The first major WWE event of the year is coming to the WWE Network and PPV on Sunday, January 27. The Royal Rumble will be held at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, and the events will begin at 7 PM ET / 4 PM PT, with a Kickoff Show starting two hours prior. It’s going to be a jam-packed evening, with two Royal Rumble matches happening at the show.
To be eliminated from the annual WWE Royal Rumble, a wrestler must meet the following conditions: he must exit the ring over the top rope, and have both feet touch the outside floor. The wrestler must then leave ringside immediately.
But where most wrestlers see an entrenched rule to obey, other wrestlers see a loophole to exploit; it’s a classic example of “letter of the law” vs. “spirit of the law.” Does hopping around the ring on one foot, for example, save one from elimination? These sorts of creative strategies have led to some of the Rumble’s funniest, most memorable moments. And in many cases, the wrestlers must engage in heroic athleticism to make them possible.
Here 10 creative ways that WWE wrestlers have stayed in the Royal Rumble. If you liked this gallery, check out our predictions for this year’s Royal Rumble, and every confirmed entrant for the men’s and women’s Rumble. The latest WWE PPV is set to air live on Sunday, January 27, 2019. And check in with us on Sunday; we’ll be watching and reviewing the PPV live.
The Monday Night Wars between 1995 and 2001 were a fascinating time for the World Wrestling Federation and professional wrestling in general. For the first time, there was someone else stepping up to challenge the then-WWF on a global scale in WCW, which was victorious in the ratings for over a year.
During that time, though, the WWF launched what it called the “Attitude Era” at the 1997 installment of Survivor Series. It was that show that was the sight of the infamous “Montreal screwjob” that saw Shawn Michaels defeat a departing Bret Hart in the main event. Then, on the December 17 episode of Raw, Vince McMahon made the dawn of the Attitude Era official, for better or worse.
“We here at the WWF think that you, the audience, are, quite frankly, tired of having your intelligence insulted,” he said during a pre-taped segment. “We also think that you’re tired of the same old simplistic theory of good guys versus bad guys. Surely the era of the superhero who urge you to say your prayers and take your vitamins is definitely, passe. Therefore, we’ve embarked on a far more innovative and contemporary creative campaign, that is far more invigorating and extemporaneous than ever before.”
While he was throwing around words like “invigorating” and “extemporaneous” to sound professional, the message was clear: attitude, whatever that means, was here to stay. With it came breakout superstars like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, The Rock, D-Generation X, Mankind, and so much more. These characters and WWE’s creative direction certainly helped the company rebound in the fight against WCW, but reexamining it, it’s hard to have fond memories about the Attitude Era. Why? Well, because it was mostly awful, especially compared to today’s professional wrestling standards.
It’s easy to look back at the period between 1997 and 2002 as the best in the company’s history. It was certainly the most popular, in terms of mainstream acceptance of professional wrestling. In hindsight, though, it’s a bit surprising to me what this was the era that helped WWE come out of a downward spiral and reestablish their dominance. After all, someone thought the character Beaver Cleavage–a lewd character based on the TV show Leave it to Beaver that also lusted after his mother–was a good idea. This was before Beaver was rechristened Meat, by the way, in an equally-stupid attempt to get the former Headbanger Mosh over.
In truth, that’s the Attitude Era in a nutshell. For every D-Generation X invasion of WCW Nitro, there were a few horrible moments, like Yamaguchi-san screaming “I choppy choppy your pee pee” before taking a swing at Val Venis with a sword. Those are the types of things nobody ever wants or needs to see. In the Attitude Era, though, they were a fairly common occurrence. From Mae Young giving birth to a hand to the Big Boss Man being hanged by the neck inside the Hell in a Cell cage, the WWF’s goal to be “edgy” and, in Vince McMahon’s own words, “innovative,” instead led to crass and cringe-worthy moments that are a pox on the company’s high-profile era of the late ’90s.
In 2019, when women have their own Royal Rumble and it seems incredible possible the Raw Women’s Championship match will headline Wrestlemania 35, looking back on the Attitude Era is tough. While it slowly got better thanks to the likes of Trish Stratus, Lita, Molly Holly, and their peers, so much of the Attitude Era’s treatment of female superstars is embarrassing. It’s the epitome of programming for a hormonal teenage boy and it has not aged well at all.
It wasn’t just the women’s division and mid-card talent–raise a hand if you remember Naked Mideon–that were the victim of being driven by such absurd content on Raw and Smackdown, though. The garbage regularly infected the main event. Yes, the Attitude Era gave us memorable moments like Steve Austin’s beer bath and the debut of Chris Jericho. However, it also assaulted audiences with the likes of D-Generation X wearing blackface to imitate the Nation of Domination and, perhaps the worst angle of all time: The Katie Vick story.
Oh, you don’t remember Katie Vick? The year was 2002, the tail-end of the Attitude Era as Kane and Triple H feuding for no apparent reason. Triple H told the world he knew Kane’s “secret,” which was that Kane murdered his old girlfriend, Katie Vick. Kane admitted that Katie was killed in a car accident while Kane was driving drunk. He swerved to miss a deer in the rain, and suddenly his definitely fictional girlfriend was dead because the masked half-brother of the Undertaker, whose father was a supernatural mortician because that all makes sense in wrestling.
As if this entire thing wasn’t in enough poor taste, the storyline continued when Triple H dressed up as Kane in a pre-taped segment and went to “Katie Vick’s funeral,” at which point he “had sex” with a mannequin in a casket. This aired on primetime TV in 2002 and was, by far, the lowest WWE ever sunk to tell one if its bizarre stories. Kane, the drunk driving hero of our story, reacted in the only way he could. He had his own pre-taped segment in which someone wore a Triple H mask while getting rectal surgery. I’m not making any of this up.
This entire fiasco somehow lasted a month and is the absolute worst angle in WWE history. And it sums up the Attitude Era well. Two incredibly gifted performers like Triple H and Kane were saddled with what was a truly disgusting story to tell. Thankfully, both men would go onto bigger and better, but the Katie Vick story is a massive stain on their careers and one that longtime fans will never forget.
That’s the problem with the Attitude Era. It’s hard to forget the worst aspects of it. The thing about wrestling fans, though, is the rose-colored glasses are strong. So many look back on that period of time in the WWE as cutting-edge and revolutionary. I defy those same fans to jump on the WWE Network and sit through a few weeks of Raw from 1998. While there are moments that are thrilling, they’re all bogged down by convoluted storylines, 90-second matches, and likes of “Marvelous” Marc Mero and the “Real Man’s Man” Steven Regal. Though, if I’m being honest, The Oddities’ theme song remains a total jam.
Listen, the Attitude Era was a product of a different time and while ’90s “extreme” culture may excuse some of it, it doesn’t do any good to look back on it as professional wrestling or sports entertainment at its peak. I, for one, would much rather have insanely competitive matches between the likes of Daniel Bryan, AJ Styles, Finn Balor, and whatever member of The Shield is being pushed at the moment, as opposed to a Kennel from Hell match. I’d rather watch Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch tear down the house, than see them rolling around in an inflatable swimming pool filled with mud.
Today’s wrestling product, not just in WWE but in companies like Ring of Honor and the newly-announced All Elite Wrestling, flies high above what fans were given on a weekly basis during the Attitude Era. And while certain aspects of modern pro wrestling has clearly looked to that period of time for inspiration–What’s the Bullet Club without a Too Sweet and aMonday Night Raw “invasion”?–the athleticism and talent on display every single night on any given wrestling show from any major company is hard to compete with. Even Impact Wrestling is putting on entertaining shows with wildly talented rosters, if you can figure out what the hell the Pursuit Channel is.
To put it simply, I’d rather watch just about any era of WWE than live through the Attitude Era again. Except for The Brood’s entrance. Who do I have to talk to about getting that whole ring-of-fire elevator thing back on TV?
Facebook reportedly allowed developers to obscure real-money transactions, while profiting millions from minors who made purchases without permission from their parents.
CBS News reports that just-released documents from a 2012 lawsuit show that Facebook was aware of the problem of kids making purchases through its games and apps without their parents’ consent. In part, the suit alleges, this was because Facebook allowed developers to obscure the transactions in which a credit card would be charged.
The suit was filed by Glynnis Bohannan, whose 12-year-old son racked up almost $1,000 playing Ninja Saga. When she discovered the charges and asked her son about them, he showed her that the stack of in-game currency would blink when it depleted, and he would click to make the coins replenish–all without any indication that it was charging real money.
The practice is called “friendly fraud,” a common anti-fraud term to differentiate it from a hostile theft. Depositions from the suit show that Facebook employees hesitated to address the issue because it would reduce profits. The company calculated that minors made purchases totaling $34 million in the six year period between 2008 and 2014. It also calculated refund requests from Angry Birds, finding that more than 90% were because of friendly fraud.
In a statement, Facebook said, “we routinely examine our own practices, and in 2016 agreed to update our terms and provide dedicated resources for refund requests related to purchases made by minors on Facebook.”
PUBG Corp. has released a new trailer for PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds that teases a location on the game’s new Vikendi map. The location is a secret cave that’s hidden on the snow map.
Players discovered the secret location a few days ago, according to VG247, after Patch 25 went live on PUBG’s PC Test Server. The mysterious spot is difficult to find, and this new trailer is the first time PUBG Corp. has even acknowledged that it exists. The cave is hidden inside some rock formations between Peshkova and Podvosta; it’s located west of the former and northeast of the latter. You can only find it on the PC Test Server for now.
To enter the cave, you’ll have to use explosives or a rapidly moving vehicle and strike a specific spot, which will cause the illusionary wall to fall away. If you happen to find the cave, your efforts will be rewarded with the discovery of several airdrop loot crates, which are typically filled with the rarest, most powerful weapons and gear you can find in PUBG.
Not much is known about this hidden cave, other than that the process for how it was secretly released by PUBG Corp. and eventually discovered by players is a first for the game. There hasn’t ever been anything like this in PUBG before. Although, according to an interview with Newsweek in December, additions like this might not be the last.
“There is a [lore to PUBG], but we all prescribe to a show don’t tell mentality,” PUBG art director and team lead David Curd said. “In the environmental set dress we offer little clues, and, because this is an online game that’s constantly updated, we’re always leaking, adjusting art, and adding more lore details and story stuff. We do have stories we’re excited to tell.” Based on the nature of this cave, and how it received its very own trailer, it could be the first of one of these lore details planned for the game.
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is available on PC, Xbox One, PS4, and a mobile. A free-to-play version with reduced graphics, titled PUBG Lite, is scheduled to launch in southeast Asia.
We may not have gotten a new assortment of PSN deals on Tuesday, but Sony has made up for it by kicking off another surprise sale in the US PlayStation Store. The PS Essentials sale is underway until February 5, offering some enticing deals on dozens of recent and popular PS4, PS3, and Vita games. And if you’re a PS Plus member, you’ll save an additional percentage off on all of the discounted items.
The sale encompasses some of 2018’s biggest PS4 releases. Sony Santa Monica’s critically acclaimed God of War reboot is on sale for $26 ($28 without PS Plus), and the special edition of Red Dead Redemption 2 is discounted to $60. Both Battlefield V and Destiny 2‘s well-received Forsaken expansion are $30 apiece, while Hitman 2 is $36. Just Cause 4 and Shadow of the Tomb Raider are also on sale; the former is $42, while the latter is $30.
If sports games are more your speed, the latest entries in many of EA’s most popular sports franchises are on sale. Both FIFA 19 and NHL 19 are down to $24 each. NBA Live 19: The One Edition is $10, while UFC 3 is $24. PS Plus members can also get the intense off-road racing game Onrush for $12.
You can see some other good deals below; the full list can be found on the PlayStation Store. The sale is scheduled to end at 8 AM PT / 11 AM ET on February 5.
Long Barrel: Underground Stairs, Mid-level Underground Facility
In the staircase leading down into the lower levels of the Underground Facility, shortly after opening the secret passage in the main hall, you’ll find a peculiar lock box housing a weapon upgrade. At this point in the game, you more than likely have possession of the item needed to open it. The S.T.A.R.S. Police Badge, found in the jewelry box located in the Interrogation Room on the 1st floor, is a key item that also doubles as a USB key, granting you access to the S.T.A.R.S. office armory to acquire the Lightning Hawk. However, the badge itself also works as the key to the lock box in the stairway. Backtrack to get the key if you don’t have it in your possession and use it on the box to open it and get the Long Barrel. The Long Barrel upgrade will reduce recoil and increase attack power for the weapon.
Red-Dot Sight: S.T.A.R.S. Office, Police Station 2nd Floor West Wing
While this upgrade can be found in Wesker’s desk, you first need to develop the Hiding Place film roll found in the Upper level of the Sewers. Once you have developed the film in the Dark Room in the first floor west wing of the R.P.D., you can head back to the S.T.A.R.S. office to find the upgrade in Wesker’s desk. This upgrade improves aiming.
For a more detailed breakdown on how to get access to the Magnum, check out our guide.
Twitter has announced the top tweeted about games in 2018, and surprisingly it’s not Fortnite. Despite the battle royale game’s popularity, Fortnite came in second behind Fate/Grand Order.
Be sure to take this data with a grain of salt, as Twitter’s blog seems to suggest game tweets were ranked by tags, such as “@FortniteGame” instead of “Fortnite.” Considering the former is longer than the latter and Twitter is a platform where every letter counts, it’s likely more people referred to the battle royale game by its name only and not by its full tag. So these results could be skewed.
We’ve outlined the top gaming topics of 2018 below.
Most Tweeted Games In 2018
Fate/Grand Order (@fgoproject)
Fortnite (@FortniteGame)
Monster Strike (@MStrikeOfficial)
Splatoon (@SplatoonJP)
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (@PUBG)
Granblue Fantasy (@granbluefantasy)
Ensemble Stars (@ensemble_stars)
Super Smash Bros. (@NintendoAmerica)
Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch)
Final Fantasy (@FinalFantasy)
Top Countries That Tweeted About Gaming In 2018
Japan
United States
United Kingdom
France
Korea
Spain
Brazil
Canada
Mexico
Germany
Most Tweeted Gaming Events In 2018
E3
Tokyo Game Show 2018
The Game Awards 2018
2018 League of Legends World Championship
Overwatch League Inaugural Season Championship
ELEAGUE Major: Boston 2018
FACEIT Major: London 2018
Gamescom 2018
BlizzCon 2018
TwitchCon 2018
Fate/Grand Order is a mobile free-to-play RPG that’s loosely based around the Fate/Stay Night visual novel. The Fate franchise follows the magical wars between Masters and Servants across multiple timelines and universes. Masters are powerful magicians that are pulled into wars where the prize is the granting of any one wish and losing typically means death. In order to accomplish their goal, Masters summon and use Servants, who are powerful warriors from different historical periods such as King Arthur, Medusa, Jack the Ripper, or Cú Chulainn.
Fate/Grand Order transforms this story into party-focused, card-based combat, where you are a Master that can recruit multiple Servants. New Servants are recruited through a microtransaction-focused lottery mechanic, where you need to spend either earned in-game currency or real-world cash to unlock random characters. Fate/Grand Order is available on mobile, for both Android and iOS.
BioWare has finally announced the award you’ll receive if you play the VIP demo for Anthem this weekend. The reward is a stylish blue vinyl for your Javelin, which can be equipped to any of the four in-game exo-suits.
All you need to do to unlock the vinyl is play Anthem’s VIP demo. To get invited to the demo, you’ll either need to pre-order the game, be an EA or Origin Access subscriber, or receive a friend code from someone who has already been invited. The VIP demo starts today and continues until Sunday, January 27 at 6PM PT / 9PM ET, which is January 28 at 2AM in the UK. BioWare lead producer Michael Gamble tweeted out that he doesn’t think you’ll have to play the demo on the system you’ll ultimately use for the main game in order to unlock the vinyl, which implies the cosmetic is tied to your EA account.
There are many parts of Anthem’s Javelins that can be customized, both in the demo and in the main game. You can choose the type of material for each section of a suit, as well as the color of armor plates. The overall wear state of the Javelin can be changed as well, ranging from brand-new to dirty, and a vinyl can be applied for an extra dash of color and style. Each Javelin can be equipped with up to three custom emotes too, as well as a unique landing animation and victory pose.
But before you get to all of that, you’ll need to pick out which Javelin is right for you. Although you’ll be able to unlock all four in the main game, the VIP demo starts you with the Ranger and then only allows you to unlock one other Javelin after reaching level 12. The Ranger is best suited for those who prefer to fight with precision-based attacks that will support their teammates. The Interceptor’s light armor, high speed, and powerful melee attacks make it ideal for close-range, hit-and-run tactics. The Colossus may be a lumbering giant, but it’s got the highest defense in the game and is the only Javelin strong enough to wield heavy weapons. Finally, the Storm can hover in the air a lot longer than its fellow Javelins, and with its fast cooldown rates it can almost continuously fire off powerful blasts of ice or summon lightning strikes.
There’s a second Anthem demo that’s free for everyone from February 1-3. Anthem comes to Xbox One, PS4, and PC on February 22, but you can play a week early on Xbox One or PC if you’re an EA or Origin Access subscriber.
The Walking Dead returns to screens next month for the second half of Season 9, and a new teaser has been released. With Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and Maggie (Lauren Cohan) having now left the series, this will be the first batch of episodes without them as main characters. However, the upcoming episodes will feature the arrival of villains that fans have been waiting a long time to see–The Whisperers.
The Whisperers wear the faces of the dead to blend in with zombies, and the new trailer gives us our first good look at them. There’s also a hint at the arrival of Samantha Morton, who will play the Whisperer leader Alpha. While we don’t see her, her daughter Lydia teases how scary she is. “My mom, you don’t mess with her,” she tells Darryl (Normal Reedus). Check the trailer out above.
In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Kang spoke about the upcoming conflict between The Whisperers and the show’s heroes. “It’s this amazing idea from the comics and we really delve deep into what that means,” she said. “It really takes a pretty brutal philosophy to believe that it’s not even worth trying to be something that approximates human in the way that we think of it.
“I think that really brings them right up against the things that our people are thinking about as they’re trying to rebuild something that’s like a civilization, and just the fact that this group just doesn’t even think any of that is worth preserving.”
Although Andrew Lincoln will no longer appear in the show, he is not finished with it entirely. In November it was announced that he will reprise his role as Rick in a Walking Dead movie. AMC is currently developing three spin-off films that the franchise’s chief content officer Scott Gimple described as “big, epic entertainments.”
