Author: Trafficblast

New Back 4 Blood Trailer Reveals Supported PC Features

Publisher Warner Bros. Games and developer Turtle Rock Studios released a new trailer for Back 4 Blood. The trailer showcases more of the zombie-killing mayhem to be had in the upcoming co-op first-person shooter as well as the features you can expect to see on the PC version of the game.

The trailer lists the following features for the PC version of Back 4 Blood:

  • 4K resolution
  • Uncapped framerate
  • NVDIA Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS)
  • Both ultrawide and multi-monitor support
  • Cross-play support

Additionally, the PC version of Back 4 Blood will include multiple graphical options. The trailer showcases that you’ll be able to enable motion blur, chromatic aberration, adaptive FX quality, and VSync.

On top of that, on PC you can adjust Back 4 Blood’s quality settings. There’s an option to enable custom quality and customize textures, shadows, foliage, and more to your ideal experience.

Back 4 Blood is scheduled to launch for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, and PC on October 12. On PC, the game will be released via the Microsoft Store, Steam, and the Epic Games Store. Back 4 Blood will be available on both Xbox and PC day one via Xbox Game Pass.

If you want to try Back 4 Blood prior to its release, preording the game gets you access to the open beta, which begins August 5.

GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.

Dune Posters Give A Close-Up Look At The Core Cast

Ahead of its October 22 debut, Warner Bros. is giving us another look at Dune through a series of close-up character posters depicting the film’s primary characters.

Warner Bros. revealed the new posters through the official Dune Twitter account in a threaded series of tweets. The posters shown off in the thread include: Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), Lady Jessica Atreides (Rebecca Ferguson), Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac), Duncan Idaho (Jason Momoa), Gurney Halleck (Josh Brolin), Chani (Zendaya), Stilgar (Javier Bardem), and Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård).

Now Playing: Dune Trailer (2020) Breakdown – Lore Explained & Everything You Missed

The thread is a remind of just how flush with award-winning stars the cast of Dune is.

Dune has been adapted from Frank Herbert’s original novel a few times, but always considered deeply flawed. The first attempt came from director Alejandro Jodorowsky, and is infamous for its attempted scale and wild departure from the novels, eventually becoming the subject of a 2013 documentary. The first version to make it to market was David Lynch’s Dune. Lynch’s vision is admired for its unique visual design and casting but has been heavily criticized for its own departures from the source material. SyFy adapted it to a mini-series in 2000, which more closely followed the story but which featured basic cable TV-grade visual effects.

Villeneuve’s Dune has fans of the novels excited not just because of the talented cast, but because of Villeneuve’s track record directing hard science fiction films like Arrival and Blade Runner 2049, too. Interestingly, this film only adapts the first half of Frank Herbert’s original novel, something which has fans excited and concerned in equal measure. On the one hand, a two-part Dune film has a chance of doing justice to the complex source material. On the other, the second part hasn’t been announced yet and there’s no indication that the studio is filming them back-to-back like we’ve seen with big-scale fantasy stories in the past like the Lord of the Rings films and some of the Harry Potter movies.

After a handful of delays, Dune releases to theaters on October 22, 2021. In the meantime, check out all the details you may have missed in that first trailer, how the first Dune’s Paul, Kyle MacLachlan, feels about Dune hitting HBO Max, and where you can find the newest trailer.

Daily Deals: $100 Off Newest Apple iPad Air, $70 Off AirPods Pro, 100ft LED Light Strips for $25, $20 off Xbox Elite Controller

Today you can save $100 off the newest Apple iPad Air, the lowest price we’ve ever seen. The very well rated AirPods Pro is also back down to the same price we saw on Amazon Prime Day. In other deal news, score 100 feet of LED light strips for $25, $20 off the Xbox Elite Controller (Xbox Series X compatible), 50% off a WD portable solid state drive, $10 off the newly released Zelda: Skyward Sword game, and more below.

$100 Off the Newest Apple iPad Air

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The 4th generation Apple iPad Air released in 2020 is still the newest model out. It’s the best iPad to get if you don’t need the power (and price tag) of the iPad Pro. Thanks to its slim bezels, it has a larger screen size (10.9″ vs 10.2″) compared to the iPad without noticeably increasing the overall footprint. The iPad Air display also features Tru Tone and P3 Wide Color (gamut). It connects via USB Type-C cable, which is much more convenient than the proprietary Lightning cable.

Apple AirPods Pro Noise-Cancelling Earbuds

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If you regret not picking the Airpods Pro up on Amazon Prime Day at 24% off, here’s your chance to get it today at the same price. The AirPods Pro is considered one of the best noise-cancelling in-ear headphones you can get, especially for under $200, and it’s significantly better than even the vanilla AirPods. Woot is owned by Amazon, and in this particular case you’ll have to log in with your Amazon Prime account in order to see the discount.

Govee 100ft RGB LED Light Strips

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You won’t find 100 feet of LED strip lights for a mere $25 at your local brick and mortar electronics store (you’d be lucky to find 1/10 of that length for the same price). These lights do feature some extra functionality, like color changing, music-sync, and bluetooth for smartphone control. If you’re in the market for some cheap yet good looking bling, you can’t do much better than this. It’s probably too long as accent lighting for your gaming monitor, but it’s definitely long enough to light up a small room or your entire gaming space.

Xbox Elite Black Series 2 Wireless Controller

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The Elite controller is compatible with the Xbox Series X|S. The price might be high but it’s worth it if the games you play require precise control. This professional-grade controller features adjustable tension thumbsticks, shorter hair trigger locks, wraparound textured grips, interchangeable thumbsticks and paddle shapes, custom profiles saved on your controller itself, and included USB Type C cable with charging dock. It boasts up to 40 hours of battery life.

WD 512GB Portable Solid State Drive (SSD)

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This is a great price for a portable solid state drive from a reputable brand. This WD Passport features an internal SSD instead of an HDD. Paired with the faster USB 3.1 Gen 2 (Type-C) connection, you’re going to get much faster transfer speeds compared to your average portable hard drive. SSDs have no moving parts, so they’re more durable than traditional hard drives, consume less power, and generate less heat.

LEGO Ideas International Space Station

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The ISS model is a good-sized model at 19″ long and includes 2 astronaut microfigures, a mini NASA space shuttle, and 3 mini cargo spacecrafts, as well as a 148-page instruction booklet. It’s very well priced right now at only 6.5 cents per brick.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

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This game came out on last Friday and Walmart is offering a sweet $10 discount for it. When you try to add it to cart, Walmart will ask for your name and email address (it doesn’t matter what you put in). Don’t worry, no email will be sent to you. You’ll proceed straight to your cart with the discounted price. If you’re on the fence about getting the game, then check out our Skyward Sword review.

Persona 5 Royal for PS5

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Persona 5 was the best RPG on the PS4, but Atlus somehow made the game much, much better. The Persona 5: Royal Edition introduces a brand new character and seamlessly inserts her into the existing storyline, the ability to customize your very own Thieves’ den, new story arcs, new cutscenes and new endings. They’ve even added an entire new semester to give you ample amounts of time to finish all of your quests.

Apple Back to School Sale

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Apple’s annual Back to School Sale is already under way. This year, current and new students, parents, and faculty can get a free pair of Apple AirPods when purchasing an iPad Air, iPad Pro, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac Pro, or Mac Mini. If you want to upgrade, you can get the AirPods with Wireless Charging Case for $40 or AirPods Pro for $90. You can also get 20% off AppleCare on any Apple product.

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Eric Song is IGN’s deal curator and spends roughly 1/4 of his income on stuff he posts. Check out the IGN Deals articles and subscribe to the IGN Deals Twitter page.

Pokemon Go Fest 2021 Was One Of The Game’s Best Events Yet

Outside of a handful of official in-person gatherings around the globe, 2021 marked the second year running that Pokemon Go Fest–the Pokemon mobile game’s biggest annual event–was largely held virtually. Although developer Niantic has traditionally hosted Go Fests at real-world venues, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the company to pivot to a virtual format for 2020’s event. Despite the impromptu shift, Pokemon Go Fest 2020 turned out pretty well, and Niantic built upon the lessons it learned last year to make Pokemon Go Fest 2021 one of the best events it’s ever held for the game.

Just as last year, the festivities were spread across two days, with different activities and Pokemon available during each. Day 1 featured rotating virtual habitats that shifted hourly and changed up what kinds of Pokemon appeared in the wild. In lieu of exploring outside, this was a clever way of simulating the experience of wandering into a new environment and stumbling upon different Pokemon. Like last year, it was fun to check in throughout the day to see which monsters I would encounter.

Day 2, however, was the true highlight. In contrast to last year’s event, which was “interrupted” by a Team Go Rocket takeover, day 2 of Pokemon Go Fest 2021 revolved entirely around Legendaries. Every Legendary Pokemon that has appeared in Pokemon Go to date returned to Raid Battles throughout the day, which made for a fittingly epic way to celebrate the game’s fifth anniversary. For a reasonably casual player like myself, who had seldom been able to wrangle together enough people to complete a Legendary Raid prior to this year’s Go Fest, the sheer prevalence of Raids was exciting, and I enjoyed spending the day raiding and filling out my Legendary collection.

Part of what made this year’s Go Fest feel worthwhile was the fair monetization. While some elements of the event were open to all players, you really needed to purchase a virtual ticket to get the most out of it. However, whereas tickets for last year’s Go Fest ran for $15 USD (a fairly steep price for what was ultimately an entirely in-game experience), Niantic reduced the cost of a ticket to only $5 USD for this year’s event. On top of that, the studio generously doled out free items throughout. Thanks to in-game challenges, you could earn up to eight free Remote Raid Passes during day 2, which made it all the more enticing to participate in Raid Battles. While last year felt a little lacking relative to the asking price, Go Fest 2021 more than justified its cost of entry.

But what really made the event enjoyable was the presentation. Niantic has become quite skilled at making Go Fests feel like special occasions, and that was certainly true for this year’s celebration. Throughout the entire event, confetti and fireworks filled the sky on the map screen, and in a nice touch tying back into the event’s musical theme, the background track differed depending on which of the two diverging paths–Rock Star or Pop Star–you chose.

Niantic also cleverly used the event to set the stage for more activities to come in Pokemon Go, namely the debut of the Mythical Pokemon Hoopa. While it didn’t make a physical appearance during this year’s Go Fest, the Mythical Pokemon loomed over day 2 of the event. Hoopa’s rings were omnipresent in the sky, and Professor Willow explained the Legendaries’ sudden return as Hoopa’s handiwork. It’s still unclear when exactly Niantic plans to introduce Hoopa to the game, but integrating it into the story of the game’s biggest event was a smart way to build excitement for its eventual debut.

All of these elements combined to make this year’s Pokemon Go Fest feel special, and it was my favorite event in the game yet. It seems to have been a rousing success for Niantic, as well. As the developer detailed in a blog post, players collectively caught more than 1.5 billion Pokemon and walked more than 125 kilometers during this year’s event, dwarfing last year’s numbers. Here’s hoping Niantic continues to build upon these successes for future Go Fests and keeps a virtual component to the event, even when restrictions ease and things return to normal.

GameSpot was provided a complimentary ticket for Pokemon Go Fest 2021 by the developer.

Aussie Deals: Cheap Controllers, Must-own Games and More!

Another day, another dollar you don’t need to spend thanks to our bargain hunting. PC users can score an inordinate amount of special / GOTY editions for cheap today. Along with the odd cut-price controller and console deal, we’ve also scoured tons of stores for discounted classics. Basically, there’s something for everybody below!

Purchase Cheaply for PC

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Notable Sales for Nintendo Switch

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Exciting Offers for XO/XS

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Product Savings for PS4/PS5

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GTA Online Adds Next-Gen Exclusive Car Improvements

Grand Theft Auto Online is getting a little faster and furious-er with the new update Los Santos Tuners. Along with a new social space to show off your personalized cars, this expansion adds new races, rewards, and cars. Some car upgrades, however, will be exclusive to the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S version of GTA Online coming later this year.

The Los Santos Tuners update is a multi-pronged update that begins with a new social space in Cypress Flats called the LS Car Meet. There, players can unlock a new Reputation progression with rewards at each level, access to the Test Track for online races, and Test Rides where you can sample high-end cars.

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The Prize Ride Challenges will let players compete for Prize Ride and access to special shops like the Merch Shop, Tattoo Shop, Modding Area, and Private Takeover which lets you decorate the Car Meet space to your style.

Along with new races including a Street Race series where you’ll compete in the streets against other races and the LSPD, you can earn new upgrades and cars. Rockstar is promising 17 new cars in total over the summer, with 10 coming on July 20 when the update goes live.

However, some vehicles will be upgradable with “all-new speed improvements and more,” but these “special upgrades will be available only on PlayStation and Xbox Series X|S versions of Grand Theft Auto 5.”

This upgrade is scheduled to be released in November, but with consoles still hard to find, here’s hoping there are PS5s and Xbox Series X|S to go around by the time the upgrade lands.

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For more, check out IGN’s GTA Online guides for tips on how to get started and begin earning some cash.

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Matt T.M. Kim is IGN’s News Editor.

Movie Theaters Owners Point to Disney+ To Explain Black Widow’s Second-Week Box Office Drop

Marvel’s Black Widow had a great post-pandemic showing when it debuted on July 9, allowing Disney to boast about its dual-platform launch across theaters and Disney+ Premier Access. A week later, though, theater owners saying that Disney+ ultimately pulled the movie down (via Variety).

“Despite assertions that this pandemic-era improvised strategy was a success for Disney and the simultaneous release model, it demonstrates that an exclusive theatrical release means more revenue for all stakeholders in every cycle of the movie’s life,” said the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) in an official statement.

“Piracy no doubt further affected Black Widow’s performance, and will affect its future performance in international markets where it has yet to open,” NATO’s statement continued, though the organization says piracy also affected Warner Bros. releases of Godzilla vs. Kong and Mortal Kombat as well.

“The many questions raised by Disney’s limited release of streaming data opening weekend are being raplid answered by Black Widow‘s disappointing and anomalous performance. The most important answer is that simultaneous release is a pandemic-era artifact that should be left to history with the pandemic itself,” NATO said.

Black Widow pulled in $80 million in its first weekend at the box office, and $60 million from Disney+ according to Disney itself. In terms of theaters alone, that makes it the biggest box-office opening since the pandemic set in. A week in, however, the film’s theatrical pull dropped by 68% to just $26 million, and Disney isn’t talking about the Disney+ profits anymore. That’s the highest drop-off to date for a Marvel Cinematic Universe film’s second week.

To put that in context, though, most movies see a huge drop after the first week. According to box-office tracker TheNumbers.com, most Marvel Studios films see somewhere between 55 and 60%. Black Panther, Thor, and Doctor Strange saw sub-50% drops, but the latter two films didn’t perform spectacularly well at the box office. Spider-Man: Homecoming and Ant-Man and the Wasp are the two closest, with a 62% drop. Black Widow’s drop is the most severe to be sure, but again, this is the first MCU film with a simultaneous release on Disney+. It’s harder to say just how severe the drop really was.

Regarding the other factors that could’ve affected Black Widow’s performance, things like piracy or the fact that users can share their Disney+ passwords with relative ease are equally difficult to blame. While these factors certainly affected Black Widow’s performance to some degree, piracy to lost sales is not a 1:1 exchange, as many people pirating movies had no plans to pay for them in the first place. A 2013 study of piracy by the European Commission showed that in the case of most media, piracy does not heavily impact sales, though with movies at the time, ten downloads resulted in four fewer theatrical visits. With that said, streaming platforms designed for unauthorized viewing of films and television have almost certainly improved since then, but ordering movies through online rental services is more widely practiced now as well.

There’s also the fact that COVID-19 cases and deaths are once again on the rise in the United States, and it seems likely that this is dimming moviegoers’ interest in sitting in a room full of breathing humans.

Finally, NATO’s final line lays its own agenda bare. The organization exists to promote and protect movie theaters, so it makes sense that the organization would want to do whatever it takes to discourage the practice of watching movies at home. The numbers, however, are much foggier than that statement.

14 Awful Movie Remakes That Will Ruin Your Day

At this point, if a movie exists that was even moderately successful, chances are it’s already been rebooted/remade or, at the very least, there have likely been discussions to do so. Sometimes, the outcome is great, even if they’re not typically better than the original. From 2004’s Dawn of the Dead to Martin Scorsese’s The Departed, to even the 2012 movie Dredd (a much better Judge Dredd film than Sylvester Stallone’s), a remake or reboot done just right can be well worth your time.

Of course, there’s also the seemingly unending list of bad remakes you have to contend with. Whether it’s a cast that doesn’t shine, subpar writing and directing, or making a movie so polished–thanks to CGI or a more marketable PG-13 rating–that it loses the impact of the original. We’ve all seen these movies before, and it’s time to take a look at some of the absolute worst.

Take a look at our least favorite remakes and reboots of movies we love. For better or worse, these movies all got made and released. They didn’t measure up to the films they were based on and, for the most part, didn’t turn into the franchise the studios certainly hoped they would (We see you, Dark Universe).

Did we miss out on your favorite bad remake? Sound off in the comments below and let us know about your favorite reboot hate-watch. Also, make sure to check out our look at revived TV shows that should’ve stayed canceled.

Clerks 3 To Start Production In August

Director Kevin Smith is set to start production on Clerks 3 in August, according to a tweet by the man himself, which also shares that entertainment company Lionsgate has acquired worldwide rights to the film. This means he’s also been able to hold true to his plans he announced in January to film the highly-awaited sequel this year.

Also, back in January, Smith took to Facebook to share a fraction of the script’s first page–which only set the scene for the movie’s tone, but not much else. Via a release, Deadline now has a synopsis, which is: “Following a massive heart attack, Randal enlists Dante, Elias, Jay, and Silent Bob to make a movie immortalizing his life at the convenience store that started it all.” Smith has indicated this will be a “personal story… drawing directly on the heart attack that nearly killed me (three years ago).” Filming will begin on August 2–Smith’s birthday.

Smith has written the screenplay and will direct, with all major cast members set to reprise their roles: Jeff Anderson as Randal, Brian O’Halloran as Dante, Jay Mewes as Jay, Smith as Silent Bob, and Rosario Dawson as Becky. The film is currently in pre-production in New Jersey.

No release date for the film has yet been set, but Smith has said he wants to “spend some of 2021… in New Jersey where it all began” to begin filming. You can read our review of the Jay and Silent Bob reboot here.

Marvel’s Blade Finds its Director

Marvel’s new Blade film has reportedly found its director. Bassam Tariq, best-known for directing 2020’s Mogul Mowgli, is currently in talks with Marvel to helm the vampire superhero film starring Mahershala Ali, Deadline reports.

Deadline adds that a deal has not been finalized yet, but Tariq reportedly won out after Marvel met with “dozens” of candidates.

Mogul Mowgli is Tariq’s only major film project. It stars Riz Ahmed (Sound of Metal, Rogue One) as a British-Pakistani rap artist on the verge of his big break, but suddenly contracts a deadly autoimmune disease, and is spurred to visit his family in London.

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Tariq previously worked on shorts and documentaries, including Netflix’s Ghosts of Sugar Land, which follows a group of suburban muslims who grapple with a friend who has descended into extremist beliefs.

Marvel was reportedly looking at writer-director options, but ultimately split the roles, landing HBO’s Watchmen writer Stacy Osei-Kuffour to pen Blade’s script.

Tariq is the sixth person of color hired to direct a Marvel film, following in the footsteps of Taika Waititi, Ryan Coogler, Nia DaCosta (brought on to direct Captain Marvel 2), Chloe Zhao, and Destin Cretton.

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The new Blade film will act as a reboot to the original 1998 film starring Wesley Snipes, which debuted a decade prior to Marvel’s launch of the MCU with Iron Man.

Don’t forget to check out our history of Blade in the Marvel universe if you need a refresher on the Daywalker’s lore.

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Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/one of four lions for IGN.