Category: Games

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007: No Time To Die May Be Delayed Once Again

It looks like the new James Bond movie, No Time to Die, is headed for yet another delay. Deadline reported that the new 007 movie may be bumped off of its Easter weekend release date in April and move to a new date in the fall.

As with the previous delays, the shift of the film–should it happen–is related to the COVID-19 pandemic. It appears the production companies want to wait until the movie theatre market is in a better place with more venues open.

Deadline said it has heard that the various promotional partners for No Time to Die have been informed of the forthcoming delay, which has not been officially announced yet.

No Time to Die was reportedly shown to various streaming companies with an asking price of $600 million to acquire the film for an at-home release. However, Deadline said none of the parties were willing to agree to even half of that asking price.

For comparison, 2015’s Skyfall, which is the latest entry in the series, made more than $880 million worldwide, while 2012’s Skyfall is the highest-grossing Bond movie ever ($1.1 billion).

For No Time to Die, Deadline said it has heard from sources outside of the film studio that “it’s amazing, and well worth the wait.”

No Time to Die was originally slated to come to theatres in 2019, but the movie was delayed at first due to director Danny Boyle leaving the movie, and then again multiple times as a result of COVID-19. True Detective’s Cary Joji Fukunaga eventually came aboard to direct and Fleabag’s Phoebe Waller-Bridge was hired to contribute to the script.

No Time to Die will mark actor Daniel Craig’s final performance as James Bond. The film also stars Oscar-winner Rami Malek as the bad guy, while Ana de Armas, Lea Seydoux, Christoph Waltz, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Lashana Lynch, Jeffrey Wright, and Rory Kinnear also star in the movie. The theme song was written and performed by Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas.

Now Playing: No Time To Die – 007 James Bond Official Trailer

WandaVision Includes A Nod To Full House

Marvel is kicking off 2021 with a new show, WandaVision, which follows the superheroes Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany) in the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame. The show premieres on Disney+ on January 15 and now we’ve learned a little bit more about it, and specifically one of its Easter eggs.

The show will include a nod to the American family sitcom Full House, which featured twins Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. Elizabeth Olsen is their younger sister, and that’s how this all connects.

“We have a very small nod, but it’s there,” Elizabeth Olsen told GameSpot sister site TV Guide. “And I credit [director] Matt Shakman for making it happen.”

According to the report, the WandaVision nod to Full House happens a few episodes in, but that’s all we have to go on for now.

The WandaVision connection to Full House goes just a bit further. WandaVision director Matt Shakman was a child actor on the 1980s show Just the Ten of Us, which was a spin-off of Growing Pains. That show starred Kirk Cameron, the brother of Full House star Candace Cameron.

For more on WandaVision, check out GameSpot’s recent stories below:

Razer x Hello Kitty Collection Launching Globally This Spring

Gamers can already deck out their setup in pink with Razer’s Quartz line of gaming peripherals, but things are about to get even cuter with Razer’s latest collaboration. Announced during CES 2021, the Razer x Hello Kitty and Friends collection is launching globally this spring after originally being available only in China.

In its CES stream, Razer confirmed only that the collection is releasing soon. Though specific products were not mentioned, the Razer x Sanrio Characters peripherals released in China a few months ago included a keyboard, headset, wired mouse, and mouse pad, all featuring Hello Kitty’s signature pastel design. You can check them out below.

The Razer x Sanrio Characters line released in China in 2020
The Razer x Sanrio Characters line released in China in 2020

If you can’t wait until the new Hello Kitty Razer accessories release this spring, the products shown above are actually available to buy via electronics store Newegg. The mouse and mouse pad bundle is available for $86, the wired keyboard sells for $190, and the headphones also go for $190. Note that the mouse pad bundle ships from China, while the keyboard and headphones ship from the US. These are third-party sellers, not Razer, so use your own discretion before purchasing.

During CES 2021, Razer also revealed its new gaming laptops with RTX 30-series graphics cards as well as two product concepts: an immersive gaming chair and a smart mask.

Razer’s Latest Concept Product Is an RGB Face Mask

Razer loves to go big at CES. In years past, the company has shown off everything from a triple-monitor gaming laptop to a fully immersive racing simulator. This year, Razer is showing off two concept projects: an immersive gaming chair and a high-tech face mask outfitted with, in true Razer fashion, RGB lighting.

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Project Hazel is Razer’s take on a “smart” mask. It would use a detachable, rechargeable active-ventilation system to regulate airflow, with N95 medical-grade respirator protection to filter at least 95% of airborne particles. The design also features a transparent front panel so that people can see your facial expressions, or, when communicating with people who are deaf or hard of hearing, read your lips. The mask would also use a “VoiceAmp” technology featuring a built-in microphone and amplifier to prevent the mask from muffling your voice. And to top it of, of course, it features Razer Chroma RGB lighting.

Of course, to be clear, Project Hazel is only a concept project, and is extremely unlikely to come to market in its current form, if at all. That said, cheesy sci-fi aesthetics aside, it’s nice to see companies thinking about ways to take on some of the common complaints about masks, given they have become an essential part of everyday life.

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Razer’s other concept this year is Project Brooklyn, an all-in-one immersive gaming chair. The idea is an ergonomic chair with built-in haptic feedback and a retractable, wraparound curved screen. Visuals would be delivered by a 60-inch rollable OLED display that retracts and folds into the chair when not in use. Similarly, the armrests adjust and retract as needed depending on if you’re playing on PC with mouse and keyboard or console with a controller. Again, this is just a concept product that likely will never exist as a real product, at least in its current form.

As for real products, at CES Razer also showed off new versions of its Blade 15 and 17 gaming laptops, most notably featuring a new 1440p screen option.

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Bo Moore is IGN’s Executive Editor of Tech. Follow him on Twitter @usebomswisely.

Razer Unveils Smart Mask With Safety Features, RGB Lighting, And Voice Amplification

Razer revealed new Blade laptop models at CES 2021, but it didn’t stop there, unveiling two product concepts its design teams have been working on. The first is an immersive gaming chair with a 60-inch surround OLED display, while the second was designed with the current state of the world in mind. Razer’s Project Hazel is a smart mask that’s designed to keep people safe during the pandemic and sociable in a world where social distancing has become the norm.

The Project Hazel smart mask has surgical N95 respirators that use rechargeable active ventilators and replaceable Smart Pod filters. Razer says the “high bacterial filtration efficiency Smart Pods filter at least 95% of airborne particles.” Additionally, each mask comes with a wireless charging case to replenish the ventilators’ battery life. This case also features a UV sterilizer to ensure the cleanliness of the mask.

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As for actually wearing the mask, Project Hazel is made of scratch-resistant and waterproof plastic. It boasts adjustable ear loops, custom sizes, and an air-tight seal with active cooling to allow for a smooth air flow and the disposal of carbon dioxide. The transparent design allows other people to see the wearer’s mouth to help with social situations and those who require lip reading to communicate. The mask has a low-light mode that activates lights in the dark and a built-in microphone to amplify the wearer’s voice for better communication.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Razer product without Chroma RGB lighting, and Project Hazel has exactly that. The RGB lighting can be found on a ring light around the ventilators and customized with over 16 million colours.

If you’re hoping to buy Project Hazel for yourself, you may have to wait quite a while. Razer doesn’t currently have plans to sell this, though the company notes that it will continue to optimize Project Hazel by putting it through “rigorous testing and user feedback to ensure safety compliance and maximum comfort and usability.” It’s unclear when Project Hazel will be available to the public, but for now, you can learn more at Razer.

Now Playing: Razer Smart Mask: Project Hazel – Official CES 2021 Reveal

Razer Reveals Immersive Gaming Chair With 60″ OLED Screen At CES 2021

For CES 2021, Razer revealed two concepts for new products, including a smart N95 mask and a new type of gaming chair. Dubbed Project Brooklyn, the chair transforms into an immersive gaming station with an OLED “surround” screen. Built with carbon fiber and adorned with RGB lighting, it is designed to be a “cockpit”-style chair.

“Project Brooklyn is an exciting concept developed on the true essence of a fully immersive gaming station,” Razer co-founder and CEO Min-Liang Tan said in a press release. “The haptic feedback, visuals, and overall functional design with attention to ergonomics will deliver a one-of-a-kind gameplay experience.”

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Project Brooklyn takes design inspiration from the Razer Iskur, a gaming chair released in October 2020 that prioritizes comfort. Meanwhile, the adjustable platform of the chair takes inspiration from the Razer Raptor monitor, supporting a 60″ full surround OLED display.

Additionally, Project Brooklyn incorporates Razer’s audio-driven haptic feedback prototype that was first shown off at CES 2019, so it vibrates differently depending on what you’re currently doing in-game–similarly to the PlayStation 5’s DualSense controller, just for an entire chair.

Alongside Project Brooklyn, Razer also revealed its plans for Project Hazel, a smart mask. Project Hazel is designed with an airtight seal and ventilators, ideal for the gamer who really doesn’t want to get sick. A built-in microphone also amplifies your voice so that you’re not muffled while wearing the mask.

Baldur’s Gate 3 To Support Razer Chroma

During Razer’s livestream presentation at CES, the company announced that Baldur’s Gate 3 will get Razer Chroma functionality with its line of Chroma-enabled products. A brief trailer showed off the functionality working with a Razer keyboard and mouse.

Razer Chroma changes the coloring across the full RGB lighting spectrum in certain lit areas of its peripherals, like underneath the keys and on the letter caps of a keyboard. In the video we saw this used to set the mood with red lighting during a particularly demonic moment, highlighting the number keys during a decision moment, and even using the keys to approximate the shape of a D20. The announcement promised the functionality is coming soon, but did not give a date.

Also during its presentation, Razer announced a new line of gaming laptops, a smart mask with lighting and safety features, a gaming chair with an OLED screen, and a partnership with Hello Kitty.

Baldur’s Gate 3 released in early access last year, and a release date for the final version is still unannounced. In GameSpot’s Baldur’s Gate 3 early access review, David Wildgoose wrote that it “shows a good deal of promise, yet there are plenty of warning signs it may not fulfill its potential.”

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Dead Cells’ Second DLC, Fatal Falls, Revealed

Fans of Motion Twin’s roguelite metroidvania Dead Cells will be stoked to know that Motion Twin and Evil Empire have announced the game’s second paid DLC: Fatal Falls. It will be arriving for both consoles and PC on January 26, and will cost $5/€5.

Fatal Falls is bringing two brand-new biomes for players to explore and fight their way through: The Fractured Shrines and The Undying Shores. These are parallels to the Stilt Village, Clock Tower, and Time Keeper areas in the base game, and were designed to serve as alternate paths to spice up your mid-game runs. The DLC will also be adding a “new” boss, The Scarecrow, that current fans may recognize as the Royal Gardener, now infected with Malaise.

On your way to take the Scarecrow down, you will encounter eight new “slightly psychotic” enemy types including the Myopic Crow, Clumsy Swordsman, and Compulsive Gravedigger. But don’t worry, you’ll be getting some new weapons to take them on with. Seven, to be exact:

  • Lightning Rods
  • Ferryman’s Lantern
  • Scarecrow’s Sickles
  • Iron Staff
  • Snake Fangs
  • Serenade
  • Cocoon.

Each of these will be useful in different areas of the two new biomes. And to make sure you look as cool as you feel while taking these goons down with your new toys, the DLC will also come with 10 new outfits.

To celebrate Fatal Falls’ release, Motion Twin and Evil Genius have also announced several sales and bundles for Dead Cells. Starting on January 26, prices for the standard game will be slashed across all platforms, though the dates of sales will depend on the platform, so plan accordingly and keep an eye on your preferred platform’s storefront.

Switch players can now preorder the Fatal Seed Bundle at a 33% discount. The bundle includes all of the game’s previous free updates and both paid DLCs, Fatal Falls and The Bad Seed, for $20/€20. This bundle will be available across all platforms at a 33% discount starting on January 26. The base version of Dead Cells will also be available for 50% off ($12.50/€12.50) during the celebratory sale period, in case you want to give it a try before committing to the full bundle experience.

GameSpot’s review said that “Dead Cells is a phenomenal effort to blend together some very disparate genres into a tight, cohesive whole. It’s one of the better examples of how to remix ideas without losing their individual strengths.” If you’ve been thinking about grabbing it, there’s never been a better time.

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This Halo Infinite Bathrobe Looks Very, Very Comfy And I Want It

While we have to wait until Fall 2021 to actually play Halo Infinite, the merchandise around the game is already kicking into gear, and this now includes a very comfy-looking branded bathrobe.

Toynk is now selling an officially licensed Halo Infinite-themed bathrobe. Available in one adult size, the $60 USD bathrobe is “authentically designed” to look like Master Chief’s iconic green armor. The 100% polyester fleece robe features the number 117 on the chest, two front pockets, an adjustable belt, and embroidered shoulder pauldrons. The hood becomes Master Chief’s helmet when you drape it over your face, which is a nice touch.

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“Perfect for slipping into after an exhausting day of saving humanity as a cybernetically-enhanced space marine. It’s a tough job, but somebody has to look good doing it, right?” reads a line from the item’s description.

You can check out more photos of the Halo Infinite robe below.

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Halo Infinite was originally slated to release as a launch title for the Xbox Series X|S in November, but Microsoft elected to push the game to 2021 due in part to complications related to COVID-19 and working from home. Recently, 343 boss Bonnie Ross said the wait will be worth it.

The game is shaking things up for the franchise, as it runs on a completely new engine and the multiplayer element of Halo Infinite will be free-to-play with microtransactions.

When Halo Infinite is released, it will be free for Xbox Game Pass subscribers and available on Xbox One, PC, and Xbox Series X|S.

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