Super Nintendo World, the new theme park section from Nintendo and Universal Studios, is opening at Universal Studios Japan in Osaka in Spring 2021. Nintendo made the announcement on Twitter while adding that a new Mario cafe and store would be coming to Universal Studios Japan on October 16.
While theme parks in California are still shut down, Universal Studios Japan reopened back in June after the country’s state of emergency was lifted. The park requires that guests wear masks and have their temperature taken when entering. Universal Studios Japan’s version of Super Nintendo Land was intended to launch alongside the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, but the opening has been delayed due to the pandemic.
We got an early glimpse of the park back in May when aerial shots were shared on Instagram. We could see Peach’s castle, various warp pipes and blocks, and even a Yoshi ride similar to Fantasy Land where park-goers take the green dinosaur for a spin. No other rides, besides the previously confirmed Yoshi and Mario Kart rides, have been announced.
Super Nintendo Land is also set to come to the Singapore, Orlando, and Hollywood Universal Parks, each with unique rides, although little information about those parks has been released. Construction has been ongoing at Universal Studios Hollywood.
Theme parks in Orlando have reopened since June, but parks in Southern California, including Universal Studios and Disneyland, remained closed due to the pandemic. You can still go for a visit to Disneyland in Animal Crossing, though.
Logitech’s G923 racing wheel features a new system to introduce an added layer of force feedback over what’s possible in prior models like the Logitech G29 and G920. Dubbed ‘Trueforce’ the tech is basically designed to take data from within the physics and audio packages of supported racing games and use that information to deliver extra sensations and vibrations to the wheel rim and into your hands.
The result does feel richer in comparison, although as a relatively new product there’s limited current support for the feature within the racing and driving genre.
Logitech G923 – Design and Features
Logitech has previously sold console-specific wheels as different models, with the G920 for Xbox One and the G29 for PS4 (which is largely the same product but with a few additional features, like a 24-point selection dial and a set of LED rev indicator lights).
This time around Logitech has cut down on the disparity between the two camps. There are naturally two versions of the G923 – one comes with typical PlayStation controls built-in, one with Xbox controls, and both are compatible with PC – but now both versions get the same name and the same flourishes (namely, that same 24-point selection dial and the set of LED rev indicator lights). The G923 will also be compatible with Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5.
Logitech G29 (left) vs Logitech G923 (right)
Ultimately, however, the presence of the dial and lights is really the only major physical difference between the G920 and the G923, and the G923 is otherwise virtually identical to the G29. The exposed brushed metal of the rim itself is now black on the G923 (it’s more of a gun metal grey on the G29) and the shift paddles are also black (they’re silver on the G29). Aside from that, they’re basically twins. Same base, same clamps, same button shapes and layout, same leather-wrapped rim with the same stitching – even the same blue aluminium strip to mark the top centre of the wheel.
Logitech G29 (left) vs Logitech G923 (right)
The clutch, brake, and accelerator pedal set is also essentially aesthetically identical to the G29/G920 pedals; the only way you could really tell the sets apart when looking at them is the logo printed beneath the brake pedal. The only difference is inside; the G923 replaces the rubber stopper under the G29/G920 with a new progressive spring that gets firmer as you depress it.
The G923 is compatible with the current Logitech standalone shifter, but it doesn’t come with one.
Logitech G923 – Performance
In games without ‘Trueforce’ compatibility (or with Trueforce toggled off) the G923 feels identical to the G29/G920 (which were not exactly a quantum leap ahead of the G27 back in 2010). It’s still a gear-driven wheel so force feedback is decent if not particularly nuanced, and bumps still make the whole wheel unit rattle like a microwave packed with popcorn. Dialing down FFB in-game can often help tame the knocking in Logitech wheels, although numbing FFB also kind of defeats the purpose of buying a wheel in the first place.
Enabling Trueforce definitely adds another layer to the sensations felt through the wheel, though it does come at the cost of making the wheel even noisier than usual. Trueforce, for instance, enables the G923 to hook itself into the in-game audio and deliver a constant vibration to the wheel rim to simulate the throbbing engine reverberating into the cabin and through the controls. The higher the revs, the stronger the vibration. If you mute the game volume on your gaming TV or soundbar and speaker system you can still hear the G923 itself sound like it’s going through its own rev range – it’s kind of like that slightly distant, tinny sound you get when you go to play a game and you think your speakers are broken until you realise you’ve just forgotten to unplug your gaming headset.
Logitech explains Trueforce “connects directly to in-game engines, processing at up to 4000 times per second” using actual game physics and audio in real time. I suspect a layman would describe it more simply as a general buzzing when the engine is running. This extra vibration doesn’t really get in the way of other more important feedback and cornering forces, and it’s convincing to a point; it does help vehicles feel more alive, even at idle. After using the Trueforce system and toggling it off, I’ll admit I did suddenly feel a little more disconnected from my virtual car. The system is more immersive, despite the fact it makes a bit of a racket.
Of course, the additional caveat for now is that Trueforce is only supported in a couple of games so far. At the moment only Gran Turismo Sport, Assetto Corsa Competizione, and 2019’s Grid officially support Trueforce.
In terms of the pedals, only the brake feels different from the G29/G920. The G923 now has a progressive spring under the brake that makes it harder to depress the further you stomp on it (the G29/G920 has a rubber stopper, which is an effective but cruder solution to simulate the building hydraulic force of a brake pedal – although it creates a distinct two-stage effect where you can feel the pedal first hit the stopper).
The G923 feels better all the way until fully depressed, when it taps against the base. Perhaps the new progressive spring could’ve been combined with a slightly softer stopper to give it a super firm feel at 100% depressed, but without the clunk of it hitting the limit of the base.
It’s not as good as the best film in Sandler’s Netflix oeuvre, which was Murder Mystery, but it’s also heaps better than (arguably) his worst Netflix outing, The Ridiculous 6. Despite gags involving vomit, feces, urine, and other Sandler film staples/secretions, Hubie Halloween is generally a family film, one that harkens back to the likes of early projects such as Billy Madison and The Waterboy. In fact, Sandler’s man-child “Hubie” Dubois (full name: Hubert Shubert Dubois) is such a mash up of SNL’s Canteen Boy and The Waterboy’s Bobby Boucher that it was easy to assume, when he walks through the door of his house, that his mom would be played by Kathy Bates (she’s played by June Squibb, and Hubie has a thermos, not a canteen).
Hubie, who lives in Salem, Mass, and whose lineage dates back to the wrong end (meaning fiery end) of the Witch Trials, is the local dork who loves Halloween and acts like a perpetual safety monitor for the town, causing most around him to hurl insults and debris (and axes?) at him. He longs for his high school crush, Violet Valentine (Modern Family’s Julie Bowen), but he’s never had the courage to ask her out. Fortunately, she already loves him back too so no real work needs to be done narratively in this area of the film.
On this particular Halloween however, with Hubie suffering the usual slings and arrows from his piggish fellow citizens, the town will have to deal with a Michael Myers-styled escaped lunatic, a possible werewolf, and mysterious kidnappings. These could either all be connected somehow or simply misunderstandings and pranks.
Needless to say, Hubie has his hands full as the self-appointed monitor for Halloween safety and as someone who continually puts others’ happiness ahead of his own. One thing that easily earns this Sandler joint a few more points is that the messaging is sweet and kind. It’s about the strength it takes to be charitable and caring and how it’s always the truly weak who bully and abuse. Naturally, to get to that candy center you’ll have to endure dozens of jokes falling flat, a bunch of people falling down, and Hubie falling for every single Halloween prank — each one making him scream in abject terror.
Actually, that last part, where Hubie sort of violently overreacts to every fake ghost and ghoul he sees is one of the movie’s most endearing, and exuberant, running gags. I’m not ashamed to say I chuckled a few times here, over some diabolically dumb s***, but that’s because there are actual attempts at traditional comedy in Hubie Halloween and not just Sandler’s penchant for presenting us with the lowest common denominator.
Also, aside from Happy Madison company regulars like Steve Buscemi and Rob Schneider (and I guess Kevin James too), this movie has a ton of very talented people popping up in amusingly minuscule parts, from SNL’s Melissa Villaseñor, Mikey Day, and Keenan Thompson to grizzled old-guard comedians like Colin Quinn and George Wallace. Also…Ray Liotta? Who I guess is part of this crazy lot now? (All of this is to say that the best cameo, which is a fun Happy Gilmore callback, happens during the first minute of the film.)
Bowen has the privilege/chore of playing the one person in town who not only sees value in Hubie because he’s nice but is also, yes, head over heels in love with him. Yes, the woman who lusts for the quirky dolt is another time-honored Sandler tradition observed here. The story, if it’s at all worth paying attention to, sort of crumbles apart in the third act when the true menace of Salem is revealed, but it neither ruins the movie nor does it make an impact in any meaningful way. The movie is designed to be brainless and sweet and anything remotely clever to arise from it is kind of a happy accident.
A demo for Pikmin 3 Deluxe is coming later tonight on the Nintendo eShop. The demo will include save-data transfer so you can carry your progress over to the full game when it’s released.
Today, Nintendo of America hosted a new Treehouse Live which included a live gameplay demo for Pikmin 3 Deluxe. Two Nintendo Treehouse hosts walked viewers through a few of the new features coming to the Nintendo Switch version of Pikmin 3, including the first-ever story mode co-op mode.
The hosts ended the Pikmin 3 portion by announcing a demo will be coming to the Nintendo eShop later today. What’s more, the demo will include save-data transfer so players can take their progress from the demo and transfer it to the full game when it’s released on October 30.
Check out the Pikmin 3 gameplay demos in the video above. The other half of the Nintendo Treehouse Live covered the upcoming Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, which you can see in the video below.
When it was first revealed, Genshin Impact drew comparisons to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Those comparisons aren’t entirely unfounded–both games feature similar visuals and gameplay mechanics, and Genshin Impact allows you to explore its open world with a similar level of freedom to Nintendo’s opus.
Thankfully, GameSpot has a Breath of the Wild expert on payroll to dive into both games and see whether Genshin Impact is just a rip-off or something more. In the video above, Max Blumenthal (better known as RinHara5aki in certain Breath of the Wild circles) explains how Genshin Impact builds upon the Switch launch title’s mechanics and features–sometimes for better and sometimes for worse.
After putting over 2300 hours into Breath of the Wild and over 50 into Genshin Impact, Max can confirm that the two games are similar but very much not the same. Which isn’t to say one is better than the other–both happen to be good, just in different ways. For the specifics, you’ll have to watch the video.
Breath of the Wild’s approach to exploration and player-created stories was acclaimed at the game’s launch–it’s only natural that developers would take notice of that and try to build on it. It’s not like Genshin Impact is the only game to take inspiration from what Breath of the Wild has done: just look at Ubisoft’s Immortals Fenyx Rising, which copies Breath of the Wild almost beat-for-beat in some instances.
With PlayStation 5‘s launch about a month away, you might expect to have a firmer grasp on what the console is all about by now. Yes, you’ll be able to play most PS4 games on it, and you can expect Sony’s strong first-party lineup to be available in the coming years. We know how to take it apart, install an extra SSD, and switch from horizontal to vertical orientation. Oh, and it’s got Bugsnax. But there are a ton of questions that still remain, including some critical ones that are made all the weirder when you consider that you may have already spent money on a PS5 preorder.
There’s the immediately obvious stuff: What the heck does the PS5’s UI look like? Is this a carryover of the PS4’s menu setup? Will I finally be able to pin things so that Rez Infinite is only ever a button press or two away? Do PS4 themes carry over–or are themes even available on PS5?
For something so core to the experience of using a console, it’s strange to not have even seen a single screenshot of the menus. Why is Sony being so cagey? I’m personally eager to get a peek because I find it a real thrill to behold a next-gen console interface for the first time (the lack of an overhaul on the Xbox side is a little disappointing to me for this reason). But this isn’t the sort of thing that’s necessarily going to play a huge role in deciding whether or not to preorder a PS5.
The answers to other questions, however, will have a more meaningful impact on your experience of playing games on PS5. Will the party system work across generations so you can chat with friends who don’t make the leap? Sony says most PS4 games are backwards compatible on PS5, but depending on how cross-gen multiplayer works, you might not want to trade in your PS4 toward the new console. This is a concern for Xbox Series X/Series S as well, and one that I found it hard to wrap my head around when a friend recently asked me to explain it to him. If he upgrades to next gen but his partner stays on Xbox One, will they be able to play every game together? Will the next-gen version of GTA Online separate them from one another? Who knows!
At least in Xbox’s case, we have a decent understanding of how backwards compatibility works, and the types of enhancements that it will potentially allow for. On the PS5 side, Sony has said very little–just that most PS4 games will work. But which games won’t work? Is there a chance it will allow for a 60fps version of Bloodborne? Has Sony come up with anything like Microsoft’s auto-HDR feature that introduces HDR in games that didn’t previously support it? Why are some PS5 games not supporting cross-gen saves like their Xbox equivalents?
It’s great that backwards compatibility is more of the norm going into this new generation, but the lack of communication from Sony is concerning. It’s unclear if this is due to difficulties related to COVID-19, Sony trying not to advertise the fact that Microsoft’s backwards compatibility is more fully-featured, or something else, but for those who might be trying to decide which next-gen console to buy, this is important information to have.
There’s plenty else that remains unanswered. Are external hard drives supported for backwards-compatible games? Will Trophies and cloud saves sync more seamlessly than on PS4? Will downloads on PSN finally be faster?
Sony is still drip-feeding new information out, and I’m sure some of these topics will be covered in the few weeks left before launch. The company recently revealed that PS5’s virtual surround sound won’t be available for your TV speakers at launch, though 3D Audio will work with headsets starting on Day One. The PS5 teardown video showcased the process for expanding the system’s storage and revealed a clever means for allowing you to vacuum dust out of your console. We’re learning little bits about the console all the time, but not in the same way we are with Xbox Series X, which is already in the hands of media outlets and allowing Microsoft to dominate the conversation.
There remain so many unanswered questions–including some that feel like they should have been addressed before preorders opened–that it’s difficult not to feel a little uneasy about the impending next-gen console launches. Maybe launch day will come and all of these concerns will be rendered moot. But in the meantime, it’s discomforting to have so many questions about whether that $500 purchase was a wise one.
Click To Unmute
Size:
Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?
Jurassic World: Dominion has had a production shutdown for at least two weeks after multiple people involved have tested positive for coronavirus. This setback comes after the recently reported setback that the movie has been bumped from a June 2021 release date to a June 2022 release date. Filmmaker Colin Trevorrow posted on Twitter about “a few positive coronavirus tests” on Jurassic World: Dominion on Wednesday.
Woke up to the news we had a few positive Coronavirus tests on Jurassic World: Dominion. All tested negative shortly after, but due to our safety protocols we’re going to pause for two weeks. Back soon. pic.twitter.com/DxuqX9UdgX
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Dominion has “about three weeks left on production,” which might not sound like a lot–but this is not the first time Dominion has seen delays, injuries, and other medical issues. Despite the film’s UK set spending over $5 million on making it safe during COVID-19, actors have proudly posted pictures of their bruises doing their own stunts on a controlled, careful set.
Still, no matter what precautions are taken, it doesn’t change the fact that production during the pandemic comes with obvious risks. The Batman also recently had its COVID cases and delays. The new Dune movie also got bumped from December to October 2021–although in that case, COVID was not explicitly named as a factor.
Dominion will be the third movie in the Jurassic World franchise, following 2018’s Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. Dominion is expected to close out the trilogy kicked off by 2015’s Jurassic World. In addition to Neill, the cast is a mix of earlier franchise stars Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum and series newcomers Bryce Dallas Howard and Chris Pratt.
When The Social Network came out 10 years ago, it’s safe to say that everything about the concept seemed ridiculous. A decade ago, Facebook was still considered just another trivial platform for sharing pictures of your pets and complaining about teachers with fellow students–even the name ‘Mark Zuckerberg’ felt mostly unfamiliar. So predictably, when the first trailers dropped–featuring a slowed down, children’s choir cover of the song “Creep” by Radiohead–there was no small amount of eye rolling going on.
But boy, were we all in for a surprise. The Social Network wound up dark-horsing its way to a handful of Academy Awards wins and nominations and a dedicated fanbase, thanks largely to both the writer/director team of Aaron Sorkin and David Fincher and the stellar performances by leads Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield who took on the roles of Zuckerberg and ex-best friend Eduardo Saverin respectively.
Now, the world is a much different place and the name Facebook carries with it an entirely different weight, something that Sorkin sees some value in exploring all over again. In an interview with MTV’s Happy.Sad.Confused podcast, Sorkin explained that he’d love to team-up with Fincher to make a follow-up to the movie.
“I do want to see it, and [producer Scott Rudin] wants to see it. People have been talking to me about it. What we’ve discovered is the dark side of Facebook,” Sorkin said, but went on to clarify that he’ll “only write it if David [Fincher] directs it.”
Like The Social Network before it, the follow-up would be loosely based on a novel. For The Social Network, it was The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook, a Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal by Ben Mezrich, which was published in 2009. For the hypothetical sequel, Sorkin would look to the 2019 book Zucked: Waking Up to the Facebook Catastrophe by Roger McNamee, who Sorkin has been in contact with.
Whether or not any of this will actually amount to a movie being made remains to be seen, of course. But if it does, we can be absolutely certain that, for better or worse, a Facebook movie would hit different post-2020 than it did back in 2010.
Click To Unmute
Size:
Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?
Pikmin 3 Deluxe launches on Nintendo Switch later this month, but players will have a chance to sample it before then. During today’s Treehouse Live stream, Nintendo announced that a free Pikmin 3 Deluxe demo is coming to the eShop tonight, and you’ll unlock some things in the full game for playing it.
If you can defeat the final boss at the end of the demo, you’ll unlock the Ultra-Spicy difficulty in the full version of Pikmin 3 Deluxe right from the outset. Ultra-Spicy is a brand-new difficulty option for Pikmin veterans that caps your Pikmin field limit at 60, making the experience more challenging.
A demo for #Pikmin 3 Deluxe will be available this evening on Nintendo #eShop! The demo version features save-data transfer with the full game! Completing it also gives immediate access to the Ultra-Spicy difficulty mode in the full game, and other perks! pic.twitter.com/rFs5iKSNmC
Additionally, Nintendo has confirmed that the Pikmin 3 Deluxe demo allows you to carry over your save data to the full game, so you’ll be able to pick up where you left off when it launches.
We learned a few other new details about Pikmin 3 Deluxe during the Treehouse Live stream. Nintendo confirmed that motion controls and pointer functionality will return as optional control methods. The company also showed off some new features being introduced in this Switch version, including the Piklopedia–which catalogues all the enemies you’ve defeated–and the new side story missions starring Olimar and Louie.
That wasn’t all that we saw during the Treehouse Live stream. As advertised, the company also showcased more of Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, the upcoming Dynasty Warriors-style prequel to Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The segment gave us a closer look at some of the playable characters in the game, including Urbosa, Zelda herself, and young Impa.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity borrows several elements from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and the prequel game doesn’t stop at just its characters or art style. The Breath of the Wild map has made the jump to the new game, and some of the attacks at your disposal will look very familiar.
Showcased during a Nintendo Treehouse Live gameplay presentation on October 7, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity includes a rune system that uses multiple abilities directly lifted from Breath of the Wild. They include a stasis move for freezing targets in midair and the ability to summon blocks to redirect enemies or deal massive damage. Zelda herself makes heavy use of the runes for her combat style.
Other playable characters featured in the gameplay footage include Urbosa, who is playable for the first time ever, as well as Impa. While Urbosa makes heavy use of lightning attacks and can even recharge her weapons after a perfect combo, Impa uses ninja-like abilities and can summon a powerful frog.
You’ll select your stage from a map that is basically identical to the one in Breath of the Wild. It’s far different from what other Warriors games have used, but it should help Zelda fans feel right at home.
Resources remain a huge component in Age of Calamity, and they’re used for everything from accessing new areas to building weapons, and even cooking. Yes, you can learn new recipes for powerful buffs in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. Would it really be a Breath of the Wild prequel without this? One resource you won’t have to worry about are breakable weapons, as they are invulnerable this time around.
Nintendo promised during the stream that we’ll also get to learn more about the backstories of certain characters, as well as their relationships that weren’t thoroughly examined in Breath of the Wild. This includes how Urbosa and Zelda’s late mother knew each other.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity releases exclusively for Nintendo Switch on November 20. If you preorder the game at GameStop, you’ll get a cute little Guardian keychain.
Click To Unmute
Size:
Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?
