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Disney is set to celebrate Star Wars Day (May the 4th Be With You!) with a new Star Wars and The Simpsons crossover short called Maggie Simpson in ‘The Force Awakens From Its Nap’ on Disney+.

The Simpsons short will be available to all Disney+ subscribers on May 4th alongside Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Star Wars Biomes, Star Wars Vehicle Flythroughs, and a fan art takeover of the streaming service, as reported by Variety.

“In a daycare far, far away… but still in Springfield, Maggie is on an epic quest for her stolen pacifier,” the official synopsis reads. “Her adventure brings her face-to-face with young Padawans, Sith Lords, familiar droids, Rebel scum, and an ultimate battle against the dark side, in this original short celebrating the Star Wars galaxy.”

Star Wars Biomes will let fans “take a virtual vacation” to such iconic Star Wars locations as Hoth, Tatooine, and Sorgan, Variety reports. Star Wars Vehicle Flythroughs will give an up-close-and-personal look at the interiors and exteriors of the Millennium Falcon and an Imperial Star Destroyer.

Star Wars: Bad Batch’s 70-minute premiere is, for many, the highlight of this year’s Star Wars Day as it will act as a continuation of sorts to the Clone Wars series.

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Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

There’s been a steady stream of news over the last few years about an in-progress TV adaptation of The Last of Us series, but as far as we know they are still a long time from release. In the interim, a group of fans have taken it upon themselves to make their own short film depicting the characters from the games, and it turned out really well!

Created by filmmaker Tommy Jackson, The Last of Us: Ellie’s Revenge depicts Ellie on a quest for vengeance for the death of Joel. The film features impressive cinematography and production, especially for a fan film, and it succeeds in capturing the brutality and despair of the games’ post-apocalyptic world.

According to the filmmaker’s description, Ellie’s Revenge had a budget of $10,000 and featured a cast and crew of nearly 20 people. As a warning, the film can get pretty gruesome and violent at times, as you might expect for an adaptation of this series.

As for the official Last of Us HBO series, executive producer Neil Druckmann–who is also the creative director on both games–has said that the TV show will not perfectly follow the plot of the first game. The length of the game allows for the show’s creators to take some license with the plot, and Druckmann has said his favorite episodes of the Last of Us HBO series explore brand-new territory. While we still don’t know when the show will be released, we do know that it will feature Game of Thrones actors Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie, respectively.

Zynga’s match-3 mobile game Harry Potter: Puzzles and Spells explores its mischievous side in a brand new event focused on pranking the competition, bringing new meaning to the iconic line, “I solemnly swear I am up to no good.”

The limited-time Magical Mischief events adds Mischief Points to the game, which can be earned by completing Player Journey Puzzles. Points can be exchanged for Prank Boxes, which can be sent to competitor Leagues and wreak havoc on other players with obstacles themed around the Harry Potter universe. The Mixeroo, for instance, will shuffle the recipient’s entire game board, while the Pesky Pixies steal random gems from the opponent. Other items include Chattering Teeth, Weather in a Bottle, and Fanged Flyers.

An exclusive title is available for those who earn the most Mischief Points and send the most Prank Boxes throughout the event, crowning the fiendish few the “Mischief-Maker in Chief.” The event is currently scheduled to run from Monday to Friday throughout the month of May, with the in-game events panel updating in real time if the event is live or not.

Harry Potter: Puzzles and Spells first launched in September 2020 and brings match-3 gameplay to the wizarding worlds. Players can use magic spells, collect creatures, and join Clubs with friends in order to solve puzzles and unlock cutscenes of the Harry Potter saga. Harry Potter fans looking for more gaming experiences won’t need to wait much longer, as open-world action RPG Hogwarts Legacy is coming to PC and consoles in 2022.

According to court documents published as part of the Epic Games vs Apple legal case, an internal review document that details how Microsoft keeps a competitive analysis on its rival Sony has been revealed. As spotted by Twitter account Game+, the documents feature an internal review written by Microsoft’s Global Gaming Partnership & Development portfolio team that gives high praise to Sony’s The Last of Us Part II.

According to the review by Xbox, the game sets a high benchmark for storytelling and is looked at as inspiration for where Xbox games can go in terms of narrative and visual design.

“Last of Us Part II is the exceedingly rare video game where what it accomplishes in moving forward the art of narrative storytelling in video games as a medium ultimately outweighs whether or not everyone ‘likes’ it or even if everyone has ‘fun’ playing it,” the document reads.

“That said we loved it, had a great time playing it, and find ourselves still thinking about its characters and stories even after finishing the playthrough. The visual quality and attention to detail in The Last of Us Part II is absolutely best-in-class in basically every area, and the overall presentation is significantly ahead of anything that other teams have been producing on console and PC.”

Microsoft was especially enamored by the game’s narrative-driven “walking simulator” chapters, which it says were well produced and should be “aspiring to accomplish with their character dialogue, presentation and voice acting.”

Another interesting note in the review was the topic of not allowing the player to directly influence the ending of a story, which Microsoft acknowledged could be seen as a drawback by players but at the same time it argued that “not every video game must be about the player roleplayer their character’s story.”

While it had plenty of praise for The Last of Us Part II, Microsoft did criticize how the game featured poor gunplay from Naughty Dog, which it felt had become a calling card of the developer.

“Naughty Dog still can’t seem to make decent gun combat in any of their games, and this one is no exception,” the review added. “Luckily for them, it fits in with the game’s overall theme and pushes the player toward using stealth over head-on.”

Microsoft has requested that these documents be sealed by the court that is currently hosting the Epic Games vs Apple legal case which begins this week. For more on that case which could have big ramifications for both parties and mobile gaming, you can follow along right here in our court proceedings story.

There are things that the MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD could have done better, like that alphabet soup of a name and a build that is far from perfect. But there’s also things it has done right, namely its almost impeccable “rapid IPS” panel that delivers gorgeous true colors and 1ms Gray to Gray response time. At $450, this 1440p 165Hz gaming monitor is an excellent proposition, especially if you’re looking for something in the mid-range market.

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MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD – Design and Features

A quick run-through will tell you that the MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD is a nicely built monitor with some great design details. The bezels are slim, giving you a bit of extra screen real estate. The rear has some cool gaming textures and flourishes, like the more subtle customizable RGB lighting, while still keeping things smart and classy. The stand has a built-in cable management solution as well to keep things fairly neat and tidy.

The hinge gives users a lot of flexibility in terms of positioning and orientation. The Optix can tilt 5° down and 20° up, slide up to 100mm up and down, swivel 75° to the left or right, and pivot -90° to 90°, which means you can switch to portrait mode if there’s a need for it. That’s something only a handful of monitors these days can do, and certainly gives this one a bit of an advantage when it comes to ergonomics. That said, sadly there’s no screen auto-rotation option, which means you have to dive into the settings menu to rotate your desktop every time you change its physical orientation.

There are a couple of things MSI could have also done better here. To start, the bottom bezel isn’t completely flush with the screen. There’s a bit of gap there that’s noticeable, especially at the center where the MSI logo is. I’ve compared this to two other monitors I’m reviewing – one from Dell, the other from AOC – and this MSI monitor is the only one that has this gap.

The other design gripe I have is its stand. With a hinge this versatile, you’d think MSI would have taken care to give it a heavier, more robust stand to keep it in place while you turn and pivot. Unfortunately, this stand is too light, meaning every turn, slide, and pivot causes the whole thing to move a bit. It’s a tad disappointing and inconvenient, but hardly a deal-breaker.

MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD – Features & OSD Menu

There’s a decent number of ports on the MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD, with two HDMI 2.0, one DisplayPort 1.4, and one USB-C port. It’s worth noting that while the DisplayPort and USB-C will give you the monitor’s advertised 165Hz, the refresh rate does drop down to 144Hz when connected via the two HDMI ports. To eliminate screen tearing, stuttering, and latency, the monitor also comes with a 1ms GTG response time and adaptive sync.

On top of those video ports, there are two USB Type A and one USB Type B ports for connecting and charging your peripherals, as well as a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Much like other monitors, the Optix comes with an OSD accessible via the tiny red joystick positioned at the rear in the bottom right corner where it’s within quick reach. The OSD menu is easy to navigate, with different options for viewing modes, image settings, and monitor settings, as well as quick access to the input source selection.

For a more complete list of choices, however, it’s best to download the MSI Gaming OSD app, which you can get from the monitor’s dedicated page on the MSI website. This app not only gives you access to the different modes or profiles, but also allows you to tweak each one, adjusting such things as brightness, contrast, Night Mode, and Image Enhancement, as well as toggling HDCR, Anti-Motion Blur and Adaptive Sync.

This app also lets you choose to quickly arrange your open windows (and some unopened programs) in ten different layouts so you won’t have to drag each one yourself, select a preset for the RGB lighting in the back via the Mystic Light button, and change settings like mouse pointer speed and auto shutdown time.

Sadly, there are no speakers built-in, but given that most monitor speakers aren’t worth using in the first place, you probably won’t miss them too much.

MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD – Performance and Gaming

The MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD may have its share of minor design flaws, but it really shines in performance. Based on its Lagom LCD test results, it boasts a full range of contrast, decent black and white levels, and smooth transitions in the gradient test. There’s also very minimal ghosting at 165Hz when doing the UFO test.

With a 165Hz refresh rate, 1ms refresh rate, 2560 x 1440 WQHD resolution, G-Sync compatibility, and wide DCI P3 color gamut, that’s not a surprise. With a 178-degree viewing angle, that picture quality remains consistently great whichever angle you’re viewing from. It’s listed as “HDR Ready,” but only has 300 nits brightness – which isn’t bad, but falls short of the HDR400 standard.

There is an HDCR option you can toggle on and off, but it does very little to the image quality. In gaming, it only seems to brighten and sharpen the picture a little, but the difference is hardly noticeable. It doesn’t get in the way of the monitor’s overall performance, but if you’re looking for something with HDR capabilities, you’re better off considering other options.

There are a couple of noteworthy additional settings worth exploring: Night Vision and Image Enhancement features. Night Vision, which has four modes – normal, strong, strongest, and AI – lets you “brighten” dark areas in your game and is extremely effective when playing FPS titles. The Image Enhancement feature, on the other hand, effectively sharpens picture quality.

When it comes to gaming and media consumption, the MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD really does exude with crisp picture quality, vibrant colors, and the smoothest graphics. Testing it with Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Metro Exodus, and Red Dead Redemption 2, it delivers butter smooth performance with no discernible lags or screen tearing. That’s much improved when you have adaptive sync on.

With a fast-paced game like Rocket League, it’s even more impressive. If you’ve played the game, you’ll know that it’s very busy with fast turns, flips, and direction changes, and the monitor delivers crisp, vibrant picture quality with no ghosting or stuttering.

I found that Netflix content comes through slightly softer, but you can remedy that by turning on Image Enhancement, which sharpens content noticeably. The monitor at default does have a warmer tone, so if you prefer a cooler, bluer hue when watching movies, I’d recommend swapping to the Movie preset.

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Marvel has revealed that the official titles for the sequels to Black Panther and Captain Marvel are Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and The Marvels.

Revealed alongside a celebration of Marvel films and a tease of what’s to come, Marvel also gave fans a glimpse of Eternals.

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Marvel also highlighted the release dates for its upcoming films, except for Fantastic Four. The full list is as follows;

• Black Widow – July 9, 2021
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – September 3, 2021
• Eternals – November 5, 2021
• Spider-Man: No Way Home – December 17, 2021
• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – March 25, 2022
• Thor: Love and Thunder – May 6, 2022
• Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – July 8, 2022
• The Marvels – November 11, 2022
• Ant-Man and the Wasp Quantumania – February 17, 2023
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 – May 5, 2023
• Fantastic Four – TBA

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Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will not recast the late Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa, but instead will “continue to explore the world of Wakanda and all of the rich and varied characters introduced in the first film.”

Ryan Coogler will be returning to direct and write the sequel, and Letitia Wright (Shuri), Lupita Nyong’o (Nakia), Winston Duke (M’Baku) and Angela Bassett (Ramonda) are all expected to reprise their roles as well.

The Marvels will see Brie Larson returning as Captain Marvel and WandaVision’s Teyonah Parris (Monica Rambeau) has also signed on board for the sequel. Velvet Buzzsaw’s Zawe Ashton is set to play the villain.

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Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

The Epic Games v Apple trial, which could have big implications for both companies and the industry as a whole, is set to begin this week. If you’d like to follow along with the court proceedings as they happen, the California District Court is hosting the trial as a public webcast so you can hear it all happen for yourself.

The US District Court page for Judge Yvonne Rogers has a Zoom link with the webinar ID and password, listed below. The trial will take place 8:30 AM to 1:30 PM PT / 11:30 AM to 4:30 PM ET on Mondays-Thursdays throughout the trial. It’s expected to last three weeks.

An attached resources and information page says the court set it up due to the “level of interest in this case.” It also includes dial-in information if you need to listen by phone.

The public interest is likely due not only to the case being a battle of industry titans, but also because of the potential impact. Epic Games is alleging that Apple’s restrictions around its App Store constitute a monopoly, and is seeking to force the company to change its policies toward everyone–not just Epic itself. Apple, meanwhile, is trying to protect its App Store profits as a major source of revenue for the company. And since it’s so high-stakes, both Epic CEO Tim Sweeney and Apple CEO Tim Cook have been called to testify.

Of course, if you don’t have the time or interest to keep up with the trial as it happens, we’ll be providing regular updates on any big moments and the outcome. To catch up on what brought the Epic and Apple to legal blows, read our primer on Epic’s Fortnite ban and the Apple/Google legal battle.

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