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Nintendo has released a day one update for Mario Golf: Super Rush. The version 1.1.0 patch makes a number of adjustments to the newly released golf game, including adding new lessons to Golf Adventure mode and other tweaks.

As the patch notes on Nintendo’s support website detail, the 1.1.0 update has added lessons detailing spin use and strategies for wind direction to the single-player adventure mode, Golf Adventure. Nintendo says it has also “adjusted several scenes” in that mode and added new challenges focused on shots off tee, approaches, and putting.

Beyond that, the 1.1.0 update has also made some adjustments to various other aspects of the game. Nintendo says it has “adjusted the game balance around swing inputs” when using motion controls, and the company has added an option to enable or disable Rush Events. The results screen and general text placement have been tweaked as well. You can read the full patch notes below.

Super Rush is the latest entry in the long-running Mario Golf series, and it’s earn generally positive reviews from critics. GameSpot awarded it a 7/10 in our Mario Golf: Super Rush review. “With three radically different styles of play and some seriously inventive courses, Mario Golf: Super Rush is a compellingly original sports game. Speed Golf and Battle Golf actively make you adapt to wildly different conditions while balancing technique and speediness. The button swing system still feels great, though if you desire an accurate motion-controlled golf game, this isn’t it,” critic Steven Petite wrote.

There’s more content on the way to Mario Golf: Super Rush. During its E3 2021 Nintendo Direct, Nintendo confirmed it will be releasing a regular stream of free content updates for the game following its launch. The updates will include new playable characters and courses, such as New Donk City from Super Mario Odyssey.

Mario Golf: Super Rush Ver. 1.1.0 Patch Notes

• Battle Golf
  • Added “Enable/Disable” for Rush Events. Selecting “Enable” will cause Rush Events to occur at fixed times during play.
• Golf Adventure (Adventure Mode)
  • Added Challenges for Shots off tee, Approaches, and Putting. The new challenges can be accepted from the Fire Bros in each area’s practice area.
  • Added lessons that teach spin use, and strategies for wind direction. The new challenges can be accepted from the Hammer Bros in each area’s practice area.
  • Adjusted several scenes encountered during the Golf Adventure mode of the game.
• Motion Controls
  • “Practice Swing” now displays on the screen when trying out practice swings.
  • Adjusted the game balance around swing inputs.
• Online and Local Wireless Play
  • Names of online opponents will now display.
  • Connection errors occurring mid-game will now display.
• General Changes
  • Adjusted the display position of text and other information displayed during play.
  • Adjusted the results screen.
  • In addition, adjustments have been made to the game balance, and issues have been fixed to make the game experience more enjoyable.

His name is Nathan Fielder, and he graduated from one of Canada’s top business schools with really good grades. The comedian who made a name for himself with Comedy Central’s Nathan For You has a new series that was just ordered by HBO called The Rehearsal.

Fielder is the only person cast for the upcoming half-hour show, according to Variety. The Rehearsal will feature Fielder guiding people’s lives: “In a world where nothing seems to ever work out as you had hoped, Nathan Fielder gives people the opportunity to rehearse for their own lives,” reads the official description.

Prior to this, Fielder’s Nathan For You ran for four seasons on Comedy Central. The series featured Fielder helping out struggling business with some out-of-the-box thinking. Once, he marketed an unappealing toy for children in a way that stated owning it would be the only way to prove you’re not a baby. He also attempted to help out cab drivers losing rides to Uber by planting sleeper cell drivers within Uber.

More recently, Fielder was the executive producer of the wildly entertaining How To With John Wilson, which aired on HBO Max late last year. The titular Wilson would give advice on topics like making small talk and cooking risotto–the latter was one of GameSpot’s favorite TV episodes of 2020.

As an actor, Fielder has appeared in numerous episodes of the sketch comedy series Kroll Show, HBO’s Tour de Pharmacy, and the movie The Disaster Artist. Fielder was also a writer on the Canadian sketch comedy series This Hour Has 22 Minutes.

Fans who were anxiously awaiting the theatrical release of the Denis Villeneuve adaptation of Dune are unfortunately going to need to be a little more patient, as Variety is reporting that it has now been pushed back to October 22. Before this latest announcement, it was previously set for October 1.

Of course, the start of October was itself the date the movie landed on following its original hopeful release in 2020. But if the pandemic and its many world-shaking impacts in entertainment has taught audiences anything, it’s to not trust that these sorts of delays are set in stone. Dune alone had its release date pushed back multiple times last year, and while there have been a few cases where release dates were pushed up–it’s gonna be hard to predict what will happen with this sci-fi epic. For what it’s worth, Dune’s shuffling was part of an announcement relating to other titles also moving around.

Dune’s cast is stacked with big names like Timothee Chalamet, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Dave Bautista, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, Javier Bardem, Jason Momoa, and Stellan Skarsgard. The movie commands a lot of hype–Villeneuve previously directed the acclaimed sci-fi films Arrival and Blade Runner 2049.

While expectations and hopes are high for this interpretation of the classic 1965 Frank Herbert novel, it has also been buffeted with its share of speed bumps aside from when it will simply come out. In December, when it was announced that Dune would premiere on streaming service HBO Max, both Villeneuve and Kyle MacLachlan (star of the 1984 David Lynch adaptation) condemned the decision. Surrounding this, there is a swirling skepticism from fans of the book that all its complexity can even be adapted to the screen. We all still have many more months to wait before any of us will know for sure.

Apple TV+ has finally dropped the first official trailer for Schmigadoon, an upcoming musical series starring Keegan-Michael Key and Cecily Strong as a couple on the outs who suddenly find themselves in a magical town that looks like a musical from the 1940s, full of people singing. However, the couple is unable to leave until they find their true love. The six-episode comedy hits the streaming service on July 16.

In addition to Key and Strong, the trailer also showcases roles from Alan Cumming, Kristin Chenoweth, Aaron Tveit, Dove Cameron, Ariana DeBose, Fred Armisen, Jaime Camil, Jane Krakowski, Ann Harada, and Martin Short. The show, full of original songs and a great over-the-top premise, will certainly pack the performers to execute it expertly. Check out the trailer below and see for yourself.

Co-created by Ken Daurio and Cinco Paul (who together wrote the screenplays for the Despicable Me trilogy), who serves as showrunner and wrote all of the original songs, Schmigadoon is also executive produced and directed by Barry Sonnenfeld (Men in Black trilogy). Lorne Michaels is also a co-executive producer. In addition to starring, Strong also produces. Schmigadoon will air weekly starting July 16 through to August 13.

During the TCA winter press tour earlier this year, Key joked that the series has been “one of the greatest acting challenges of my career” as someone who loves musicals but whose character can barely tolerate them–and must remain perplexed by the townspeople around him who are constantly speaking.

As the GOG summer sale starts to wind down, the digital storefront is ending its latest promotion with a killer deal: the Shadowrun trilogy for free.

From now until the end of the weekend, you’ll have a chance to grab the excellent trilogy of tactical RPG games, which includes 2013’s Shadowrun Returns, 2014’s Shadowrun: Dragonfall, and 2015’s Shadowrun: Hong Kong. Buying each game on its own would normally wind up costing you around $70 for the set, but you just can’t beat a 100% discount during this brief window of opportunity.

Shadowrun has a long history, dating back to the original tabletop game from 1989 that was first adapted for the SNES in 1993. A Sega Genesis game would arrive in 1994 and a Mega-CD version would arrive in 1996. 2012’s Kickstarter campaign revived the series for a new generation, with each of the two sequels building on the foundation of Shadowrun Returns by creating more detailed worlds filled with fascinating characters and lore.

If you’re looking to spend some cash on discounted games, you can also check out our best Steam Summer Sale deals for Valve’s annual festival of low-price games. The Steam Summer Sale 2021 is live from now until July 8 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET.

The modern-retro Atari VCS was announced with much fanfare when it first hit IndieGogo in May 2018. People were very excited to secure a preorder for the first new Atari console since the Atari Jaguar in the 1990s. On its official website, the Atari VCS is championed as “blending the best of consoles and PCs,” but in reality the system is nothing more than a watered-down combination of a console and a PC. It sets out to do some interesting things, but it doesn’t do anything unique, and it doesn’t do anything well. It definitely doesn’t justify its price tag.

Atari VCS – Design and Features

There are two different versions of the Atari VCS: the Onyx and Black Walnut variants. Black Walnut has a splash of classic woodgrain across the front, an homage to the original system’s 1980s aesthetic. Lots of electronics in the early 1980s had a panel of wood veneer, for some reason. It was a different time, but it’s a nice retro touch here. I tested an Onyx version, which is closer to the “Darth Vader” Atari 2600 variant, and as you can see from the photos, it’s an all-black device.

The case for the Atari VCS resembles the original in its shape, but lacks all the clunky switches and there’s obviously no cartridge port. It’s also much smaller than the machine to which it pays homage. I quite like the look of the Atari VCS. It’s sleek and unassuming, but resembles an original Atari console just enough to get a knowing nod of respect from my retro-addled brain.

The are four USB 3.0 ports on the Atari VCS for charging controllers or installing an operating system from a USB stick (I’ll get to that later on). Two are on the left and right sides of the front of the Atari VCS, and two more are on the rear of the unit. The two rear ports are side-by-side, and live in harmony with the Ethernet, HDMI, and power ports. 

Power is supplied by a generic power-brick rather than an internal power supply. I’m not a fan of power bricks: I much prefer when devices hide away their power supplies. It’s probably for the best, though, since an internal power supply would increase the size of the case a bit and contribute to heating.

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Speaking of heating, when I first switched on the Atari VCS with the power button on the back, I was surprised by its fan noise. I wasn’t expecting any noise and instead I got more than any of my other devices, save for my gaming PC. This was on the first start-up, ever, mind you, and the internal fans were pulling hard. I initially thought the noise would die down, but it never completely goes away. The fans are always running, sometimes quite noticeably, like the sort of fan noise you’d expect in a laptop built 5 years ago. Not at all impressed by that.

Starting up and logging in, you’re met with a navigation screen where the VCS apps live. There’s a cool Atari VCS Companion app you can install on your mobile device that lets you control the system from your smartphone. If you’ve ever used a Roku device and had to replace your lost remote with the Roku app, it’s pretty similar in functionality. It mimics the functionality of a mouse and keyboard, which is nice because some of the “apps” require a mouse and keyboard to work at all.

I put “apps” in quotes because some of them aren’t actually apps. I was surprised when I went to download the Netflix app and saw its size was measured in kilobytes. Well, it turns out it’s not an app at all. It’s a symbolic link. When you click on the “app” from the navigation page of the Atari VCS, you’re just opening up the web version of Netflix through the built-in Chrome browser. That’s why the mouse and keyboard are required. You can’t navigate it at all with a controller, other than to hop back to the main menu screen.

Atari VCS – Gaming

The Atari VCS Vault contains a decent selection of Atari 2600 and 1980s arcade classics. Some of my favorite old Atari 2600 games are here, like Yars Revenge. Then there are some weird choices, like Basic Math. There are also a LOT of sports games. I don’t even like playing sports games from 2 years ago, I definitely don’t have any nostalgia for Bowling on Atari 2600. Out of over 80 Atari 2600 games included with the VCS, 17 are straight sports games. I didn’t count all the racing games, of which there are plenty (but not Gran Prix, the one I wanted most). There are some classics on here, like Missile Command, Adventure, and a couple others, but overall it’s a weak selection.

The Arcade choices are better, with classics like Tempest, Lunar Lander and Crystal Caverns, but there are only 18 games built in. Navigation of the Atari VCS Vault is simple, with games appearing either as cabinets or cartridge boxes in a carousel presentation. I was surprised at how relatively low-res the boxes are, especially given the VCS champions its 4K capabilities. The gallery mode, which should be a nice touch for those interested in a historical look into the marketing around these old games, is downright awful. Some of the images look like they were lifted from Google Image Search at 300×400 resolution. 

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Speaking of 4K, don’t even bother. You can change the resolution in the settings to 720p, 1080p, or 4K. I don’t know why you’d want to experience Atari 2600 Asteroids in 4K, but it’s an option. Changing resolution requires a full system restart, which is annoying, and changing it back after you see how poorly it runs also requires a system restart. Seriously, at 4K everything is choppy and bogged down. The splash screens, navigating menus – all of it chugs along at an annoying rate, and that’s just the UI. 

The somewhat confusingly named Antstream Arcade is a storefront where you can buy games, most of which are retro-aesthetic and not actual retro games. This is different from the vault, where the pre-installed classic arcade games are found. This is more akin to Steam or the Google Play Store, with modern games available for purchase and download. I really enjoyed Unsung Warriors, a side-scroller with some tight controls and a cool cartoonish style, but you can play that on Steam. In fact, just play it on Steam.

Atari VCS – PC Mode

If you have a bootable thumbdrive with an operating system on it, you can use the Atari VCS’ PC Mode to turn the device into a tiny, functional PC. I don’t have a copy of Windows laying around, but I am the annoying guy who uses Linux regularly, so I made a bootable Ubuntu thumbdrive and plugged it in. Navigating to the PC Mode section of the home menu brings up a prompt telling you to insert a thumb drive and then restart the VCS. That’s it. The official instructions tell you to insert a thumb drive and then power-cycle it with the switch on the back. 

Whatever method I used, I was unable to boot my Ubuntu thumb drive. I tried two different thumb drives, all the USB ports, and even two different Windows programs to make the bootable media (Rufus, which is recommended by the manufacturer, and Universal USB Installer recommended by the Pen Drive Linux website). Nothing worked. I plugged it in and THEN powered on the VCS. Nope. Plugged it in while the VCS was on and power-cycled. Still nothing.

I tested the drive on my laptop and booted into Ubuntu without problem. I’ve seen people using the VCS online with a bootable Windows drive, so this method does work, it just doesn’t work for me and my Linux distro. I’m not a stranger to bootable media: I’ve been creating bootable CDs and pendrives since Ubuntu’s version numbers were single-digit. I’m also no stranger to Linux: at one point many years ago I had a Linux network certification I never did anything productive with. I found it pretty frustrating to follow the boot directions to the letter and still not have work. Having seen videos of people using Windows on their VCS, I know it works. It just didn’t work for me in spite of multiple attempts, and I’m very familiar with booting Linux from removable media. 

Microsoft officially revealed Windows 11 yesterday after supposed leaks of the OS made their way around the internet last week. Of the changes coming with the latest iteration of Windows, Microsoft also announced a way for app developers to keep a big chunk of their revenue. Unfortunately for game developers, that revenue split won’t apply to games.

In a post on the Windows blog, Microsoft shared its pricing splits across the Microsoft Commerce platform. According to the post, starting on July 28, app developers will be able to “bring their own or a third-party commerce platform in their apps, and if they do so they don’t need to pay Microsoft any fee. They can keep 100% of their revenue.”

Initially, this gave the impression that game developers putting their games out on the Microsoft Store would be able to claim all of the revenue from any microtransactions or other in-game purchases. However, a second post from the Windows blog clarified that that isn’t exactly the case. “You will also have more revenue sharing options,” reads the post, “such as keeping 100% when you bring your own commerce platform for the Store for your app (this does not include PC games).”

In all, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that game developers won’t be able to keep all the revenue from their in-game purchases. Other digital game storefronts, such as Steam and the Epic Games Store, don’t even have such generous terms, offering total splits of 70/30 and 88/12 respectively. Microsoft is opting to take the same approach as the Epic Games Store, offering an 88/12 revenue split between developers and itself.

While Windows 11 won’t be coming with a way for game developers to make a bit more cash off their sales, players will certainly benefit from the OS. The next iteration of Windows is integrating some features from the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, including auto-HDR and direct storage.

If you are using an internet-connected Western Digital My Book Live or My Book Live Duo personal cloud storage device, you would be wise to disconnect it immediately. The company has determined that a cyber-attack can compromise these drives, completing resetting them and erasing all stored data in the process.

“Western Digital has determined that some My Book Live and My Book Live Duo devices are being compromised through exploitation of a remote command execution vulnerability,” a note on the official support page said. “In some cases, this compromise has led to a factory reset that appears to erase all data on the device.”

Neither drive has received a firmware update in six years, and that will probably have to change pretty soon if users want to safely connect the devices again. They’re designed to create personal storage clouds for multiple devices in your home, backing up your PCs, streaming media to your TVs, and centralizing files across several computers. Should you be using it for something like old game saves, such a compromise could erase your progress for good.

Western Digital now sells a newer line of personal cloud drives under its My Cloud line. These were not mentioned in the notice and should remain safe to use. The My Cloud Home Duo also comes with two hard drives and a “Mirror Mode” to back up everything twice.

F9, which hit theaters in the US on June 21, is picking up impressive speed in the box office–making $7.1 million from the 3,100 theaters that screened the film Thursday alone according to Deadline. On Friday, the movie will expand out to 4,179 theaters, which is the widest release for a film released during COVID-19.

This, after earlier this month, F9 already grossed $250 million in the international box office. While these numbers are truly impressive and indicate a healthy demand for the theatergoing experience in general and this franchise in particular, it still has a ways to go to catch up to 2017’s The Fate of the Furious, which grossed $1.2 billion.

Deadline is forecasting F9 may net around $60 or $70 million over the upcoming weekend, but also points out that due to presales from ticketing services such as Fandago–which have already preloaded sales for screenings that haven’t yet happened–there may be leaps in attendance numbers already laying in wait.

As moviegoers and the movies return to the theaters, F9 will stand as a pretty good litmus test of how cinemas are likely to fare in the near future. F9 is only available to watch in theaters, and will be followed over the summer by other high-profile movies that were delayed during 2019: Marvel’s Black Widow arrives on July 9, with Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins, Jungle Cruise, The Suicide Squad, Hotel Transylvania: Transformania, and Space Jam: A New Legacy all following over the next few weeks.

In his review for GameSpot, Chris E. Hayner described it as “loud, explosive, and filled with the type of action dying to be seen on the big screen in a room with other fans to go along with you on the ride.”

Epic previously teased the idea of Marvel’s Loki in Fortnite, but today the developer-publisher has confirmed it. The god of mischief will be the centerpiece of the July Crew Pack. Subscribers will be able to start playing as Loki in Fortnite on July 1, and the complete cosmetic set will likely include more accessories yet to be revealed.

It was back in May when Epic first hinted at Loki descending onto the island of Apollo, sneaking him into the background of a loading screen that Fortnite Crew subscribers received as a bonus item for May. At the time, the focus of the loading screen image was Mecha Cuddle Master, but eagle-eyed fans noticed the unmistakable helmet of the Norse god in the background. Some speculated that Loki would come included in the Season 7 Battle Pass, as the new season kicked off just a day apart from the Loki premiere on Disney+.

But that theory proved fruitless, and instead it was Superman who was announced as the almost customary superhero in the latest Battle Pass. But at long last, Loki is nearly here.

What we didn’t know then but do know now is that Loki will be exclusive to Fortnite Crew, meaning he won’t be sold in the Item Shop. Only subscribers during the month of July 2021 will gain access to him. Fortnite Crew is a monthly subscription service that gives players exclusive cosmetics, a stipend of 1,000 V-Bucks per month, guaranteed access to the most current Battle Pass, and even more. Right now, new subscribers can still unlock three months of Spotify Premium with their Fortnite Crew subscription.

Players can subscribe for $12 at any point during a month to unlock all related rewards for that month. Previous Fortnite Crew Packs have featured mostly Epic original characters, but the service did previously offer DC Comics’ Green Arrow.

If you’re not into Loki, there’s still a lot going on in the Fortnite world this week (okay, and every other week). Check out the Week 3 challenges, the 17.10 patch notes, or the Week 3 Alien Artifacts to stay current on all things Fortnite.