With a roster of esports teams and content creators already under its belt, FaZe is moving into a new role in the entertainment industry: film production. The organization just released the first trailer for horror film Crimson, starring FaZe’s own Brian Awadis, aka FaZe Rug.
Crimson’s conceit is actually pretty clever, and makes sense for an organization with some huge online personalities to lean on. It stars FaZe Rug as himself, moving into a new multi-million dollar smart home thanks to his success as an influencer. What could be a regular YouTube vlog showcasing his new home is then twisted into a horror story, thanks to some creepy new neighbors.
The found footage film is directed by Gregory Plotkin, an editor who’s worked on films such as Get Out, Happy Death Day, Game Night, and a bunch of the Paranormal Activity films. He also directed Paranormal Activity spinoff The Ghost Dimension.
Crimson is produced in collaboration with Invisible Narratives, which is also distributing it on Inviz.tv. The film also features a collaboration with producer Beam, who worked on the soundtrack. With “brand partners” like Beats by Dr. Dre and Apple, Crimson is a curious mashup of Hollywood and influencer culture–but it should be interesting to see how FaZe’s debut in the film world goes when Crimson releases on October 29.
A Total War Saga: Troy will receive a major update on October 22, and it’ll add a new god and a photo mode to the game. This free update will expand the game out a bit, and let you capture some of the imagery of the Trojan War that the game conjures.
If you’ve been playing Hades (or you’re simply a fan of the Greek classics), you’ll recognise Artemis, the goddess of the hunt. Artemis will be added to the game’s Divine Will system, and each faction will have access to her temple building chain. Pray to Artemis and you can unlock a light archer unit, and new missions are being added as well
A new Epic Agent is being added, too–Orion, who is available at the highest worship tier. He’s an incredible hunter, with the abilities Sudden Ambush (which gives guaranteed kills on enemy heroes) and Foe Tracking (which lets you track enemy heroes across the map).
The new Photo Mode, meanwhile, will come with 20 customization options to let you tweak your screenshots as you see fit. There are four main options to let you set up your shot: scene, camera, filters, and frames.
A shot from A Total War Saga: Troy’s photo mode.
It’ll contain all the usual options you’d expect from a photo mode, including a range of frames and the ability to stamp the game’s logo onto photos.
A Total War Saga: Troy scored a 7/10 in GameSpot’s review. “Perennial issues aside, with Thrones of Britannia and now Troy, the spin-off Saga series has proved adept at delivering a kind of Total War that is more focused, flavourful, and even experimental than the mainline series,” wrote reviewer David Wildgoose.
Is there one Fall Guys round you really just can’t stand? Let developer Mediatonic know about it and maybe you’ll never have to play it again. Fall Guys has opened up a new survey about the game’s various rounds and match variants so players can help shape what gets added in future updates.
Please may you fill in another survey? 🥺👉👈 This one is all about rounds! 👀 Which you like 👀 Which you dislike 👀 How many new ones you expect to see each season It will REALLY help shape Fall Guys moving forward if you could fill this in FANK 🐸https://t.co/bKenxWohlr
Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout is almost two weeks into its second season, with the medieval-themed season arriving with four new (or partly new) levels. The new survey asks how many new rounds players expect with each season–suggesting some players may have wanted more than four out of season two.
Mediatonic has also shared a feedback survey asking about themes and seasons, if that’s another area you have strong opinions about.
I’ve got a spicy feedback survey for you all to fill in 👀 It’s all about themes and seasons for Fall Guys We’d love it if you could fill it in and help us shape future Seasons! 👌https://t.co/r6CAu87HGn
Fall Guys’ second season had an uneven launch, with a number of new rounds and game styles, but also a handful of frustrating bugs. Most of those have now been fixed, and Mediatonic has launched a new bug tracking board to show what issues they’re aware of and are working on fixing.
Fall Guys’ second season will finish up on December 7, meaning you still have plenty of time to try out the new levels and unlock new cosmetics. You could also save your crowns for the (cursed) new Sonic the Hedgehog skin, which will set you back 10 whole crowns for the full set. Time to get winning!
Actor Tom Cruise has returned to Rome to continue filming Mission: Impossible 7, and now some new footage from the set has emerged. The Associated Press captured a video of Cruise and co-star Hayley Atwell filming a scene on the streets of Rome. There isn’t much to go on here, but we see Cruise climbing over a wrecked police vehicle and pulling Atwell out of it.
At the end of the video, a plume of smoke can be seen emerging from the location, while another crashed vehicle can be seen alongside actors lying on the ground. Check it out below. The video also showcases a lighter side of the filming process, as Cruise waves to onlookers trying to get a peek at the set.
Earlier this year, filming on Mission: Impossible 7 shut down in Rome due to COVID-19, and the team apparently moved to Norway to film other scenes, like this incredible stunt where Cruise rides a motorcycle off the face of a mountain and parachutes to the ground. It appears the production team has been given the go-ahead to return to Rome to continue filming on location in the city.
Mission Impossible 7 and 8 are being filmed back-to-back, and Christopher McQuarrie is writing and directing both–he also wrote and directed Rogue Nation and Fallout. New additions to the cast include Atwell, Pom Klementieff, and Shea Whigham. MI7 is scheduled to come to theatres in November 2021, with its sequel slated for November 2022. Both movies were delayed due to COVID-19.
Warframe‘s Nights of Naberus event has launched, introducing a chilling new story and, of course, a bunch of limited-time spooky items for players to get their hands on in time for Halloween.
The Whispering Naberus Mobile is the main new item added, which is available in exchange for Mother Tokens. The mobile unlocks a chilling story narrated by Grandmother about the ancient origins of the Orokin’s Naberus festival. You can also unlock Glyphs, Emblems, Skins, and Blueprints from Daughter’s store until the event ends on November 9.
The Halloween update has also added a few quality-of-life changes, including remastered lighting and textures and tweaks to various Railjack Resource costs, as well as new skins, cosmetics and weapons.
Warframe is free to play on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. It’s also coming to next-gen systems PS5 and Xbox Series S/X.
The 2004 romantic drama The Notebook featured Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams in the lead roles, but now we’ve learned what other actors were potentially going to star in it–and they are big names.
The Notebook focuses on two lovers, Noah and Allie, and the story takes place across two timelines–one when they are young and the other when they are elderly. George Clooney told Entertainment Weekly that he was originally attached to play the young Noah, the role that Gosling eventually got, with Paul Newman set to portray the older Noah.
“I was going to do a movie years ago called The Notebook, that Ryan Gosling actually did, and I was going to do it with Paul Newman. “I was playing the flashback and Paul Newman was the old guy.”
We don’t know who was going to play the young and old Allie in this version of the film. It was previously reported that Britney Spears auditioned for Allie, and she even had a screen test with Gosling. Jessica Biel and Reese Witherspoon were also in the running for the young Allie.
In the movie that was released, James Garner plays the older Noah, with Gena Rowlands portraying the elderly Allie. The Notebook was directed by Nick Cassavetes, who is Rowlands’ son.
NBA 2K21 has added a new feature–video ads that cannot be skipped. Stevivor is reporting that the game now features ads that will play between matches, and which you cannot skip through. These ads are for the Oculus Quest 2, and they’ve been spotted in the PS4, Xbox One, and PC versions of the game.
This is a tactic we’re used to seeing in free-to-play titles, but NBA 2K21 is a full-priced title: and depending on which version you bought, it can cost up to $100.
Here’s a video recorded by Stevivor of one of the ads playing in the game’s MyTEAM mode, which has now entered Season 2.
2K has tellingly added these ads well after reviews of the game has hit, which were already scored lower than previous entries in the series–GameSpot gave NBA 2K21 a 6/10.
The NBA 2K series has already received criticism for its focus on monetization and microtransactions beyond the initial cost of the game–these ads will likely make things worse for the series’ reputation. EA’s UFC 4 similarly added–and then soon removed–unskippable ads between rounds.
It remains to be seen whether 2K will keep these ads in the game long-term, or whether it will cycle between different products over time.
NBA 2K21 is coming to both next-gen systems at launch with numerous improvements. That version will cost $70.
Halloween is getting closer, which means it’s time for New Releases to get a little spooky. This week, you can run from monsters in Amnesia: Rebirth or face them head-on in the first part of Doom Eternal‘s The Ancient Gods DLC. You can also take a few runs at rogue-lite The Red Lantern or try the game that started it all with the re-release of Rogue. Finally, Transformers: Battlegrounds rolls out this week, too.
Amnesia: Rebirth — October 20
Available on: PS4, PC
This new spin on the Amnesia games is set in the Algerian desert, where you’ll have to run from the series’ trademark monsters, solve puzzles, and figure out why the desert residents have disappeared. Rebirth is also more about the theme of survival, according to developer Frictional Games. Expect a mix of wide-open and claustrophobic spaces as you try to survive.
More Amnesia: Rebirth Coverage:
Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods – Part One — October 20
Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC, Stadia
Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods
Apparently slaying all those demons has upset the balance of heaven and hell, so this new story DLC sees you correcting that imbalance. Of course, you’ll be facing new demons, too. The Ancient Gods is actually a standalone expansion, so you can buy it for $20/£16 a la carte. It’s also included in Eternal’s season pass, which will run you $30/£25.
More Doom Eternal Coverage:
Rogue — October 20
Available on: PC
Rogue
When we say a game is a rogue-lite or rogue-like, it’s because of this seminal game from 1980. Rogue started the random-dungeon crawling phenomenon, and now it’s getting a re-release on Steam. Purists don’t need to worry, though–it’s the same ASCII art-based game with all the classic enemies, potions, and more.
The Red Lantern — October 22
Available on: PC, Switch
The Red Lantern
Speaking of Rogue, The Red Lantern is a rouge-lite that sees you and a team of sled dogs trying to survive in the Alaskan wilderness. As you ride around, you’ll decide when to make camp, hunt animals, or explore abandoned cabins in the middle of nowhere. You’ll also have to manage your and your dogs’ hunger and energy the whole time.
More The Red Lantern Coverage:
Transformers: Battlegrounds — October 23
Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC, Switch
Transformers: Battlegrounds
This is a tactics game based on the ever-popular Transformers toys, letting you command Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, and more on the battlefield. You’ll wage war against the Decepticons across a variety of terrain, from cities to forests to deserts. You can team up with a friend to command the Autobots in co-op, too.
More Transformers: Battlegrounds Coverage:
There’s still one more episode of New Releases for October to come, which means one last round of new games for the Halloween season. We’ll get into those next week, with titles like Ghostrunner and The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope.
Starcraft II is over a decade old now, having launched its first installment, Wings of Liberty, in July 2010. Now, Blizzard has given an update on the game’s on-going development, and has announced that big content drops for the game have come to an end–from now on, patches will focus on balance and fixes.
In a Blizzard news post, executive producer Rob Bridenbecker writes that the big update from earlier this year, which celebrated the game’s anniversary, will be the last of its kind. “We’re going to continue supporting StarCraft II in the same manner as we have with our previous longstanding games, such as Brood War, focusing primarily on what our core and competitive communities care about most,” Bridenbecker says.
“What this means is that we’re not going to be producing additional for-purchase content, such as Commanders and War Chests, but we will continue doing season rolls and necessary balance fixes moving forward,” he continues. “On that last note, we’re not planning a Q4 balance update given that we did one a few months ago, but as always, we do plan to continue doing them as needed in the future.”
This means that updates going forward will aim to keep the esports scene fresh, with a focus on high-level play. This also allows them to start looking forward to the next Starcraft project. Bridenbecker says that this “will free us up to think about what’s next, not just with regard to StarCraft II, but for the StarCraft universe as a whole.”
Whether this means that Starcraft III is coming, or that we’ll see Starcraft: Ghost or another spin-off at some point, remains to be seen.
