Halo Infinite has been teased by Microsoft for quite a while, but the game’s story may have been spoiled by an unlikely source: building toys. A Mega Bloks construction set includes a figure that could reveal plot details.
Potential Halo Infinite spoilers follow.
Fans on the Gaming Rumors subreddit (via IGN) found an image from an upcoming Mega Bloks set that could spell doom for an existing character. A Brute enemy appears to be carrying the helmet of Jameson Locke, one of the heroes from Halo 5: Guardians. The Brute appears to be named Hyperious, and he could be a new Banished antagonist.
This isn’t necessarily a story spoiler. For one, Mega Bloks could be exercising some creative license to create new characters and reference existing ones. But even assuming Hyperious kills Locke and keeps his helmet as a grim trophy, that could be a part of the story that Microsoft and 343 plan to show in pre-release promotional materials, rather than a shocking twist in the game itself.
We know that Halo Infinite will be part of Microsoft’s first-party presentation planned for sometime this month. Though Microsoft hasn’t formally announced a date, we’ve seen reports indicating it could be coming on July 23. Microsoft is also planning a week-long period in which fans can download limited-time demos of games on Xbox One, as an at-home substitute for the E3 show floor experience. That will last from July 21-27.
GameSpot’s Play For All–a celebration of all things gaming–is ongoing. Join us as we bring you the summer’s hottest news, previews, interviews, features, and videos, as well as raise money for COVID-19 relief efforts and Black Lives Matter with the help of our friends from around the gaming world. Check out the Play For All schedule for more.
On July 15, the iconic period drama Mad Men will be available free to stream from Amazon’s IMDb TV. The announcement comes as part of a complex licensing deal outlined in Deadline, which also sees all 92 episodes of the Matthew Weiner-created series being carried and rolling out on Amazon Prime across the globe throughout the rest of the year.
In The U.S., Amazon/IMDb will have Mad Men exclusively from July 15 until October 1, at which point the series will also be “returning home” to AMC’s platforms. Mad Men originally aired on cable network AMC from 2007 to 2015.
The show’s expansive cast included Jon Hamm, Elisabeth Moss, January Jones, Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, and many more. The series’ fiction timeline runs from March 1960 to November 1970 and follows Hamm’s self-destructive, supremely charming, and existentially adrift advertising executive Don Draper while also shading in the lives of the supporting cast in equal detail. Through these characters, Mad Men tracks how America and its political, social, and cultural attitudes shifted.
Along with other recent shows–Scrubs, Community, and The Office just to name a few–Mad Men will be adapting its content to confront the show’s use of blackface. Variety is reporting that Mad Men’s season 3 Episode “My Old Kentucky Home” will have a title card preceding it on all platforms “to provide context for the blackface scene.”
Netflix has released a new trailer for its live-action adaptation of the popular graphic novel series, Old Guard. The movie will be released on the streaming platform July 10, and this trailer does a good job of both enticing existing fans and helping newcomers get up to speed: Charlize Theron stars as a warrior named Andy, the leader of a covert group of immortal mercenaries who have fought in wars for centuries–and all they have is each other.
Introducing himself to a new member of the group, one mercenary says with a smirk, “We met in the Crusades. We killed each other.”
The movie chronicles the discovery and initiation of a new member into the secret, undying warrior tribe–and their being collectively forced to take up arms and fight for their freedom when it becomes clear their secret is out and they’re being targeted.
Based on the comic 2017 comic of the same name written by Greg Rucka and illustrated by Leandro Fernandez, the movie is written by Rucka and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood. The film stars Theron, KiKi Layne, Matthias Schoenaerts, Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli, and Chiwetel Ejiofor.
Red Magic has been our favorite brand for budget gaming phones for the last few years. While Asus and Razer have been busy topping each other with 120Hz screens and the highest-end specs, Red Magic has been content to offer a 90Hz experience at a discount.
The Nubia Red Magic 5G, on the other hand, eschews that trend by offering the first 144Hz display we’ve seen along with the latest processor and 5G connectivity. This handset’s splashy spec sheet also features modern comforts like a triple camera setup and an in-screen fingerprint reader – all at a fairly reasonable $579 price. But while this gaming-focused smartphone looks really great on paper, there are some notable quibbles you’ll have to contend with.
Nubia’s latest 5G gaming phone has seen a big design change over previous Red Magic devices. Instead of going with an angular, geometric metallic backside, the Red Magic 5 features a curved glass back. There’s also a smooth metal frame that goes all around the edges of the device, which makes it feel even more like a flagship phone.
The whole thing looks and feels as slick as a surfboard, which is great for its new premium stature, but also makes it extremely slippery. Comparatively, I always liked how it’s predecessor, the Red Magic 3S, had ridges and lines that gave my fingers a natural resting place to hold it.
Of course, this is still unmistakably a gaming phone considering the shoulder buttons, cooling vents, and RGB lighting on the back of the device. I also really dig the blended red and teal paint job and even the played-out X-shaped decal on my review unit.
The new 144Hz display is easily the biggest hardware upgrade on the Red Magic 5G. That’s even faster than the 120Hz screens you’ll find on the Asus ROG Phone 2 and Razer Phone 2. The fact that the refresh rate on this gaming phone is now as fast as some high-refresh-rate gaming monitors is impressive.
The phone’s AMOLED display is also decently sized at 6.65-inches and meets the same 1,080 x 2,340 resolution of most gaming phones on the market today. Thankfully, the screen gets super bright so you can easily see everything even in direct sunlight.
While that’s basically the same screen size we saw on the Red Magic 3S, the company has managed to make its latest handset smaller thanks to a slightly slimmer top and bottom bezels. However, in that process, the Red Magic 5G has moved the lower speaker to the bottom of the device, leaving only one front-firing speaker on its forehead.
In terms of hardware, you’re also getting pretty much everything you’d expect from a modern flagship device, including a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 processor with at least 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. This unit even features an in-display fingerprint reader, headphone jack, and a 4,500 mAh battery.
Nubia Red Magic 5G – Gaming and Performance
The Red Magic 5G flies faster than any flagship phone I’ve used, largely thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 5G. Add in the fact that it has a lower resolution display with a higher refresh rate, and this phone simply has more headroom to operate on a faster screen.
The 120Hz displays on the OnePlus 8 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra already felt incredibly smooth, but adding an extra 24Hz on top of that makes the Red Magic 5G feel just a bit more jitter-free.
When it comes to gaming though the 144Hz display isn’t exactly as universally useful. For one thing, very few games support it. In my testing, Real Racing 3 was the only game to run at the 144 fps needed to take full advantage of the high-refresh-rate display.
I hope more games in the future will be updated to take advantage of the ever-increasing refresh rates on Android phone displays. In the meantime, the Red Magic 5G is primed and ready for once mobile games catch up.
Still, you’ll be able to play Android games running at their highest available frame rates. Plus the 240Hz polling rate on the touchscreen and having two shoulder buttons gives you a huge advantage over most mobile gamers.
This is especially true in PUBG Mobile where I can aim more smoothly, see more frames of animation, and fire my gun without having to move my thumb off the virtual thumbsticks. Circle strafing for the win!
The Red Magic 5G also has a few dedicated gaming features, which can all be accessed as soon as you push forward a switch on the side of the phone. As soon as you do, you’ll be dropped into a gaming space with a spinning carousel of your games. This also immediately kicks on the internal fan, which has a high-pitched whine that sounds exactly like a hairdryer.
As much as I like my gaming phone running cool, the fan on the Red Magic 5G is loud even while running at its lowest speed. And when spinning at max speed, I could hear it from across my living room. You’ll definitely want to throw on a pair of headphones while gaming with this phone. The good news is it still has a headphone jack if you only have wired headphones or earbuds.
I usually don’t come expecting to write much about the photography you can take with a gaming phone, but the Red Magic 5G comes with a surprisingly long list of camera features. For starters, it has three cameras including one main 64MP wide-angle, an 8MP ultrawide, and a 2MP macro – plus an 8MP selfie camera.
Images from the phone look sharp and colorful, especially with the 64MP main camera. However, photos taken on a sunny day can look overly contrasty with shadows that are too dark and matte out detail, while bright lights end up washing out colors. Images just aren’t as balanced and poppy as you would expect – this is where Android flagships like the OnePlus 8 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra win out.
Switching between the Red Magic 5G’s three cameras can be a bit complicated. You’ll need to jump into the camera settings menu to switch it from shooting at 16MP to its native 64MP resolution, however, this ends up disabling your ability to digitally zoom. Even stranger, the ultrawide camera is only accessible in the pro shooting mode and the macro lens option is buried even deeper in the grid of Camera-Family shooting modes.
The Red Magic 5G’s macro mode really isn’t great
Having a macro shooting option is fun and all, but with only two megapixels the photos from this mode look like they were taken with a toy camera.
Nubia Red Magic 5G – Battery Life
Between the Red Magic 5G’s sizable 4,500mAh battery and Full HD display, this phone has plenty of battery life in it to get you through long gaming sessions. Playing a single match of PUBG Mobile complete with a chicken dinner for 30 minutes only eats up 5% of the total battery life.
With more casual usage, which includes a fair share of watching videos and gaming along with everyday web browsing, you’re looking at around two days of battery life.
Although the Red Magic 5G is capable of fast charging at up to 55W, it only comes with an 18W charger. Don’t get me wrong, this phone soaks up electricity quickly with a completely depleted battery going back up to 32% after 30 minutes and then 51% after an hour. However, when I have it plugged into my 60W MacBook Pro charger, it easily regains a 53% charge after just 30 minutes.
The Nubia Red Magic 5G is available at a starting price of $579 from Amazon and Red Magic’s official site. This model comes equipped with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage in Black and Red color variants.
My review unit happened to be the higher-end variant equipped with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage and it runs for a slightly higher $649 price on Amazon and Red Magic.
NBA 2K21 will be released on current-generation platforms on September 4, 2020, and while it won’t arrive on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X until Holiday 2020, it is being built from the ground-up for the next-gen systems.
In addition, all versions of NBA 2K21 will offer a special Mamba Forever Edition that honors the late Kobe Bryant and his “lifelong pursuit of victory and legacy in the sport of basketball.”
Furthermore, the standard PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X versions of NBA 2K21 will cost $69.99 USD, a $10 increase over the current-generation platforms and that makes NBA 2K21 the first next-gen game to commit to that price point. The UK sees a £5 increase, from £59.99 to £64.99.
NBA 2K21 will not support Xbox Smart Delivery or a similar service on PlayStation 5, meaning there will not be a free upgrade to next-gen if you purchase the game on PlayStation 4 or Xbox One. However, if players purchase the $99.99 USD Mamba Forever Edition, they will get the next-gen version when it is released at no extra cost.
The Mamba Forever Edition will include the Kobe Bryant Digital Collection that includes special MyPlayer Shoes and Jerseys, a Sapphire Kobe MyTEAM Card, and much more.
We asked a NBA 2K spokesperson about Xbox Smart Delivery, and they said “It’s something we’re interested in, but NBA 2K21 will not support Xbox Smart Delivery.”
The next-gen version of NBA 2K21 will offer “unbeatable graphic fidelity, two second load speeds, new gameplay features, and expanded game modes.” In addition, NBA 2K21 will have “MyTEAM Cross-Progression and a Shared VC Wallet within the same console family.”
While Kobe will grace the cover of the Mamba Forever Editions, the Portland Trail Blazers’ Damian Lillard and the New Orleans Pelicans’ Zion Williamson will be on the covers of the standard versions for current-generation and next-gen platforms, respectively.
“Each of our cover athletes represent different eras of the game of basketball – Damian Lillard dominates the court today, Zion Williamson is a standard bearer for the next generation of NBA superstar and what more could be said about Kobe?,” stated Alfie Brody, Vice President of Global Marketing at NBA 2K. “Three athletes representing the current, future and storied history of the game. Today’s exciting announcement is just the first of many for NBA 2K21; it’s going to be a huge year for basketball fans and NBA 2K gamers.”
NBA 2K21, which was first revealed at the PlayStation 5 reveal event, will be released on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and Google Stadia on September 4, 2020. It will arrive as a launch title for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X in Holiday 2020.
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Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN who says GO CAVS. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.
2K Sports has announced that NBA 2K21 will release September 4 on PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC. We also now know that the standard edition of NBA 2K21 will cost $70 on next-gen consoles, making it the first game for PS5 and Xbox One X to cost more than the usual $60 price for new games. Additionally, you won’t be able to upgrade NBA 2K21 from current generation consoles to next-gen consoles for free unless you purchase the just-announced Mamba Forever edition for $100. Pre-orders are starting to go live for all platforms.
The Mamba Forever edition commemorates the late Kobe Bryant and rounds out the trio of cover athletes for NBA 2K21. We learned earlier this week that Portland Trailblazers star Damian Lillard would be the cover athlete for current generation consoles, while young phenom Zion Williamson will fittingly be on the cover of the PS5 and Xbox One X standard edition.
While other next-gen crossover games such as Madden NFL 21 and Assassin’s Creed Valhalla have announced free upgrades from current to next-gen, NBA 2K21 is incentivizing purchasing the expensive Mamba Forever edition instead. If you plan on wanting the game at its initial launch and on your new PS5 or Xbox One X, you’ll save $30 by grabbing the Mamba Forever edition as opposed to purchasing the standard edition twice. It’s worth noting that the upgrade to next-gen is the standard edition of the game, so you won’t double-up on the digital goodies that come with the Mamba Forever edition.
The next-gen version of 2K21 is more than a simple upgrade, though. 2K Sports claims to be building the PS5 and Xbox One X version from the ground up. Thankfully, progress in some key areas will transfer from current to next-gen (Xbox One to Series X and PS4 to PS5). MyTeam, the card-collecting online mode, will share progress along with your Virtual Currency wallet.
If you’re interested in pre-ordering NBA 2K21, we’ll be rounding up all of the details you need to know below ahead of its September 4 launch on PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC. NBA 2K21 will be a launch title for PS5 and Xbox One Series X.
Pre-order NBA 2K21 standard edition | $60-$70
NBA 2K21 next-gen cover
NBA 2K21’s standard edition for all platforms is currently available to pre-order directly from 2K. Anyone who pre-orders the standard edition on current generation or next-gen platforms will get the following bonuses:
5,000 Virtual Currency
5,000 MyTEAM Points
10 MyTEAM Promo packs (delivered one a week)
6 MyCAREER Skill Boosts
5 pair MyCAREER Shoe Collection
Damian Lillard Digital Collection
3 MyCAREER Gatorade Boosts
Pre-order NBA 2K21 Mamba Forever edition | $100
NBA 2K21 Mamba Forever edition
NBA 2K21’s $100 Mamba Forever edition comes with a ton of digital goodies to use in game:
100,000 Virtual Currency
10,000 MyTEAM Points
10 MyTEAM Tokens
60 MyCAREER Skill Boosts
30 MyCAREER Gatorade Boosts
40 MyTEAM Promo Packs (10 at launch, then 3 per week)
Sapphire Damian Lillard and Zion Williamson MyTEAM cards
MyPLAYER Shoe Collection
MyPLAYER backpack
Kobe Bryant Digital Collection
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Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2 producer Christopher Miller has praised the “groundbreaking art techniques” being used on the animated sequel.
Taking to Twitter on Wednesday, Miller shared a few tantalizing teasers about the art design and animation style of Miles Morales’ next adventure, saying the new techniques being implemented will make 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse look “quaint.”
“The development of new groundbreaking art techniques being done for the next Spider-Verse movie are already blowing me away,” Miller admitted. “It’s going to make the first movie look quaint.”
The film has an extended production schedule due to its lengthy animation process, which means that the Spider-Verse sequel won’t be web-slinging into theatres until 2022, four years after the release of the first film.
Following numerous other companies, including Starbucks, Ford, and Coca-Cola, Sony is pulling all PlayStation advertising from Facebook and Instagram until at least the end of July.
The move will see the removal of all advertising on the social media platforms, both paid and unpaid. Facebook has come under fire recently for continuing to allow hateful content and misinformation to exist on its platform unchallenged, while other platforms have acted against such content. Twitter has started being more aggressive with flagging problematic tweets, especially from politicians, while Twitch has suspended numerous channels and streamers, including Dr. Disrespect and Donald Trump.
In a statement (provided to GamesIndustry.biz), Sony makes it clear that they support the growing #StopHateForProfit campaign. “In support of the #StopHateForProfit campaign, we have globally suspended our Facebook and Instagram activity, including advertising and non-paid content, until the end of July. We stand for working (and playing) together for good.”
Breaking Bad and The Mandalorian star Giancarlo Esposito will be featured in a big upcoming video game, but he can’t tell you about it yet. Speaking to Collider, Esposito provided just a tiny tease, saying he worked on the game earlier in 2020 using some kind of new technology.
“This video game I did; which is going to be huge. Can’t really mention,” Esposito said.
Esposito went on to say that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a new style of acting, through Zoom and other online means.
Whatever this game is, it won’t be Esposito’s first. He previously played The Dentist in PayDay 2–providing voice and motion-capture work the character.
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A Plague Tale: Innocence has been a major success for developer Asobo Studio, critically and commercially, and has now racked up a huge sales number. The game’s official Twitter account has now announced that the game has sold over 1 million copies since it released in May 2019.
In the tweet, A Plague Tale’s developers thank the game’s community of players, stating that “this wouldn’t have been possible without our community and we’d like to thank every one of you for supporting the game.”
We’re thrilled to announce that A Plague Tale: Innocence has sold over a million copies worldwide!
This wouldn’t have been possible without our community and we’d like to thank every one of you for supporting the game and @AsoboStudio ❤️🐀! pic.twitter.com/YQacwAemIo
The game is also available through Xbox Game Pass–which, believe it or not, can actually lead to increased sales.
This figure is made all the more impressive by the fact that the game is not from an existing franchise, nor from one of the bigger publishers in gaming–Focus Home Interactive does not have the marketing budget of, say, EA or Ubisoft.
