Amazon Removes The New Mutants From Pre-Order

UPDATE: Amazon has now removed The New Mutants from being available for pre-order. Our original report follows.

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The New Mutants, 20th Century Studios’ long-delayed X-Men spin-off movie, is now available for pre-order on Amazon Prime. This is curious because the Marvel Comics adaptation had been meant for a theatrical release. Is this pre-order, short of an official Disney statement, proof that The New Mutants is bypassing theaters entirely and going straight to premium video-on-demand?

The Josh Boone-directed film’s Amazon Prime pre-order page was pointed out by CBR, who also noted that The New Mutants has yet to be made available for pre-order on other VOD platforms such as Apple, Vudu, Google Play, and YouTube. It’s also not available for pre-order at Movies Anywhere.

Amazon Prime lists The New Mutants as available for pre-order purchase on both SD and HD for the price of $25.99. There is no release date listed.

(Editor’s note: This report originally referred to New Mutants as R-rated but it is, in fact, PG-13. Furthermore, Den of Geek points out why Hulu or Disney Plus are likely not options for New Mutants given an existing Fox/HBO cable deal.)

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So did Amazon simply jump in the gun in setting up a pre-order page? Or is this a sign that The New Mutants is finally getting pushed to digital as many have long suspected, especially after it was pulled from Disney’s release schedule in March due to the coronavirus pandemic?

Disney exec chairman Bob Iger recently said to expect more small movies originally meant for theatrical release to pivot to digital as they did with Artemis Fowl.

IGN reached out to Disney for comment on The New Mutants being up for pre-order but had not heard back at time of publish. We will update this report if we receive an official response.

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The New Mutants’ original theatrical release date was previously postponed from April 13, 2018, to August 2019 and then to April 3, 2020 before Disney pulled it last month. If and when The New Mutants is released we know it will be the cut that director Josh Boone intended.

The cast includes Maisie Williams, Anya Taylor-Joy, Blu Hunt, Charlie Heaton, Henry Zaga, and Alice Braga.

All The Brands Are Tweeting About May The Fourth, Even If It Doesn’t Make Sense

Star Wars Day, aka May The Fourth Be With You, has long been a celebration of the huge and vibrant Star Wars Fandom–but like all good things, brands are taking a good thing too far. Like any event big enough to trend on social media, Star Wars Day has become a minefield of bad advertising tweets.

This tweet from the NY Transit Museum makes you wonder whether ‘droid’ is a type of transit slang, or just the social media person’s favorite line from the films.

Some museums are getting it right, though.

Mickey Finn has blessed us with “may the apple be with you”, a drink can-lightsaber and Yoda for good measure. Luckily at 900 years old he’s well over the legal drinking age in any system.

Jameson Whiskey’s May the Fourth special is a bottle of whiskey that looks a little dangerous to drink.

The ID Theft Center gets bonus points for creative use of ‘younglings’ and a Baby Yoda gif, while a reply from the National Cyber Security Alliance doesn’t even try beyond using the hashtag.

This tweet about safe credit and debit transactions seems like an odd choice for a universe that seems largely cash-driven (even if they still call them credits).

Smokey Bear potentially missed an opportunity to spread a lesson about lightsaber safety here.

Does anyone want to tell the US Navy about which side of the Star Wars conflict they resemble more?

Oddly enough, the worst May the 4th tweet this year came from the home of Star Wars–Disney Plus. The media giant drew criticism for a tweet claiming that tweets shared using the #MayThe4th hashtag would be subject to Disney’s terms and conditions.

Though a later tweet clarified that the terms and conditions only applied to replies to that specific tweet, Disney hasn’t gained any fans from the move. The message here is clear: May the Fourth is for the fans.

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Westworld Breakdown: Season 3 Episode 8 “Crisis Theory” Explained

It’s time for events to come to a climax in Westworld Season 3. The pieces are in place, and now–one way or another–a new world will be born. On one hand, we have Dolores and Caleb, fighting to burn down the old system, free society from the iron grip of Rehoboam, and perhaps create something new for humans and hosts. On the other, there’s Serac and Maeve, the former trying to create a perfect world where free will and choice is all but eliminated, with the latter doing his bidding in hopes she’ll get what she wants in the end.

This episode is an interesting one as, along with the central conflict, it sets up what’s to come in the future. Bernard remains on the outskirts of the fighting, but with every moment becomes increasingly vital to the future of civilization. William has a newfound purpose in life, but it looks to be something far more destructive than ever before. Charlotte–or what remains of her–is now finding her own place within the world, having suffered a devastating loss.

But how does it all shake out and what could it all mean? Well, Lucy and Tamoor are here to break it down, as always. Watch as they pick apart the events of the episode, analyze the significance of it all, and try and craft a future for Westworld. Another season has already been confirmed, so there are some interesting places it could go.

Death Stranding-Style Delivery Exoskeletons Are Being Developed In China

Death Stranding just released in November 2019, but its strange premise is already one step closer to reality. Ele.me, a Chinese food delivery company, has teamed up with ULS Robotics to test out a new wearable exoskeleton that will allow the user to carry much heavier loads than they usually would–much like Death Stranding protagonist Sam Porter Bridges.

News site Sixth Tone has posted footage of the exoskeleton, calling it “straight out of a video game”. You can watch the video below.

This ekoskeleton allows the user to carry weights of up to 50kg (110 pounds) with relative ease, so it’s still some way off of replicating what Sam’s capable of in the game.

Of course, with folks now spending more time inside due to the COVID-19 crisis, the world is looking more and more like Kojima’s game–hopefully the BTs weren’t also an ill portent of some future doom.

If you’re a PC gamer and these references are going over your head, never fear–Death Stranding is coming to Steam on July 14.

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Doom Eternal Drama, No Halo Infinite Gameplay At Inside Xbox | Save State

Happy Star Wars day! To celebrate, EA has released a free update for Jedi Fallen Order, and episodic VR game Vader Immortal is coming to PSVR later this summer. The first details about EA Play 2020 have also been revealed.

Id Software’s Marty Stratton has taken to Reddit to weigh in on the Doom Eternal soundtrack drama, shedding light on why composer Mick Gordon distanced himself from the project.

On top of that, it looks like Call of Duty Warzone will be coming to PS5 and Xbox Series X, and we’ve got a PSA about Halo Infinite appearing on this week’s Inside Xbox. For all the latest gaming news stories, be sure to get your Save State every Monday through Thursday on GameSpot.

Man Arrested After He’s Found Camping At Disney World

While all of Disney’s parks stay closed due to the COVID-19 threat, one usually-abandoned corner of Disney World has seen some unexpected action. 42-year-old man Richard McGuire was found camping on the island after a police search involving boats, helicopters and officers on foot, Variety reports.

Though Disney’s parks are currently shut down, the section of the park McGuire was found in is not normally open to the public. Originally known as Treasure Island, now Discovery Island, the area was once a zoo-type area housing animals and birds. It closed in 1999 and has since been left to rot, as revealed in videos made by urban explorers. The island is only accessible by boat.

“Richard stated that he had made entry to the island to go camping on Monday or Tuesday and had planned on staying on the island for approximately one week,” the police report read.

McGuire appears to run the YouTube channel “Southern Pirate Outdoors”, with a mix of wildlife and urban exploration content involving camping “challenges” in abandoned places. In an update on his social media, he promises to release a video detailing his experience on Discovery Island, with “3 hours of the actual footage of me being on Disney’s Discovery Island”.

McGuire has been charged with a misdemeanor for trespassing and banned from all Disney properties.

Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga Will Pack In Nearly 500 Characters

Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga is set to be the biggest Lego Star Wars yet when it launches later this year. Now, in a new interview with TT Games’ Jonathan Smith and Lucasfilm Games’ Craig Derrick on StarWars.com, we’ve gotten a better sense of just how big it might be.

You’ll be able to start the game at any point in the Saga, so you can skip the prequels or even jump right into The Last Jedi if you want to. It will also include space combat missions, and the whole game is brand new, so don’t expect to retread missions from previous Lego Star Wars games.

According to Smith, the game contains “the complete collection, from Admiral Ackbar to Zorii Bliss,” and Derrick says that “there are nearly 500 characters in this game, with many of them playable.” He says that they tried to say “yes” to every character, giving one specific example of a fun addition–The Phantom Menace’s Yaddle, the Yoda-like alien who has a famously fascinating and bizarre backstory.

Derrick also promises more of the series’ signature humor: “I think we succeeded with one subtle moment in particular during the Luke/Kylo fight that I find so funny, yet totally in character that I laugh out loud every time I see it,” he says.

New key art has also been revealed–you can see it below.

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The last Lego Star Wars title was Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens in 2016. It received a 7/10 in GameSpot’s review.

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Halo TV Show: You Can Be An Extra On The Show In This New Sweeptstakes

Microsoft has launched a new charity campaign, and to encourage people to donate, they’re offering up a chance to be an extra on the Halo TV show. As part of the All-In Challenge campaign, you can buy tickets that get you an entry into the sweepstakes starting at $10 USD for 10 entries and up to $100 for 200 entries.

The winner will get an all-expenses paid trip to Budapest, where the Halo show is filming on a soundstage, and get to be in a scene on the show in costume. The winner will also get to attend a workout session with Master Chief actor Pablo Schreiber, who got absolutely ripped for the role.

You’ll also get to be ride in a Warthog and hold a Needler replica that was made for the show. The winner also gets to eat dinner with the cast and crew.

All of the money from the charity campaign is going to Feeding America, Meals On Wheels, World Central Kitchen, and No Kid Hungry.

The Halo TV show was filming until Showtime shut down all of its productions due to COVID-19. In addition to Schreiber as Master Chief, Californication star Natascha McElhone will play two roles: Dr. Catherine Halsey and Cortana.

The show will be directed, at least in part, by Black Mirror’s Otto Bathurst. He directed the very first episode of Black Mirror, “The National Anthem,” which was very shocking and memorable.

The Halo TV show was announced to premiere in 2021, but that was before the production was shut down due to the global pandemic. It’s unclear if the show is still on track.

As for the Halo game series, Halo Infinite is a launch title for the Xbox Series X. Microsoft won’t show the game off during the May 7 Xbox Series X reveal event, but instead at a show later in the year.

Disclosure: Showtime is owned by CBS, the parent company of GameSpot.

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