Twitch has responded to the #TwitchDoBetter social media campaign, which is being used to ask the streaming service to better protect its marginalized streamers from “hate-raiding” and other examples of hate speech being made against them on the platform.
Twitch recently acknowledged the issues surrounding harassment targeted toward its marginalized creators during their streams on the platform in a thread of tweets. The company said, “We’ve seen a lot of conversation about botting, hate raids, and other forms of harassment targeting marginalized creators. You’re asking us to do better, and we know we need to do more to address these issues. That includes an open and ongoing dialogue about creator safety.”
We’ve seen a lot of conversation about botting, hate raids, and other forms of harassment targeting marginalized creators. You’re asking us to do better, and we know we need to do more to address these issues. That includes an open and ongoing dialogue about creator safety.
The company then went on to detail what actions it would be taking in light of the hateful abuse received by its creators on the platform. The Amazon-owned streaming service explained that it has been able to “identify a vulnerability in [its] proactive filters” and that it has “rolled out an update to close this gap and better detect hate speech in chat”. To supplement this further, Twitch will also be launching “channel-level ban evasion detection and account verification improvements” later this year that it hopes will go will have a big impact on the issues in the future.
Twitch ended its thread by saying, “Our work is never done, and your input is essential as we try to build a safer Twitch. We’ll be reaching out to community members to learn more about their experiences,” before encouraging users to share their own feedback via UserVoice.
We’re launching channel-level ban evasion detection and account verification improvements later this year. We’re working hard to launch these tools as soon as possible, and we hope they will have a big impact. Check out more on our existing tools here: https://t.co/Dku6eBhY72
“Hate-raiding”, for those who haven’t come across the term, is the name given when a streamer’s chat is inundated by a number of users who all spam the same hateful messages towards them. The hashtag #TwitchDoBetter was set up by a streamer called Rek It Raven after they were reportedly hate-raided twice in just a week. Since then, a number of other streamers have got behind the hashtag in support of the campaign, and the term began trending on Twitter.
Raven spoke to PC Gamer, about their thoughts on Twitch’s response to the ongoing issue. They said, “I am happy that they finally responded so we know that they’re actually seeing what’s going on […] But we’ve been here before, right? And not much has changed.” At the beginning of the year, Twitch made the announcement that it would be updating its harassment policy in an attempt to mitigate hate speech on its platform. The company then further announced an updated set of guidelines in April.
Raven continued, “I mean, they came out with a new, clearer-defined TOS at the beginning of the year, and people are still not being held to that standard. So I am optimistic that they responded and that they are hearing everyone who is crying out like, ‘Hey, we’re literally being abused on your platform.’ I don’t know what’s going to come of it. I really hope that they reach out to me and a couple of other marginalized creators, but I don’t know if that’s gonna happen.”
Twitch has not confirmed a specific date for the release of its latest set of improvements that it hopes will help to curb harassment on its platform, but I think we can all agree that it’s a matter of the sooner the better for everyone involved.
Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.
Daniel Klein, lead game developer on Apex Legends, has parted ways with Respawn Entertainment following the emergence of offensive DeviantArt blog posts he published in 2007.
Per PC Gamer, it was revealed that images of the blog had recently started circulating online, including derogatory and abusive content aimed at women and African people. The backlash from the blog being discovered, and his subsequent departure from Respawn Entertainment has forced Klein to make a public statement regarding the situation.
On July 27, Klein addressed the issue on Twitter in a series of tweets, stating that he “take(s) full ownership for the things I said, and I’m embarrassed, sad, and angry at my younger self for saying this stuff. I hope it is obvious that I don’t believe these things anymore.”
I was recently confronted with some awful statements I made on a blog I wrote back in 2007. I take full ownership for the things I said, and I’m embarrassed, sad, and angry at my younger self for saying this stuff. I hope it is obvious that I don’t believe these things anymore.
Two weeks later, on August 10, Klein announced his departure from Respawn Entertainment through a series of further tweets. In these tweets, Klein delves into his behaviour, stating that: “I said racist and sexist things, not because I deeply believed any of them, but because I knew I could get a reaction out of people. That does not excuse anything I said; the impact of my words was the same regardless of what I believed.”
I said racist and sexist things, not because I deeply believed any of them, but because I knew I could get a reaction out of people. That does not excuse anything I said; the impact of my words was the same regardless of what I believed.
Following his departure, Klein provided the following statement to Kotaku: “I fully own the awful, bigoted statements I made in 2007 and am disgusted with my younger self for making them. But there’s also no doubt in my mind that they came to light because someone went looking for things to hurt me with. EA was aware of this allegation, and I specifically asked them to be on the lookout for these strategies being used against other employees in the future.”
EA has made no further statements to the press regarding Klein’s behaviour, beyond the initial statement it provided to Fanbyte when the blog posts emerged: “The comments are disturbing, and we certainly don’t condone the point of view expressed. Our [human resources department] is aware and investigating.”
Marvel’s What If…? marked the MCU’s very first foray into animation, but it certainly won’t be the studio’s last animated series to debut on Disney Plus.
The report notes that there are no feature-length animated projects currently planned, even though Marvel recognizes the advantages of bringing a story to life through animation. Winderbaum said they will figure out which stories suit the medium, as he confirmed that all of the animated series lined up at Marvel are “in various phases of development.”
“We realized that there’s a lot of cool avenues you can explore with animation,” he said. “Any project we create is going to be something that needs to be animated in order for the story to be told. There’s very little desire to take a piece of IP that’s popular because we’re coming out with a movie and just make an animated show about it. We’re not going to do that.”
What If…? director Bryan Andrews collaborated with independent animation studios Flying Bark Productions, Squeeze Animation Studios, and Blue Spirit to develop the show’s “unique aesthetic.” Winderbaum hinted that Marvel would be open to working with Disney Animation or even Disney’s Pixar in the future, provided it’s “under the right circumstances.”
Winderbaum also confirmed that all the shows will involve “original ideas,” drawing inspiration from well-known titles and characters already in the MCU as well as untapped sources from the comics, however, due to the long production process involved with animation, it will probably be a while until any of these new animated shows are slotted onto a Marvel slate.
“All of our animation ambitions are going to still be under Marvel Studios, which means they’re going to be produced by Kevin Feige and they’re going to be born of the same stuff that makes the rest of our content,” he explained before teasing how the shows will be connected to the rest of the MCU. “Time will tell as the story of the multiverse unfolds.”
The conceit of a time-loop, its infinite cycles and the stress of finding a way out, is a familiar one. Yet, the upcoming narrative adventure game, Twelve Minutes, focuses on a more intimate and emotional experience about the lives of others and the secrets they hide. A nameless protagonist is caught in an unending time-loop within his apartment, and players will have to uncover long-held secrets about central characters, a girlfriend who’s caught in the middle, and an intruder that ends his life.
With every loop peeling back the layers of each character, Twelve Minutes uses the concept of a time-loop to act as an extended lesson in empathy, which is something the creator and actors working on the game found enticing. We spoke with game director Luis Antonio and lead actors James McAvoy and Willem Dafoe about the making of Twelve Minutes, and what they learned about their experience taking part in the creation of a non-linear game
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Now Playing: Twelve Minutes | Xbox + Bethesda E3 2021
Editor’s Note: This interview has been edited for clarity and readability.
For Luis, can you start off with talking about what the initial vision was for this project?
Luis Antonio: The starting point for Twelve Minutes was just exploration of the accumulated knowledge in video games, and how that could become useful when dabbling into these different time loops. Games already have this nature of repetition where you die–you lose, and you go back to the beginning. So I just started to ask myself these questions of what’s interesting about it. Like what are the angles that are worth spending our time with, and it quickly became about these characters understanding who they are, where they come from, and why they’re doing what they’re doing.
Developing these characters became a lot about creating these motivations that made sense to the gameplay beats and kind of the rhythm of the design, as well as restricting them enough. So with every loop you can unravel enough things to know where to go, and learn enough things that will keep you going. The other big element was removing any clear objectives for the player. Willem’s character [The Intruder] coming in and beating up the husband every loop is a big motivator to stop what’s happening. But once you jump over that barrier, it becomes a lot about your interpretation of what’s happening, and then the nuance of the acting comes in to really make it. A lot of it happens in your head, and how you’re reading what’s happening as you go through each loop, and you learn more about the characters involved
And you also have a great cast for this game. Willem, I know there’s been much talk about your role in the game, but you actually have a lot of experience working on games. You’ve worked on the Spider-Man video game, played a Bond villain in Everything Or Nothing, and even worked with Elliot Page on Beyond: Two Souls. But Twelve Minutes actually feels more in line with much of your dramatic efforts in film. What initially attracted you to this game, and did you feel you learned something from this experience?
Willem Dafoe: Yeah, Luis pitched it to me and it obviously was a project he deeply considered, and that this was not just an exercise. I knew Daisy Ridley and James McAvoy were already committed to the project, so I thought, “Wow, it’ll be fun to bounce off them because they’re both very good actors.” I had worked with Daisy on a Kenneth Branagh film called Murder on the Orient Express, and I liked her a great deal. She’s very talented, charming and sweet. So I was into that.
But as far as what I learned, I don’t know. It’s always hard to know what you learn. I think it just confirms certain things that I have a tendency to feel. That is, you can only deal with what’s in front of you and how you deal with it. The quality of performing, it always depends on the presence of the actor. And because they’re not seeing you [in the case of Twelve Minutes], you will have to have a level of commitment and level of engagement that really makes this stuff stick. Otherwise, it becomes very fast, and it can be very active, but it’s not invested. So one of the pleasures is, with any kind of performing, is to kind of, for lack of a better word, lose yourself in the pleasure of the doing and the pleasure of actually yourself throwing in, and being in the moment.
That’s all very easy to do when you’re in voice work, because you’re bouncing off people, and you don’t have the same kind of technical responsibilities. You’re working quite fast, you’re working with lots of variation and you’ve got the director driving you, pushing in your ear. It becomes an interactive game in itself, I guess the thing I learned is I do enjoy doing voice work. I probably, above all, like to do physical stuff when I perform in the theater or movies, but working with the voice can be very freeing sometimes.
The Protagonist and his significant other start out having a nice evening to themselves, but things quickly take a turn.
James, this is actually your first major role in a video game. And in a way, it’s also fitting that you probably have the most difficult role in the game, playing the protagonist. You, of course, have experience in theater, film, television, but I imagine there was a lot to consider and keep track of for this game. So what was your experience like stepping into a role for a video game?
James McAvoy: Yeah, it was crazy. Right from the moment they sent me the script, they told me the idea of the game, and I read the treatment about it. I was like, “It’s great. I’ll do it.” And then Luis kind of prepped me about the script before he sent it. And I was like, “This is weird. They’re preparing me for the script.” I’m like, “It’s a script.” And he’s like, “Nah, it’s not really a script, dude.” And I was like, “Huh?” When I got it, it was so strange, different, unique, and quite useful, actually, for this particular kind of project. So I got the main central strand [of the story] with a couple of offshoots, depending on what choices the characters make, and that was it. But for the other parts, I had to just sort of learn and perform as we went. So I was kind of learning about the story as it went on, which is kind of awesome.
But it was a weird and quite taxing role [playing the Protagonist]. It almost was like different roles at times, actually. Depending on what the player decides to do, he almost feels like a completely different person. And it was definitely a vocally demanding role, as well. There was a hell of a lot of screaming and shouting, crying and fighting, and all sorts of things.
I generally find that in animated or voice work, you’re generally pushed much harder vocally than you are on a film or TV set. In the theater we’re so warmed up, and we have to take care of our voices. But when it’s voice work for animation or a game, it seems like they just rag you. This kind of work absolutely kills your voice. In fact, my buddy auditioned for, I think it was Battlefield 2042, a little while ago. They made the actor sign an agreement saying you won’t sue us if you lose your voice in this audition. My buddy’s a really well-known theater actor, and he’s like, “Mmm… No, no no no no no no no. Not a f***ing chance.” [Laughs] And then they had him lifting weights as they were screaming and shouting, “Under fire! Cover me! I’m going in!” They’re all lifting weights to make them more, “Arrrr.” It’s crazy. So yeah, my experience is the voice work, they generally don’t mind f***ing up your voice.
It sounds like you came into something you weren’t expecting, but ultimately came out feeling quite fulfilled.
James: Yeah, man. I love doing my job when I get good material, and I’ll do that material, whatever it is. On screen, whatever you like, as long as the material is good. The material for [Twelve Minutes] was fantastic, so it was a bit of a no-brainer. The fact that you’re doing it in a recording studio or you’re doing it on stage in front of a hundred-odd people or you’re doing it in front of the camera doesn’t really matter. If you’re working with good people, and you’re working on a good script that has a compelling story with a dynamic and surprising character.
Depending on your choices, the evening can quickly descend into chaos, ending your loop with tragic results.
Speaking of theater, I admire this game because it seems to be more of an intimate take on a time loop narrative. It reminds me of a theater play. So for Willem, I know you’ve got quite the theater background yourself, did that recall feelings of taking part in a play?
Willem: There’s that element, yeah, but it really didn’t occur to me specifically. There is something, one fact about the theater–regardless of what kind of theater–is that there’s always a degree of repetition because you’re repeating a score and then every night you have to bring it alive, make it live again. With variation, of course–well, the variation is quite intense. So when you go in the room and you’re recording this text and you’re working with the other actors, one of the things that’s a real pleasure about it is it’s very loose. You’re bound to the text, but how you pace it and what is happening, you’re very free with it, because you’re not presenting anything else. You’re only working with your voice and with the other actors and the director speaking in your ear. I like that immediate call and response in a performance.
So it becomes like a game in itself because Luis has been sitting with this concept and has been thinking about this, and then we walk in and we generate events that he can guide by saying, “Go this way with it, think about this.” So you’re working psychologically, you’re working just purely musically, sometimes sonically. It’s fun, it’s a jam session. You’re generating material, you don’t know where that material is going to be used, so your loyalty is just to try to make each moment have something, have its own truth, have its own reality.
For Luis, you have had experiences working on other games with these elaborate themes and structures, particularly The Witness with Jonathan Blow. For Twelves Minutes, it’s all about the characters and dialogue. How did you feel about seeing how players interacted with the setup of the plot and seeing how far and how quickly they can escalate things?
Luis: That’s a tricky question. This game has been in development for a long time, and there was, especially during the writing stage, a moment where I realized that there were these things you have to go through in order to advance through the narrative. But once that aspect of the game was done and the focus was on the characters themselves, it became important to understand what drives them. More in the sense of how they choose to react to the situations that they’re in. I had kids at the same time, and there’s this moment in life, a little bit on the side but, when you have to put the values into your children and you don’t know quite well if the values you’ve learned are the right values. You start to question what values will we put in your characters, how they react to situations, and if you impose certain values into certain characters, it will condition the way you react to the way they behave.
There was this process of making sure that there’s a lot of empathy between all the characters, even though what they’re doing might not be something that you believe is the right or the wrong thing to do. Removing all the judgment and letting them be as true as they can. I think that kind of opened up the characters so that you relate to them no matter what’s happening throughout the story. That was a big thing for me.
Willem: I think for me, just real quick, that’s really interesting because, with all the variations, what you might see sometimes as brutal or confrontational acts, when you see them slightly changed with each different motivation, different scenarios, you really feel your empathy or your understanding of the character shift. Which is terrifically interesting. It’s like peeling back the skin of an onion. It’s quite compelling.
I’d be remiss not to ask this, but obviously the world has been in a weird spot for the last year and a half with the COVID-19 Pandemic. Since this is a game that deals with intimacy and the importance of empathy, has the necessity to keep distance from people while making this game had any impact on your performance, or maybe your understanding of certain characters?
James: Ah, yes. It has. I think the protagonist feels very alone in this game. He’s desperately trying to connect, specifically with Daisy’s character, as well, with someone who he thinks he knows. I think this unique experience informs him that he really doesn’t know. I think that that’s happened to a lot of people during the pandemic, hasn’t it? Like, you’ve lived with somebody for 20 years of your life, and then when you’re stuck in the same house and you can’t go anywhere for a year and a half, you actually learn quite a lot of new things about them.
In most cases, that can be a wonderful thing. But in a lot of cases, it can be an ending thing. So definitely, there are parallels there, I think. But just in performance, it was just wonderful to get in a room with another actor–Daisy. I think before this, I hadn’t done any acting during the pandemic, with anyone else in person, until this game. So it was pretty cool to jump back in. It was a bit of a treat.
To me, Twelve Minutes is, in a way, a lesson in empathy, which you see throughout the protagonist’s efforts to understand the other characters and break the loop. For Luis, could you elaborate more on the emotional threads you wanted to have throughout the game? And what do you want players to take away from their experiences?
Luis: The main thing I wanted to figure out is when we have situations of conflict, or situations having the characters deal with problems without blame or guilt. If you have that attitude, right, the player will automatically, in a way, relate with the characters because they’re not blaming us for how they’re feeling or how the situation is developing. That’s what makes you automatically be on board with whatever’s happening, and try to stay on each character’s side. You know the before and the after, I think your interpretation of the situation becomes more personal because there’s less judgment on all fronts. Especially in a video game where there’s a lot you can do a lot of things to irritate everyone. So yeah, it’s really all about presenting more empathy between the characters.
The Intruder has a serious grudge against the Protagonist, and finding out why is one of the things to uncover in Twelve Minutes.
Lastly, just something of a fun question for both Willem and James, who have quite a number of projects under their belts for acting. For James in particular, with exception for Wanted and the X-Men films, is there a particular project you’ve worked on that you think could be adapted into a video game?
James: Oh! That’s a really good question. What do I think? I think that one of the weirdest, most surreal films I’ve done, that would allow for some pretty wicked choices, especially if you approached it in the way that Luis approaches Twelve Minutes where the player actually has a lot of freedom of choice, would maybe be Filth. That was an Irvine Welsh book that Jon S. Baird directed and brilliantly adapted it into a film. I think that might be a kind of fun and exciting, visually quite stimulating game as well. But other than that, I mean, of course there’s Narnia, a Mr. Tumnus spin-off where it’s really all about Mr. Tumnus, and you have to run around collecting sardines.
Luis: Actually, Filth was an inspiration for Twelve Minutes. I don’t think I ever mentioned that.
James:Filth? Really?
Luis: Yeah, the way you play that character, the craziness that he gets into as the situation gets worse and worse, it was…for the character artists and just the moods that we wanted to go for.
If I may offer a suggestion, I think for my pick, Danny Boyle’s Trance would probably be an interesting one. I really dug that movie a lot.
James: Yes! It’s quite a mind-bending movie and it’s very action-driven too as well. It’s also very psychologically driven, that would be an interesting one.
Willem: That’s a tough one to answer for me. Oh wow. Actually, how about The Last Temptation of Christ?
[Laughs] Oh man, I’m sure someone out there could figure that out, that would be a compelling game for sure. I thought you were going to say The Lighthouse.
Willem: That would be a good one too.
Actually, I don’t know if you knew this, but one of your earlier films, Streets of Fire, would be a great video game. In fact, that film actually ended up having an impact on a whole sub genre of video games–which we call beat-em-ups.
Willem: Ah, that’s interesting.
Yeah, it was so popular with certain crowds that it ended up inspiring the creation of games like Final Fight and Streets of Rage, which actually pulled directly from the style and structure of Streets of Fire. That film has a cult following and it’s got history in the games industry.
Willem: Oh, cool. You know, I’m going to be working next in a couple of weeks. I’m working with Walter Hill and it’s fantastic because he was the director and one of the writers of that movie. That’s like 40 years ago. I’m so excited to work with him again. But that movie was great fun and the people that know it, love it. I appreciate hearing that, because it was a lot of fun to make.
Twelve Minutes is set for release on August 19, 2021 for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S–at launch, it will be available on Game Pass.
A short film detailing the start of the No-Pat civil war that takes place in Battlefield 2042 has solidified the game’s connection to Battlefield 4. The two games officially take place in the same universe, with two characters from Battlefield 4’s campaign playing prominent roles in the film.
The film starts with Kimble “Irish” Graves, voiced by Micahel K. Williams (who played Omar in The Wire), exploring ruins while looking for an important data package. As it turns out, the package is being hauled by none other than his former squadmate, Clayton “Pac” Pakowski, voiced by Andrew Lawrence.
However, Irish decides that the package is best kept away from No-Pat leader Oz, sparking the No-Pat civil war. According to a press release from EA, Irish will be one of the specialists playable in Battlefield 2042, and the game’s story will continue to be told as more specialists are added.
With Irish’s reveal, we now know about five of the total 10 specialists that will be available in Battlefield 2042 when the game launches. Specialists are set apart in the game by their unique equipment, including grappling hooks and wingsuits. At the moment it’s not clear what ability Irish will bring to the battlefield.
While Battlefield 2042 is currently set to launch on October 22, EA has already opened the game up to some players. A technical test for the game started today, offering players a first look at what the game will be like at launch. That being said, it’s not likely that those outside the technical test will learn much about the game. Unlike Halo Infinite’s recent technical preview, Battlefield 2042’s technical test is under a strict NDA.
Netflix has begun announcing cast members for its live-action entry in the Avatar franchise. In a release, and also a series of tweets, showrunner-writer Albert Kim (Sleepy Hollow) promises that the upcoming show will be “an incredible journey” for fans.
The new actors joining the show are Gordon Cormier as Aang, Kiawentiio as Katara, Ian Ousley as Sokka, and Dallas Liu as Zuko. Netflix made the announcement on Twitter, which you can see below.
These cast members are with the show as series regulars, and Netflix also released the character bios in a press release.
Gordon Cormier (he/him) is Aang, a fearless and fun-loving 12-year-old who just happens to be the Avatar, master of all four elements and the keeper of balance and peace in the world. An airbending prodigy, Aang is a reluctant hero, struggling to deal with the burden of his duties while still holding on to his adventurous and playful nature.
Kiawentiio (she/her) is Katara, a determined and hopeful waterbender, the last in her small village. Though only fourteen, she’s already endured great personal tragedy, which has held her back from rising to her true potential, though it’s never dimmed her warm and caring spirit.
Ian Ousley (he/him) is Sokka, Katara’s sardonic and resourceful 16-year-old brother. Outwardly confident, even brash, he takes his responsibility as the leader of his tribe seriously, despite his inner doubts over his warrior skills… doubts that he masks with his wit and deadpan sense of humor.
Dallas Liu (he/him) is Zuko, a skilled firebender and the intense and guarded Crown Prince of the Fire Nation. Currently roaming the world in exile, he’s on an obsessive quest to capture the Avatar because he believes that is the only way to reclaim his life and live up to the demands of his cruel and controlling father, the Fire Lord.
For readers who might be franchise newcomers or might feel intimidated by another branch of the franchise taking shape–you can worry a little less, as this live-action show “will be an authentic adaptation of the… Nickelodeon animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender.” The Last Airbender spanned a few spinoffs as well (including The Legend of Korra and Republic City Hustle), so it’s possible this new series will also double as a great starting point for newcomers.
Joining Kim behind the camera are executive producers Dan Lin, Lindsey Liberatore, Michael Goi, and Roseanne Liang. In an enthusiastic statement from Kim, he shared that one of the most important things about executing this new series is “authenticity” to the show’s characters and cultural influences. “Authenticity is what keeps us going, both in front of the camera and behind it, which is why we’ve assembled a team unlike any seen before–a group of talented and passionate artists who are working around the clock to bring this rich and incredibly beautiful world to life.”
September 13 marks two years since Borderlands 3 first launched, and developer Gearbox plans to celebrate with several weeks of mini-events. Starting on August 12, these Loot the Universe mini-events will see an increase in Legendary-class gear drops on specific planets.
Specific types of Legendary loot have increased chances of dropping, and each planet will also have its own dedicated Legendary weapon type from the pool of exotic pistols, shotguns, assault rifles, and sniper rifles available.
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Legendary class mods, artifacts, shields, and grenade mods will also be up for grabs until the event ends on September 9.
Borderlands 3 Loot The Universe Schedule
August 12 – 9: Pandora
August 19 – 26: Promethea
August 26 – September 2: Eden-6
September 2 – 9: Nekrotafeyo
From September 9 there will be two more mini-events in the form of Mayhem Made Mild, which adds only easy modifiers to the endgame mode, and Show Me the Eridium, which grants increased Eridium drops and Eridium item discounts.
Gearbox says that it has more plans for September 13, which it’ll reveal closer to the big anniversary day. In other Borderlands 3 news, the game recently increased the level cap for characters, added cross-play, and introduced new Vault Cards for owners of the game’s director’s cut.
Like several other games from the previous generation of console gaming, The Elder Scrolls Online is getting an enhanced edition for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. As part of the Waking Flame DLC, dynamic resolution scaling for performance mode on Xbox Series X|S and PS5 will be enabled, giving the game a visual performance of between 1080p-2160p and 60fps on the Xbox Series X and PS5, while the Xbox Series S will render the game at 1080p resolution and the same frame-rate.
“As part of the Waking Flame DLC, we are enabling dynamic resolution scaling for performance mode on Xbox Series X|S and PS5, which steps resolutions up and down based on performance metrics,” lead graphics engineer Alex Tardif explained in a press statement. “For example, we expect our players on Series X to be running at or very close to 4K at 60fps in performance mode in most situations. On the flip side, the headroom for dropping to as low as 1080p should further prevent dropped frames in high-intensity situations, such as large Cyrodiil battles and certain trial and dungeon boss fights.”
For all consoles, except for the base PS4 and Xbox One, a new HDR mode known as Default will be added. This mode aims to retain the look of the game’s original artwork while taking advantage of the increased range, but players who’d prefer the game to remain the way it is visually can choose the Vibrant option from the menu settings.
Over on PC, players can try out console render multi-threading through a new opt-in beta setting, with this setting being designed to improve frame rates for CPU-limited setups.
The most recent major update for The Elder Scrolls Online was June’s Blackwood DLC that made sweeping changes to the long-running MMO. Companions were added to the game, a new 12-player Trial called Rockgrove was introduced, and numerous other technical tweaks were made at the time. Waking Flame is expected to launch in Q3 this year, bringing with it new item sets, collectibles, and dungeons to explore.
Today you can save big on the latest generation Apple AirPods, Apple iPad Pro, and Apple Watches. If you’re Android-inclined, the new Samsung Galaxy Z phones with folding displays and the latest Samsung Galaxy smartwatches are up for preorder. Other deals include the lowest price we’ve ever seen for an RTX 3070 equipped gaming laptop, the best SSD upgrade for your PS5 console, a new price drop on an Arcade1Up Ms PAC-MAN cabinet, and more.
Preorder New Samsung Galaxy Phones & Watches
The newest generation of Samsung Galaxy Z smartphones are up for preorder. Unlike the traditional Galaxy S and Note, the Galaxy Flip phones feature screens that can be folded closed in typical clamshell fashion. The most impressive feat is that there is no bezel at the hinge; the screen itself folds in. These are the 3rd generation models and there are plenty of improvements over the previous generation including a better display and more powerful processor, but the best news is that the newest generation is actually less expensive. You can read more about all the new gadgets announced in Samsung’s Unpacked event.
Apple AirPods Pro Noise-Cancelling Earbuds
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 truly wireless noise-cancelling in-ear headphones you can get, especially for under $200.
Apple iPad Pro 11″, 12.9″ and Apple Pencil
Save $100 off the latest and most powerful iPad Pros on the market. Both 2021 iPad Pro models feature the powerful Apple M1 chip, which is significantly more powerful than any of the previous processors, and Liquid Retina displays with ProMotion, True Tone, and P3 wide color. The 12.9″ model goes one step further by utilizing an XDR Mini LED display that makes it the best screen of any phone or tablet on the market. The Apple Pencil (2nd generation) is compatible with both of these models and is currently $30 off.
Price Drops on Apple Watch Series 6
All Apple Watch Series 6 models have been discounted. The biggest discounts are limited to the (PRODUCT) Red version, but other color options have also dropped in price as well. The Apple Watch Series 6 boasts an always-on display with up to 2.5X brightness compared to previous models, an upgraded S6 processor, and some new health-related features like an always-on altimeter and blood oxygen monitoring.
Back in Stock (Including 1TB Model): WD Black SN850 M.2 SSD with Heatsink
The Western Digital official storefront has all models of the SN850 SSD with heatsink in stock right now, and that includes the extremely hard to find 1TB model. This is currently the most popular (and probably the best) SSD to get for your PS5 storage upgrade. It’s blazing fast drive with transfer speeds rated at up to 7,000 MB/s and a PCIe Gen4 interface and it comes preinstalled with a heatsink. It’s also confirmed by Western Digital themselves to be compatible with the PS5.
The Least Expensive RTX 3070 Gaming Laptop
Thus far this is the cheapest RTX 3070 laptop we’ve seen on the market, ever. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 graphics card performs almost as well as the previous generation’s RTX 2080, which means it can drive any game on the 1080p display without a hiccup. That’s really impressive considering most $1350 laptops are equipped with with an RTX 3060 or less. You also get the newest AMD Ryzen 7 processor and plenty of RAM and SSD storage.
Big Price Drops on Oculus Quest 2 Accessories
The Oculus Quest 2 is going to be more attractive than ever before. There is a new 128GB model that is going to be released very soon that will replace the 64GB model for the exact same price; that’s double the storage for no extra charge. In anticipation, Walmart has lowered the prices on the most popular official Quest 2 accessories. These aren’t minor discounts, either. Save up to 25% off accessories that have rarely been discounted.
Sign up for AT&T Gigabit Fiber Internet for $60/mo
Sign up for the gigabit plan and you get $20 off your first year. That means you pay $60/mo instead of $80/mo. You’ll get access to blazing fast gigabit speeds (both downstream and upstream) with no data cap. As a bonus, you’ll also get a free 1 year subscription to HBO Max. That means you’ll be able to watch Space Jam: Legacy and the upcoming Suicide Squad 2 movies absolutely free. I personally am subscribed to AT&T Fiber and would never dream of going back to my slower and more expensive cable internet.
Alienware Aurora R12 RTX 3060 Gaming PC
You’d be hard pressed to find another prebuilt desktop PC with RTX 3060 video card at this price from any vendor, let alone from Alienware. This is an outstanding deal for a very capable gaming PC. The RTX 3060 performs on par with the previous generation’s RTX 2070. It runs circles around the GTX 1660 Ti, which is the card you’d most likely find in a gaming PC at this price range. This deal is part of Dell’s 48-hour sale and will expire soon.
Alienware m15 R6 RTX 3060 Gaming Laptop
This is the lowest price we’ve seen so far for an Alienware laptop equipped with an RTX 3060 video card. Released in May, the “R6” is the newest 2021 revision of the ever popular Alienware m15 laptop featuring the new Intel Tiger-Lake CPU and the Geforce RTX 30 series video card. The RTX 3060 is more powerful than the previous generation’s RTX 2070. It’s powerful enough to easily handle just about any game at 1080p, the screen’s native resolution. This deal is also part of Dell’s 48-hour sale and will expire soon.
Arcade1Up Ms Pac-Man Arcade Cabinet
Save 22% off the rarely discounted Ms Pacman arcade cabinet from Arcade1Up. This is a 3:4 scale replica that measures 4 feet tall. A themed riser is also included that raises the cabinet by an additional 1 foot, so you can choose to play comfortably while sitting or standing. Games included are Ms Pac-Man, Pac-Mania, Pac-Man Plus, and Galaxian.
Herman Miller Gaming Sale: 15% Off Gaming Chairs, Including the Herman Miller x Logitech G Embody
Herman Miller makes the best ergonomic chairs in the industry. They’re also not cheap, with several of their models easily topping over $1000 in price. Penny pinchers might find it a waste of money, but honestly, in this case you get what you pay for. Many of us could spend a majority of our lives stuck to our chair, it makes sense that this would be one of the most important purchases we make. Today, Herman Miller is offering 15% off their top-of-the-line gaming collaborations with Logitech. This is the first time we’ve seen a substantial discount on these outside of Sample Sales and employee-only offers. If you’ve got deep pockets, then you’ll save on what is probably the best gaming chair on the market.
Best Ultra-Wide Gaming Monitor: Samsung Odyssey Neo G9 49″ 5120×1440 Mini LED Monitor
Preorder the Samsung Neo G9 gaming monitor (out on August 23), and get the JBL Quantum One Gaming Headset for free. That’s a $300 headset. This is the first Mini LED gaming monitor we’ve seen and easily the best monitor in Samsung’s “Odyssey” series. Mini LED technology is pretty new. You’ll see them in the highest end Samsung and TCL TVs as well as the newest Apple iPad Pro 12.9″ XDR display. The cost keeps 99% of us gamers at bay, but for those who can afford it, you currently won’t find a better ultra-wide monitor.
11 Bit Studios has announced Frostpunk 2, the sequel to the wintery city builder game.
Set 30 years after an apocalyptic blizzard, Frostpunk 2 is planned to advance upon the foundations built by the first game. Players will now need to establish an oil extraction industry to fuel their ever-demanding city, while simultaneously presiding over its citizens and making a frequent choices between ruthless survival and human rights.
“What players should expect is a wide universe of choices, freedom to shape the society and the city however they see fit – and reap the consequences,” said Frostpunk 2’s co-director, Jakub Stokalski, in a press release. “Frostpunk 2 builds on the conflicts of its predecessor – survival vs human values, life vs the arctic frost. But most importantly, it adds a new layer that is present in many aspects of the game – be it politics, be it society, be it technological progress – the conflict between humans and their nature”.
A new cinematic trailer reminds us all of the brutal methods of survival and society that was seen in the original, with a man left to freeze to death beyond the city limits, his chest painted in blood with the word ‘liar’. Behind him are a bank of oil pumpjacks, indicating the change from coal to oil as the focus of Frostpunk 2’s resource management layer.
Frostpunk 2 will be available on Steam, GOG, and Epic Games Store, and can be wishlisted now. No release date has been announced. If you’ve never played Frostpunk and would like to see what it’s all about, it can be played for free on Steam this weekend, from August 12 to 16.
