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Facebook has confirmed it will be restoring news to its user feeds in Australia after a series of amendments to Australia’s proposed News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code were introduced.

These amendments are intended to “provide further clarity to digital platforms and news media businesses about the way the Code is intended to operate,” according to a joint release from Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Communications Minister Paul Fletcher.

“After further discussions with the Australian government, we have come to an agreement that will allow us to support the publishers we choose to, including small and local publishers,” said Facebook global news partnerships VP Campbell Brown in a statement. “We’re restoring news on Facebook in Australia in the coming days.”

“Going forward, the government has clarified we will retain the ability to decide if news appears on Facebook so that we won’t automatically be subject to a forced negotiation. It’s always been our intention to support journalism in Australia and around the world, and we’ll continue to invest in news globally and resist efforts by media conglomerates to advance regulatory frameworks that do not take account of the true value exchange between publishers and platforms like Facebook.”

Facebook blocked all Australian and international news from the feeds of all Australian users late last week in response to a proposed new mandatory bargaining code that would force tech companies like Facebook and Google to pay for the journalism they display.

Unfortunately, Facebook’s sudden news ban also resulted in the temporary muting of a large number of non-news organisations, including emergency services, government health departments, cancer charities, satirical comedy websites, video game publishers, and even a host of international sports teams.

Several Australian news organisations have already brokered content deals with Google for their content to be displayed in Google’s News Showcase, reports the ABC. Facebook is yet to do so.

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Luke is Games Editor at IGN’s Sydney office. You can find him on Twitter sporadically @MrLukeReilly.

Back in 2019, a class action lawsuit targeted Epic Games over its randomized “Loot Llamas” in Fortnite: Save The World and Loot Crates in Rocket League. Now, a settlement will see Epic Games awarding 1000 free V-Bucks or Rocket League Credits to all players who purchased an offending loot box.

The bonuses will be paid out automatically and will be applied worldwide, despite the class action only technically covering players in the United States. Players in the US who aren’t happy with just V-Bucks can also apply for financial compensation if they meet certain parameters, however.

According to the lawsuit settlement website, players who bought the offending loot boxes can make a claim for monetary compensation “if you believe the purchase gives rise to a claim of consumer fraud, breach of contract, or other claim for damages, or if you wish to obtain a partial refund for a purchase you made as a minor with your own money and without parental permission.”

Notably, Fortnite’s wildly popular Battle Royale mode has never contained random loot boxes, meaning this settlement will only apply for players who have dabbled in the premium “Save The World” mode. The free V-bucks also don’t scale with the original purchases, meaning players who bought one loot box and players who bought 100 loot boxes will both get the same reward of 1000 V-Bucks.

“We stopped offering random item loot boxes like Fortnite Loot Llamas and Rocket League Crates because we realized that some players were repeatedly disappointed by not receiving the random items they hoped for,” Epic’s Tim Sweeney said in a statement. “Players should know upfront what they are paying for when they make in-game purchases.” Fortnite: STW now offers “X-ray Llamas” which show the contents of the box before purchase.

Respawn has extended the Anniversary Collection Event for Apex Legends by another week. So instead of ending on February 23, the limited-time event will continue until March 2 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET.

As a result, you now have seven extra days to unlock the event’s limited-time rewards. Remember, once the Anniversary Collection Event ends, those rewards could very well be gone for good. Respawn has brought back certain weapon and character skins from past limited-time events in subsequent events, but not every one.

Unlocking all 24 rare and legendary rewards in the Anniversary Collection Event will automatically give you 150 Heirloom Shards. That’s enough to unlock any character heirloom you want–heirlooms are the hardest to acquire cosmetic items in Apex Legends. The only other way to unlock 150 Heirloom Shards is to open 500 Apex Packs, which requires you to spend either a lot of money or time.

The Anniversary Collection Event also has a unique rewards track that gifts you extra Apex Packs, three unique Wraith trackers, weapon charms, and more. To unlock these cosmetics, you need to complete daily challenges during the event, such as dealing damage or placing in the top 10.

Apex Legends is available for Xbox One, PS4, PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5. The game is scheduled to release for Switch on March 9.

The update for Year 6, Season 1: Crimson Heist is live on the PC test server for Rainbow Six: Siege. Crimson Heist adds Flores as a brand-new attack operator, and implements several quality of life and balancing changes.

Depending on where you play, you’ll have very different download sizes. On Steam, the update is 6GB, while the update is 19GB on Uplay. In terms of content, most of the update is filled with bug fixes, as seen in the full patch notes.

In terms of balancing, the update addresses Nøkk’s utility against entrenched defenders. Now, when Nøkk’s unique gadget, the HEL Presence Reduction, is active, Nøkk will no longer trip any defender gadgets that are proximity-based. This means that Nøkk is now a direct counter to Ela’s Grzmot Mine, Melusi’s Banshee, and Kapkan’s Entry Denial Device, as well as secondary gadgets and environmental sensors like proximity alarm and metal detectors.

To explain this change, in the Year 6, Season 1 designer’s notes, Ubisoft writes, “Nøkk was initially designed as a counter-intel Operator, but not every intel tool is a camera. Devices triggered by proximity give very useful information as the activation’s sound cue provides information without requiring players to lower their weapon.”

The rest of the changes are listed in the patch notes, which are outlined below.

Rainbow Six Siege Y6S1 Update Patch Notes

Operator Balancing

• NØKK (Test Server Only)
• While Nøkk’s HEL Presence Reduction is active, Nøkk won’t activate proximity-based gadgets.
• Gadgets affected: Ela’s Grzmot Mine, Melusi’s Banshee, Kapkan’s Entry Denial Device, Proximity Alarms, and metal detectors.
• Nøkk’s glitch effect will cancel the proximity immunity, resulting in the activation of any gadget in range.
• The color of the HEL device on Nøkk’s hand will change colour when bypassing any proximity device.

Tweaks And Improvements

• Game Balancing
  • Improvement Lab
    • Defender electricity will no longer destroy ally devices (Test Server Only). This does not affect Custom Games or Situations. We are aware this is a substantial design change, so it will be released on the Test Server to gather feedback from players and the feature will be deactivated when the build goes live.
    • There are new playlist settings for Custom Games. The Preparation Phase Timer can now be set to 0, which allows teams to skip the Preparation Phase, and the Action Phase Timer can now be set to 1800 (30 mins).
    • The damage zone for reinforcements is now reduced to avoid having them overlap and destroy nearby gadgets.

Known Issues

• User remains zoomed in on Ubisoft Connect interface after pressing the Right Trigger on Xbox Series X before the interface finishes loading.

Gameplay

• FIXED – Various invite and matchmaking errors.
• FIXED – Various Deployable Shield issues.
• FIXED – The first situation “01 CQB Basics” is not available throughout the PlayGo .
• FIXED – Online Custom Game hosts are unable to create a second online match.
• FIXED – Various issues occur when the second to last player alive is eliminated right before the last player.
• FIXED – Operators in DBNO can move freely while being revived by the Finka’s Adrenal Surge or Stim Pistol.
• FIXED – Navigate secondary input doesn’t work to exit rappel.
• FIXED – Planting the Defuser on top of the round table located in 1F Lobby will destroys it.
• FIXED – Missing blue in-use light on cameras when an Attacker is standing in the Jammer effect radius.
• FIXED – The HUD counter does not always display the accurate number of opponent AI in Elimination.
• FIXED – Users can’t vault on shelves in 1F compressor room on Outback map.
• FIXED – During the EOR, the camera displays the inside of the player’s head for a fraction of second.
• FIXED – Newly deployed metal objects are not electrified right away when they are deployed in range of a disabled Electro Claw.
• FIXED – When all Attackers and their drones are eliminated after the defuser is planted, the spectator camera fixes on where they were eliminated, instead of the defuser.
• FIXED – The reactivation of Kaid’s Electro Claw is delayed after being disabled by Thatcher’s EMP Grenade.

Level Design

• FIXED – Various new iterations of LOD issues present on Consulate and Skyscraper map.
• FIXED – Various lighting issues on maps.
• FIXED – Multiple map asset destruction and collision issues.
• FIXED – Exploitable gaps in various map areas.
• FIXED – Hatches have inconsistent bullet penetration.
• FIXED – Various defuser planting and retrieval issues in specific areas on maps.
• FIXED – Certain deployable gadgets cannot be deployed on the blue carpet located at 2F Piano Room on Outback map.

Operators

• FIXED – Weapons customized during the Planning Phase are not visually updated in Operators section.
• FIXED – Mira’s Black Mirror can be deployed on the wrong side of a reinforced wall.
• FIXED – Various visual fixes and clipping issues for Operators and their gadgets.
• FIXED – Mozzie’s Pest Launcher loses its functionality after it is shot on top of Gridlock’s Trax Stingers.
• FIXED – When fired at a barricade that is then removed, Hibana’s X-Kairos pellets float in mid-air.
• FIXED – Forced unlean and various minor animation issues.
• FIXED – Oryx’s Remah Dash can hit Attackers behind reinforced walls
• FIXED – Minor overlay animation issues for operators and their gadgets.
• FIXED – Multiple clipping issues for Operator weapons, headgear, and uniforms.
• FIXED – Twitch’s Shock Drone cannot fire through debris.
• FIXED – Thatcher’s EMP Grenade will not disable Clash’s CCE Shield when activating the shield at the same time as the EMP explosion.
• FIXED – Mira’s Black Mirror has a bigger hitbox when held.
• FIXED – Multiple issues while using Aruni’s Surya Gate.
• FIXED – Invisible phone in the animation that occurs when IQ selects Observation Tools.
• FIXED – Kali’s CSRX 300 shows a damage value of 97 instead of 122.
• FIXED – VFX for Mute is missing in certain circumstances.
• FIXED – Frost’s Welcome Mat will not deploy on some elevated surfaces.
• FIXED – When Alibi’s Prisma is thrown and hit midair by Thatcher’s EMP Grenade, the opening animation still occurs.
• FIXED – Friendly Fire penalty occurs when an ally destroys Hibana’s X-Kairos pellets on a reinforced hatch.
• FIXED – Aruni’s melee cannot destroy Gridlock’s Trax Stingers when Aruni is played by the host in a Local Custom Game.
• FIXED – Pest warning is displayed when the player uses Observation Tools after capturing a drone as Mozzie.
• FIXED – Zero’s Argus Launcher has a green highlight when ADS is activated in end of round replay.
• FIXED – Inconsistent deployment prompt for Kapkan’s Entry Denial Device.
• FIXED – Deploying Mute’s Signal Disruptor while Observation Tools are in use by Attackers prevents them from being jammed.
• FIXED – Disabled effects remain on Wamai’s Mag-NET when it self-destructs.
• FIXED – Alibi’s Prisma doesn’t redeploy after falling through a hatch.
• FIXED – White light on Clash’s CCE Shield does not turn off when the shield is disabled by Thatcher’s EMP Grenade.
• FIXED – The disabled state for Echo’s Yokai does not appear for players who join a game in progress

User Experience

• FIXED – Various performance issues on PS5.
• FIXED – A black screen appears when the game is booted on Xbox One X.
• FIXED – Various issues with Ubisoft notifications and Rewards.
• FIXED – Friendly fire prompt does not appear when match cancellation prompt is active.
• FIXED – Bundles don’t appear as owned when buying a larger bundle that contains them.
• FIXED – Multiple UI improvements and fixes.
• FIXED – Minor voice over and audio issues.
• FIXED – Minor cosmetic and shop fixes.
• FIXED – Various issues with chat accessibility features.
• FIXED – Various localization issues throughout the game.
• FIXED – Defenders can prevent a match cancellation by prematurely ending the round.
• FIXED – Getting shot by Maestro’s Evil Eye causes the game to crash.
• FIXED – Switching from one monitor to another removes the first monitor’s resolution presets.

All I’m gonna say is this, Marvel just started meeting with writers on FANTASTIC FOUR, there is no script and it will be awhile before this film starts shooting

— Justin Kroll (@krolljvar) February 21, 2021