The First DLC Pack For Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 Releases This September
In celebration of Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order arriving on the Switch, the Marvel Games panel at the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con revealed Loki was joining the alliance on day one and also announced Cyclops and Colossus from X-Men would show up on 30th August.
This followed with a teaser of one of the three DLC packs from the game’s Expansion Pass. It featured Blade, Moon Knight, The Punisher and Morbius from Marvel Knights. Thanks to a listing on Nintendo’s UK store, we now know the official title and release date of this first DLC pack. It’s called Marvel Knights: Curse of the Vampire and is due out on 30th September.
Have you played Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 yet? Will you be purchasing the Expansion Pass? Leave a comment down below.
SDCC 2019: New Watchmen TV Series Trailer Revealed During Comic-Con
During SDCC 2019, a new trailer for the upcoming Watchmen HBO series was released. The trailer further details the escalating conflict that will take center stage in the show: A world set after the events of the legendary comic series where police have elected to wear masks like vigilantes following a coordinated attack on cops everywhere--what's the difference between a masked policeman and a dangerous vigilante, though? That's the rub. The trailer also takes time to flesh out the motivations of some of the key characters, some more familiar for fans of the comics than others. You can watch the new San Diego Comic-Con trailer above.
Based on the comic of the same name, Watchmen takes place in an alternate version of the US in which vigilantes rose to prominence and then quickly became outlawed after billionaire "philanthropist" Adrien Veidt staged a catastrophic attack on New York City to prompt a sort of unification of the world in shared terror of extraterrestrial threats. Seriously, there's a giant squid and everything--it's just as crazy as it sounds.
In the show, however, costumed heroes as criminals and the police have stepped into their place, wearing masks and bending laws and reigning terror down on the people they're supposed to be protecting. Superheroes may still exist in this new status quo, however--several characters from the comics are featured in the trailer, including Hooded Justice and the omnipotent blue Doctor Manhattan, who moved to Mars during the events of the comics and apparently remains there.
Watchmen has always been, at its core, an exploration of the "reality" of a society populated with vigilantes--superpowered or otherwise, and a text looking to question the ability of anyone to engage in violent actions with little accountability. The trailer suggests that tone will be maintained, though from a completely different angle.
Airing on HBO, Watchmen will debut in October 2019.
Hori Announces New Line Of Officially Licensed Accessories For Switch Lite
The prolific peripheral maker Hori has announced it has been selected as an officially licensed launch partner for the Nintendo Switch Lite. As a result, it will be working closely with Nintendo from an “early stage” to produce “a robust line” of accessories, which will be available alongside the launch of the system on 20th September.
Hori intends to offer storage and screen protection accessories, and many “other items” that will be available at retailers around the globe. In the PR, Hori said it was incredibly proud to be a launch partner:
HORI has worked closely with Nintendo to develop these products and is proud to be a launch partner supporting the Nintendo Switch Lite.
Are you glad to hear you’ll be able to pick up some Hori accessories when the Switch Lite is released? Do you intend to purchase Nintendo’s dedicated portable hardware? Leave a comment below.
Machinations.io is a fairly rare breed, a tool dedicated to game design. Currently in a free beta, Machinations is a browser based tool for designing and simulating mechanics for gameplay.
Descriptions for the Machinations.io website FAQ:
Machinations.io is a browser-based platform to design, balance and simulate game systems. It allows you to map any game system in an interactive diagram, set parameters that define elements and the relationship between them, and visualise the way in which these systems work. Based on that, you can simulate different outcomes, plot results and balance your game economy.
If you are familiar with diagramming software like Visio or have used a mind mapping application, you have a decent understanding of Machinations. Machinations is however one of those tools that is easier to understand when seen in action, so I would recommend watching the video below.
Netflix Releases Its First Official Teaser For Season One Of The Witcher
After what feels like an incredibly long wait, Netflix has finally released the first trailer for its live-action version of The Witcher, starring Superman’s Henry Cavill as the White Wolf.
In this first look, we find out a bit about the lore within the universe of the Witcher, see some of the well-known characters from the series and witness an eight-legged monster surface from the depths of a swamp.
As previously explained, this series is based on Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski’s popular line of fantasy novels, rather than the video games – this includes The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, which is coming to the Nintendo Switch later this year. The Netflix series is “coming soon” and will be comprised of eight one-hour long episodes.
To help promote the show, Netflix has opened up dedicated social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Take a look at the teaser trailer above and tell us what you think down below.
Review: Grado’s GW100 headphones make open-back wireless affordable
There may be superior-sounding open-back headphones, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find anything better than the Grado GW100 that’s both wireless and affordable.
Recently I checked out Audio-Technica’s ATH-AD1000X headphones as a possible open-back option for Macs, iPads, and iPhones. They sound excellent — I’m wearing them as I write this — but a fundamental obstacle is that as with many open-back models, they’re wired-only. That doesn’t fly with too many people these days, especially iPhone owners.
Grado is a well-known brand in the audio world, primarily as a source of open-back headphones that won’t break the bank. The GW100 is its first Bluetooth option, which it claims it held off on until it could match the quality of wired products.
Once more, a quick primer. Most headphones are closed-back, which improves qualities like noise isolation at the expense of shaping output and creating a narrower soundstage. Open-back headphones tend to have a “purer” sound with a wide stage, at the cost of bass.
Construction-wise the GW100 isn’t terribly impressive out of the box. Most of it is built of lightweight plastic, and the earpieces are covered with a cheap, removable foam lining. It’s not what you’d anticipate from something costing $249.
It does retain Grado’s signature style though, and lightweight means exactly that — this might something to consider if you feel other on- or over-the-ear headphones weigh too much. Foam lining isn’t ideal for comfort, but it is tolerable.
Thankfully, the tradeoff in build quality is made up for in sound. Grado says it custom-configured its driver design for the GW100, which further employs Bluetooth 4.2 with aptX, a Qualcomm compression technology that enables “CD-like” quality.
As a rule the headphones sound great. They’re not audiophile quality — you’d need aptX-HD for that — but frequency response ranges from 20 hertz to 20 kilohertz, and most of that comes through loud and clear. I sometimes felt as if sound was a little muffled or lacking in bass, but not in any serious way, and that was more than offset by having a smooth and open soundstage.
Another pleasant feature: real physical buttons for playback. Many headphones use touch gestures these days, which I find maddeningly imprecise. Here, it’s quick and easy to change tracks or volume.
A couple of minor complaints are that they bleed audio, and while portable, are even less suited to rain and sweat than usual. Both issues are inherent to open-back technology, however, so there’s no faulting Grado.
Conclusions
If you’re considering a first step into open-back headphones or simply want a more portable version, the GW100 won’t disappoint so long as you know what you’re in for. That’s the catch, naturally — people who want privacy or or more rugged design will have to turn elsewhere. So too will audiophiles, but they’re probably browsing far more expensive options anyway. For the common man, this is excellent.
Score: 4 out of 5
Where to buy
The Grado GW100 Wireless Headphones sell for $249 at top retailers, such as Amazon and B&H Photo.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 07-21-2019, 02:18 AM - Forum: Lounge
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Microsoft sees dip in quarterly Xbox revenue as hardware sales slow
Microsoft has closed out the fourth quarter of its 2019 fiscal year with year-over-year decreases in both its game and Xbox businesses, declines that come as the next generation of consoles looms on the horizon.
For the quarter ending June 30, the company reported a $233 million decrease in game revenue, down about 10 percent from the same period last year. That makes for just over $2.05 billion in game revenue, down from $2.29 billion during the same period last year.
Microsoft’s earnings report calls out a 48 percent year-over-year decline in Xbox hardware revenue specifically, noting that the shift was mainly due to a decrease in consoles sold during the quarter. Xbox software and services, meanwhile, fell by 3 percent year-over-year, offset partially by a rise in subscriptions. Microsoft notes that it had a strong Q4 in that category last year, which likely also contributed to the year-over-year decline.
However on a yearly basis, the company saw an increase in game revenue. Its games business as a whole saw $11.39 billion for the 2019 financial year, up from $10.35 billion in 2018. Monthly active Xbox Live users have also increased over the last year. As of June 30, 2019, Xbox Live has 65 million MAUs, up from 57 million at this same point last year.
In its full report, Microsoft also called out games, cloud/AI engineering, and GitHub as three of the four departments responsible for a 15 percent increase in its R&D expenses.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 07-21-2019, 02:18 AM - Forum: Minecraft
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Minecraft: Java Edition 1.14.4
Today we’re releasing 1.14.4, a release that addresses left over issues from 1.14. We plan on this being the final release for 1.14 and we’ll continue our efforts on 1.15. Aside from new features, 1.15 will also focus on quality and performance improvements.
With the impending arrival of Batwoman, The CW isn't holding back when it comes to bringing out the big guns. During the show's inaugural San Diego Comic-Con panel, two major names were revealed as being integrated into the series.
First and foremost, it was announced that Burt Ward, the iconic actor who played Robin on the original Batman TV series, will appear in the Crisis on Infinite Earths five-part crossover this season. While it wasn't confirmed he would be appearing as the Boy Wonder, it's worth noting that Legends of Tomorrow star Brandon Routh will appear as a version of Superman. So it sounds like Ward's Robin may pop up somehow.
Another major reveal was that Season 1 will see the introduction of Tommy Elliot, who Batman fans know as the alter ego of the villain Hush. Based on what showrunner Caroline Dries said, it sounds like viewers will see the origin of the character. For those that don't follow the comics, Elliot was a childhood friend of Bruce Wayne who ultimately killed his abusive father before eventually becoming the masked killer known as Hush.
Dries also noted that Batwoman will not be recycling villains from elsewhere in the Arrow-verse, but will instead dig deep into the library of baddies from the Batman and Batwoman comics. As for whether Batman himself will make a substantial appearance, Dries claimed "anything is possible."
That said, executive producer Sarah Schecter pointed out that in the beginning, at least, the focus is entirely on Kate and her story, much like the first seasons of Supergirl were about Kara's (Melissa Benoist) journey. It's worth pointing out, though, that Supergirl did introduce Superman (Tyler Hoechlin) so anything truly is possible.
