In less than a month, the drought will be over. New episodes of Rick and Morty will arrive with the Season 5 premiere on June 20th on Adult Swim. Now, thanks to a tweet from the show’s official Twitter account, we know the titles of all 10 episodes that will debut this season.
Each title this season, save for one, is simply a title from a popular property with Rick, Morty, or both worked in somewhere. From “Gotron Jerrysis Rickvangelion” (Neon Genesis Evangelion) to “Amortycan Grickfitti” (American Graffiti), the references to other pieces of pop culture are pretty easy to decipher. However, there’s also what looks like a Thanksgiving special mixed in, called “Rick & Morty’s Thanksploitation Spectacular.” You can take a look at the full list of Season 5 episodes below.
“Mort Dinner Rick Andre”
“Mortiplicity”
“Rickdependence Spray”
“Amortycan Grickfitti”
“Rick & Morty’s Thanksploitation Spectacular”
“A Rickconvenient Mort”
“Gotron Jerrysis Rickvangelion”
“Rickternal Friendshine of the Spotless Mort”
“Forgetting Sarick Mortshall”
“Rickmurai Jack”
Of course, the titles don’t really reveal much about what the episodes will be, unless this new season is just parodies of other shows, movies, and anime. That’s most likely not the case, though.
The new episodes of Rick and Morty will air exclusively on Adult Swim when the new season premieres on June 20. And while you might already be scared about getting to the end of Season 5 and having to wait too long for new episodes, keep in mind that co-creator Dan Harmon revealed earlier this year that the team behind the show is always well into writing Season 7.
Elite Dangerous: Odyssey, the latest expansion for the space-faring commerce simulator, released last week to a highly-negative reception from players. This backlash–which resulted in a “mostly negative” review label on the DLC’s sale page–led Frontier Development’s CEO David Braben to issue an apology for the game’s rough state.
Odyssey launched back on May 19, and fans immediately reported many issues with it, including inconsistent performance, nasty bugs, and outright crashes. As of this writing, the DLC has more than 2,700 negative reviews out of 4,000 total, which is pretty dismal by series standards. Since release, Frontier has released two small patches for the game, but players are still reporting issues, which triggered Braben’s apology. The fact that the DLC also costs $40 further exacerbated the issues.
Click To Unmute
Size:
Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?
Now Playing: Elite Dangerous: Odyssey Reveal Trailer | Game Awards 2020
“First and foremost, I would like to apologise wholeheartedly to those who have been suffering from these problems. I would like to reassure you that we take these issues very seriously and that they are our top priority and focus,” he said in a message posted on the game’s official forums. “Our second hotfix will be released very soon, which we hope will address more of the reported bugs and bring further stability improvements into the game. We will continue to work on updates which will resolve more bugs and improve stability further.”
Elite Dangerous originally launched in 2014 as a reboot to the storied space exploration series. The game has generally received positive reviews from fans over the years, which has allowed it to continue to enjoy a large community. It remains to be seen if they can right the ship. The main game of Elite Dangerous is on Game Pass, so if you’re a subscriber, check it out if you’re interested.
The live-action Powerpuff Girls show in the works at the CW was not picked up for a full series order, according to The Hollywood Reporter–but the series isn’t dead yet, as its pilot will be re-shot, with the same cast and creators remaining onboard.
We’ve been covering news of the live-action Powerpuff Girls reboot for months, ever since we first learned of it in August 2020, as it scratches a certain nostalgic itch for those who watched Cartoon Network cartoons in the ’90s. Apparently, the CW didn’t like what they saw in the show’s pilot offering–which isn’t unusual, as plenty of prospective series never make it past the pilot stage. However, getting a second shot is less common, so the network clearly saw something with potential.
In March 2021, we learned who would be playing the grown-up versions of the titular all-female superhero team: Chloe Bennet (Agents of SHIELD) as Blossom, Dove Cameron (Descendants) as Bubbles, and Yana Perrault (Broadway’s “Jagged Little Pill”) as Buttercup. Those stars, along with Donald Faison as Powerpuff creator Professor Utonium, Nicholas Podany as the villainous Mojo Jojo, and Robyn Lively as the team’s loyal ally Sara Bellum, will reportedly remain in their respective roles, as will those running the show behind the scenes, which includes Diablo Cody (Juno) along with Heather Regnier (Sleepy Hollow).
Of course, should this second stab at it succeed, this won’t be the same old Powerpuff Girls we remember. CW published an official show synopsis recently: “The Powerpuff Girls used to be America’s pint-sized superheroes, now they’re disillusioned twentysomethings who resent having lost their childhood to crime fighting. Will they agree to reunite now that the world needs them more than ever?”
This official image also provides a first glimpse at the grown-up Powerpuffs:
It’s not unheard of for pilots to be partially or totally re-shot before making it to series; the most infamous example in recent history may be Game of Thrones, whose original pilot was apparently terrible, before it went on to absolutely dominate pop culture for more than a decade. So there’s definitely hope for the Powerpuff Girls live-action reboot.
A free play weekend for Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s multiplayer and Outbreak modes will go live on all platforms starting on May 27 ahead of Memorial Day, according to Charlie Intel.
Charlie Intel shared the news on Twitter. The post contains an advertisement promoting Black Ops Cold War‘s free access weekend to multiplayer and Outbreak, which runs from May 27 to June 1. Co-developers Raven Software and Treyarch have not publicly announced the promotion. Publisher Activision also hasn’t said anything about a few access period.
Still, it will be a great opportunity for players to try out Black Ops Cold War’s Zombies offering, which received an update that makes Odra more difficult. The latest patch also adjusts other aspects of the game’s multiplayer, including addressing issues on Standoff and further stabilizing gameplay.
The game that became Watch Dogs was initially intended to be a new Driver game, according to a new report from VG247. The report cites three sources who worked on the project from its inception in the early 2010s, and details how the game slowly progressed from a modern reinvention of the Driver concept to become its own franchise entirely.
Though this report features new quotes and claims, the idea that Watch Dogs grew out of the Driver franchise is not a new one. The report even includes a quote from a 2013 IGN interview with Ubisoft’s North American president Laurent Detoc where he said that the game grew out of a “driving engine” that was related to the Driver franchise.
Click To Unmute
Size:
Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?
Sources in the report point out that the original Watch Dogs has a certain resemblance to the original Driver games, with its combination of vehicular and on-foot sections. These same sources say the Watch Dogs project was developed simultaneously with the game that became Driver: San Francisco, a bold reimagining of the franchise that gave players the ability to “shift” between cars by possessing them.
However, San Francisco’s lackluster sales and the newfound hacking focus of the untitled Driver project caused it to become a new franchise, Watch Dogs. Sources compare the transformation from Driver to Watch Dogs to the origins of the Assassin’s Creed franchise, which began life as a Prince of Persia spinoff.
Watch Dogs eventually spawned two sequels, including 2020’s Watch Dogs: Legion. A recent update to Legion added new characters as well as a new DedSec Stories mission.
The NBA and Fortnite continue their crossover partnership this week with new experiences in Creative mode, including a basketball-themed limited-time mode and NBA highlights from around the league. The new NBA Welcome Hub will greet all players heading into the mode, while players are encouraged to retool the new NBA items in Creative all week long to create their own custom content for the community.
At the heart of the crossover–literally named The Crossover–is the Court Crashers LTM created by AtlasCreative. In Court Crashers, players can launch themselves off jumps and slam dunk into basketball nets to score for their teams. Somewhere, the creators of slamball are proud of their legacy. Players can either queue up from the NBA Welcome Hub within Creative to play online with others, or use Creative Code 1898-7178-3313 to explore it privately. Players who visit the Welcome Hub and play Court Crashers can level up to unlock the new Basketball Hoop Banner.
Epic is also introducing live-action video to Creative for the first time. Between May 25 and May 31, players can visit the NBA Welcome Hub and catch themed highlights from the NBA season, including top plays, “dazzling dunks,” crossovers and handles, and more.
In addition to all of that, NBA players have hand-picked their own Locker Bundles, including one from Donovan Mitchell of the Jazz and another from Trae Young from the Hawks. Locker Bundles are curated cosmetic sets from streamers, actors, athletes, and other high-profile folks who team up with Epic to highlight their favorite in-game cosmetics.
Mitchell’s Locker includes the Cozy Chomps Outfit, Sharky Shawl Back Bling, Stark Splitter Pickaxe, Dynamic Fire Wrap, and Fire Spinner Emote. Young’s Locker the Scarlet Commander Outfit, Gold Digger Pickaxe, Happy Stars Wrap, and Baller Emote.
After 16 days of testimony, the Epic Games vs. Apple trial wrapped up its court proceedings on Monday, but we’re still a long time away from getting a decision. The judge indicated that it could take until August for her to reach her decision, and a legal expert agrees that timeline is fairly typical for this kind of case. Here’s everything that happened, how the two sides’ respective cases stack up, and what we can expect next.
Closing Arguments
Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers told lawyers in court today that “there is a lot of material” to go through before she can make a decision in this case. It is a bench trial, which means Gonzalez will make the final ruling, as opposed to a jury.
Click To Unmute
Size:
Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?
She joked that she planned to have a judgment by August 13, which was the day in 2020 when Epic deployed a the hotfix in Fortnite for iOS that circumvented Apple’s payment system, precipitating this entire event.
“I am not promising to have this by August 13 but I am going to try–as I said to you–I want to try to get you this while the memories of the testimony is fresh, and while your arguments are fresh. But we do have thousands and thousands of pages to review,” Gonzalez said to the lawyers for Apple and Epic as part of the legal proceeding.
She added that her staff informed her recently that there are 4,500 pages of testimony from the case that she’ll need to go through before making a judgement. “There is quite a bit of work still to do,” she said. “You will receive my decision in writing.”
And now we wait
A Puzzle Box Case
Speaking to the media and other people listening in on the proceedings, Gonzalez said people should think of the case like a puzzle box. The lawyers on each side will tell you what they think the evidence shows, but they haven’t proven anything. As the case progressed, the box continued to fill up with puzzle pieces that could help illuminate the result–or, in this analogy–what the subject of the puzzle was. At the end of the trial, there are no more pieces. Having more pieces might have helped illuminate the puzzle, and some pieces that did get put in the box might seem irrelevant, Gonzalez said. But that’s the end. Now that arguments and testimony are, all the information to render a judgement is out in the open and all that’s left is for Gonzalez to make a decision based on the testimony she heard and documents she saw.
It’s up to the jury, or in this case, the judge herself, to determine how those pieces fit together, and that will be her task until she’s ready to make a decision.
“We’re taking all of that evidence, all of that testimony, all of those documents, and putting it together in a way that seems to make sense in the context of the law. So it may take me a while to do that,” she said.
The court case, which began on May 3, included testimony from Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney and Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, along with other executives from each company. The testimony became fiery and intense at times, particularly in the closing arguments today, as each side’s legal team made one final push to convince the judge to see things their way.
Epic Games is alleging that Apple’s restrictions around its App Store constitute a monopoly, and is seeking to force the company to change its policies toward everyone–not just Epic itself. Apple, meanwhile, is trying to protect its App Store profits as a major source of revenue for the company. The ruling could have major implications.
Epic’s Uphill Climb
Attorney Richard Hoeg told GameSpot that Epic faced more of a challenge in arguing its case, but the gamble could pay off. Apple is essentially arguing on behalf of the status quo, while Epic is requesting the court to intervene with a significant legal change.
“Epic came into the case with a tall hill to climb,” Hoeg said. “Epic brought this case now in part, it would appear, because the political and regulatory world has been re-examining the law’s relationship to these ‘Big Tech’ companies of late and now seemed a good time to test a relatively new antitrust theory in court. In terms of overall strategy I can’t really disagree.”
Hoeg said Epic tried to position its argument as one of “fundamental fairness” but suffered on some of the fine details, while Apple didn’t present a “unified theory of the case” but also doesn’t need to shoulder the burden of proof. He also pointed out based on the judge’s questioning, she could reach a split decision by ruling that Apple’s practices are monopolist–but limit her remedy to ruling against Apple’s “anti-steering” rules that prevent developers from advertising outside marketplaces. In that case, he said, both Epic and Apple would likely be displeased with the result and appeals would likely follow.
As for the lengthy timeline for a result, the August estimate seems very possible, according to Hoeg. A case of this size can typically take weeks or months to decide, and of course, the judge surely has other cases on her docket as well.
The Long Wait for a Verdict
Now, we wait until Gonzalez prepares and releases her ruling. As mentioned, we don’t know when that will be, and given the massive amount of documents she has to go through, it likely won’t be anytime soon. Until a verdict is reached, Epic’s Tim Sweeney says he won’t be commenting further about it.
The Epic vs Apple trial has now concluded! I won’t be commenting before the verdict is delivered. Thanks to everyone whose efforts made this possible, and to Popeyes for building a fine restaurant next door to the Oakland federal courthouse. pic.twitter.com/xma2xyRBtW
Actor Robert Pattinson is deepening his relationship with film studio Warner Bros. The movie company on Monday announced that the Batman actor has signed a “first-look” deal with the company, which means WB will have first right of refusal for projects that Pattinson is developing.
Pattinson’s deal with WB covers not only the main film studio Warner Bros., but also WarnerMedia’s various divisions, including New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. Television, and HBO Max.
The Hollywood Reporter had the scoop on this story, and also reports that this is Pattinson’s first time producing content. Pattinson starred in Warner Bros.’ 2020 action movie Tenet from director Christopher Nolan, while he’s also set to play Bruce Wayne/Batman in the new Matt Reeves movie The Batman.
In a statement, Pattinson said Warner Bros. and HBO have “always been synonymous with groundbreaking filmmaking.”
“I’m thrilled to be working with them to discover the most exciting new voices in film and television and help bring their visions to life,” he added. “I’ve loved working with the studio over the years and have so much respect for their dedication, their willingness to take chances and their desire to push the envelope creatively.”
WarnerMedia executives Courtenay Valenti and Richard Brener said in their own statement that Pattinson has impressed them with his “eye for identifying dynamic new filmmakers,” which is part of the reason why they’re making the deal with him.
Terms of the first-look deal were not disclosed.
In other news, AT&T recently announced it will spin off WarnerMedia–including HBO Max–as part of a $43 billion deal with Discovery. What impact this has on future movies and TV shows, remains to be seen, while we also don’t know yet what it means for WB’s games.
It’s been months since Supernatural ended its impressive 15-season run on The CW. Now, thanks to a new Blu-ray set of the complete series releasing on May 25, fans will be able to revisit the series, while also enjoying a slew of new and previously released special features and bonus material.
While you can watch Supernatural on Netflix or buy it digitally at the outlet of your choice, the new Blu-ray set seems to have been crafted as a love letter to the fandom. When you watch the show digitally, you’re getting just that–the show. There are none of the bonus features released on Blu-rays and DVDs that were made available over the last 15 years. This new set, though, has practically everything that’s been released for the show since its launch. That includes a large number of San Diego Comic-Con panels–including the Kansas performance from 2017–deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes featurettes, and a long list of other content fans would probably like to have in their possession.
Along with the previously released material, this new set also offers bonus features from the final season of the show. There is a series of short documentaries about making Season 15, a retrospective on the Winchester brothers, and the show’s final appearance at Comic-Con. That material can also be found on the Season 15 Blu-ray release.
Supernatural: The Complete Series is available on May 25, and includes all 15 seasons of the series, as well as a long list of special features. It’s available on Amazon for $290.
What’s exclusive to the complete series is a booklet, which includes descriptions of all 327 episodes. In addition to that, the pages have a guide to the show’s use of classic rock songs, a collection of rare photos from over the years, concept art, archived interviews, and two letters written to the Supernatural family of fans. Those letters come from longtime showrunner Bob Singer and none other than series creator Eric Kripke, who left the show after Season 5. Both are dated December 2020.
In his letter, Kripke writes of the fans, “I remember when I was the only one. I remember when it was just a single flame. But you made it your own, made it bigger and better and messier and wilder and more loving than I ever could’ve imagined. You believed in it. You made this single flame into a massive bonfire that warms people when the night gets cold.”
Supernatural: The Complete Series is available on Blu-ray on May 25. And if you still want to watch it digitally, the set also comes with a code that’ll enable you to do so.
Many players have long fantasized about the idea of a portable Xbox (and, say, on-the-go Halo), especially during the era of the PSP and the PlayStation Vita. That dream has now come to fruition–to an extent–with official Xbox Cloud Gaming support rolling out for Microsoft’s Surface Duo phone.
This isn’t just another Xbox Cloud app. Rather, as The Verge reported, Microsoft has released a version specifically built for the two-screen functionality of the Surface Duo that basically turns the device into something similar to a Nintendo DS. With a virtual Xbox gamepad on the bottom screen and the game on the top screen, you’ll be able to hold it like a DS to stream Xbox games.
Microsoft is turning its Surface Duo into a handheld Xbox today. The latest app update for Xbox Cloud Gaming (xCloud) let’s you use one screen for touch controls and the other for the game. It’s like a Nintendo 3DS with Xbox games. Details here: https://t.co/ubbsEAW3r8pic.twitter.com/aP94t9xgzC
While Xbox Cloud Gaming supports Bluetooth controllers on any device, players who don’t own an extra controller have to deal with touchscreen controls. On a single-screen device, touch controls naturally obstruct the view of the game you’re playing. As a result, moving those controls down to the second Surface Duo screen has immediate benefits for players who don’t use a separate gamepad. This control scheme works across any of the Xbox Cloud games that currently support touch controls.
Microsoft has been gradually launching its games streaming service since last fall, and it’s currently available just to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers. It’s been usable on Android devices for some time, and in April, the company released the app to beta testers on iOS and PC. Users on iPads and iPhones currently have a different experience than Android users, as Apple policies have forced Microsoft to support cloud gaming only through browsers on Apple devices. If you’re interested in trying out Xbox Cloud Gaming yourself, new subscribers can get their first month for $1.
