Festival, where it made its world premiere. It hits theaters on Sept. 17.

Tammy Faye Messner (nee Bakker) was unapologetically preposterous, a plucky performer who channeled her love of Jesus into puppet shows, televangelist talk shows, and a library of music albums. She did it all with her signature look of big hair, bold outfits, and makeup permanently tattooed around her eyes and mouth. To some (including many members of the LGBTQIA+ community), this made her a beloved icon of empowerment, individuality, and Christian love. To others (including a slew of late-night hosts), her eagerness and tackiness made her a perfect target for cheap punchlines. Even the 2000 documentary, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, which aimed to reframe her story with in-depth interviews with the maligned woman herself, couldn’t help but mock her, offering jibes about her face and her “addiction” to Diet Coke. Now, that dated doc has been adapted into a biopic of the same name, starring Jessica Chastain and Andrew Garfield as Messner and her first husband, Jim Bakker, respectively. While this version shows more compassion for its subject, it comes off more like a mumbled sermon than a powerful proclamation.

Screenwriter Abe Sylvia pulls heavily from the documentary. Excerpts of Messner’s talking head interviews are copied and pasted into dialogue. Scenes from Messner and Bakker’s television archives are re-enacted by Chastain and Garfield. Memorable caught-on-camera sequences from the doc — like an awkward makeover moment and an excruciatingly embarrassing TV pitch meeting — are doggedly dramatized. Between these cherrypicked bits, Sylvia fills in the blanks of her childhood, her alarmingly short courtship with Bakker, and the trouble in paradise that lived behind the scenes of their television/real estate empire.

In these sections, factual accuracy is frequently ignored in favor of poetic license. For instance, a chipper college-going Tammy Faye excitedly tells her new crush Jim about how she’s the oldest of eight children. In real life, Bakker didn’t know she had siblings until after they’d married. It’s a strange fact to change, as it might have reflected the hastiness of their nuptials better than Sylvia’s method: a quick scene of guilt-ridden dry-humping, followed by a comedy cut of the pair married. Sex is slathered throughout the film, likely intended to bring some sweaty humanity to the pair’s squeaky clean (pre-scandal) image. Though arguably salacious, these scenes do help ground Tammy Faye as a woman of more than joy, but also of wants and desires that were increasingly ignored by her spouse.

The more startling changes from the doc are all the things Sylvia’s script chooses to leave out. Covering from 1957 to 1999, The Eyes of Tammy Faye’s plotline might have included her marriage to Roe Messner, her cancer diagnosis, and/or her return to television. However, all are oddly omitted from this story. Even her life-changing rehab stint is reduced to a single line of dialogue. Perhaps this was so the film could center not so much on Messner’s life but on her tumultuous relationship with Bakker. After all, this is where the most Oscar-baiting drama might be found, both in lusty pep talks in a golden bathroom and screaming matches over ambition, affluence, and Satan’s influence. Regrettably, Messner’s resilience isn’t properly showcased when you skip so many of her most challenging struggles.

Still, it’s easy to see why Chastain would want the role of Tammy Faye. Sylvia’s script does deliver a showcase role that allows her to sing, weep, giggle, and play a character who is a mix of sunshine and worried mob wife. Lifting her pitch to a Messner-like trill and saddling on a prosthetic jawline to better resemble the Midwestern preacher, Chastain is nearly unrecognizable. But there’s much more than these flashy transformations at play. Chastain gracefully charts the highs and lows of Tammy Faye over the course of decades. With a broad smile and penetrating stare, she smoothly embodies the impetuous youth of a newlywed, then the heartache of a wife fearing she’s losing her partner’s interest, then the inner fire of a survivor who must rebuild her life.

Garfield matches her for energy, and brings a boyish charm to Jim, which helps sell their initial attraction. His performance slyly slides into slimy terrain, as Jim’s big smile becomes less and less convincing while begging his public for pledges. However, their chemistry can’t keep this film from feeling woefully clunky. Callously dancing around Jessica Hahn’s allegations of rape against Jim Bakker, The Eyes of Tammy Faye focuses on how the fraud accusations broke their marriage. Not so surprisingly, a drama about real estate crime isn’t all that exciting. The film plows through plot points with a garish assault of montages, featuring news coverage and shocking headlines, overlaid by Chastain doing another Messner song number. Thus, the trauma of her life turns achingly episodic, her pain once more papered over by flashy spectacle.

Director Michael Showalter has made his name writing or directing envelope-pushing comedies like the raunchy parody Wet Hot American Summer, the tragedy-grounded rom-com The Big Sick, and the darkly funny Search Party. But he seems in over his head juggling essential factual details, expected biopic backstory, highlights from the namesake documentary, poignant drama, and a handful of laughs. Sweeping cinematography from Mike Gioulakis (Us, Under the Silver Lake, It Follows) gives the film a look of prestige, coming off as important, gorgeous, and thoughtful. It’s an attention-grabbing aesthetic that could court Academy voters, but ultimately this biopic feels uncertain about what it wants to say about Tammy Faye.

The jibes at her appearance are still made, by strangers or foes instead of the filmmakers. Sequences about her activism — including her groundbreaking interview with a gay AIDS patient in the middle of the AIDS epidemic — paint her as a warrior for social justice. Still, there’s a wobbliness when addressing her agency within the marriage, the TV network, and the financial fraud. The film seems so earnest to celebrate Tammy Faye that it commits the biopic sin of glossing over her flaws. All of her mistakes are portrayed so sympathetically that they seem almost inevitable, and therefore excusable. While well-intentioned, this perspective feels frustratingly fawning and pandering. It’s been 14 years since her death, and filmmakers still can’t grapple with the true complexity of Tammy Faye, a woman who was far from perfect but still divine.