In a world of giant games, Pokken Tournament DX is coming in as a much smaller one than anticipated. Whether or not you've already picked up an extra SD card for your Nintendo Switch, this digital title will fit within your console's tiny 4 GB limit.
Updates to the Pokken Tournament DX Eshop listing on Switch show us the game will only take up 3.2 GB of memory. This is only a slight difference compared to the game's Wii U version which took up 3.68 GB of memory. This is surprising because the Switch version of the game includes more content, including Popplio and Litten as support characters, and five new playable Pokemon fighters: Darkrai, Empoleon, Scizor, Croagunk, and Decidueye.
In addition to new fighters, DX will sport several new game modes: daily challenges, team battles, and online group matches. All of these details and more were revealed in the title's latest trailer.
In honor of Rick And Morty Season 3 Episode 6, we're giving away a Mr. Poopy Butthole Funko Pop! One (1) winner will be chosen after the giveaway closes on Sunday, September 3rd at 12:00PM PT.
Open to US residents only, void where prohibited. If you do not win this time, you'll be automatically entered in the next giveaway.
Enter below (the additional entries are optional to increase your chances of winning):
Say what you want about The Defenders, whether you loved seeing Jessica Jones, Daredevil, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist all fighting together in beautiful harmony, or thought the whole thing fell completely flat. Now that the dust has settled, it's clear that The Defenders did one great thing for Marvel's Netflix universe of connected shows: It brought the storyline involving The Hand to its blessed, overdue conclusion.
The Hand is, without a doubt, the second-worst thing to happen to these connected Marvel Netflix shows (next to everything about Iron Fist, of course). One by one these shows tried to introduce The Hand, and each failed to make the shadowy group of villains interesting at all. The overall quality dipped as The Hand became more and more prominent, and the entire connected Defenders world suffered.
The Hand, from Madame Gao to Sigourney Weaver's Alexandra, were simply not good villains.
Think back to Daredevil Season 1 and Matt Murdock's battle with the Kingpin. Wilson Fisk is a fantastic villain, not least thanks to Vincent D'Onofrio's complex and unpredictable portrayal. As has been noted many times before, the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies often suffer from their one-dimensional villains, and with Daredevil's Wilson Fisk, the Netflix show avoided that pitfall.
Daredevil set a high bar, and it's one that the next Netflix Marvel show, Jessica Jones, somehow surpassed with Kilgrave. A new take on the comic book villain The Purple Man, Kilgrave brought out a new, maniacal side of Doctor Who star David Tennant. The villain was so well-written that there were multiple episodes where you could even feel genuinely sorry for him.
Luke Cage deserves a mention here as well for Mahershala Ali's Cottonmouth, who succeeded as a villain and a foil for Luke for all the same reasons outlined above.
Where it all started to come apart was Daredevil Season 2. You can argue that it was the writing that began to struggle, or the performances from actors portraying new characters, or simply the need to start bringing in elements that would eventually become important in The Defenders. But there's a common thread in these shows' lowest points: The Hand.
Daredevil Season 2 is when The Hand came to the forefront, but it never did so in a way that gave anyone a reason to care. There's a secret organization called The Hand! But it's never clear what they want, what they do, or why they do it. The Hand is full of powerful warriors! All of whom can be easily defeated by whatever "good" character happens to be on-screen in any given scene. They're digging a giant hole in New York! Which we won't mention again until The Defenders, and even then it will be poorly explained and unimportant.
Iron Fist only added to the problems with The Hand as an effective villain, in addition to all the show's other issues. The Hand is an ancient, evil organization locked in eternal battle with the monks of K'un-Lun! OK--but, like, why? Why are they recruiting kids from New York? Why does any of it matter?
Later
The Defenders was meant not just to link the worlds of Daredevil, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and Jessica Jones, but also to bring the story of The Hand to a climax. The organization's five leaders finally came together in one show, which could have been epic. Instead, these ancient, immortal warriors were easily defeated, decapitated, and disposed of by three lovable but small-time heroes, plus their sidekick Danny Rand. No wonder the whole thing felt anti-climactic.
Here's where that silver lining comes in: The Hand is likely finished. As The Defenders Executive Producer Marco Ramirez told Entertainment Weekly, "We definitely felt like we wanted this to be the end of this specific show, so while I don't know if it's the end of the Hand forever--who knows what will happen in the future--it just felt like it's the end of this story in the lore. Particularly for Iron Fist, we wanted to close that chapter [of The Hand's story]."
The Hand might return someday--we're talking about comic book stories, after all--but for now, this story, this incarnation, this particular set of villains, is finished. These shows will finally be able to move on without The Hand dragging them down, and that's the best thing that's happened yet in Netflix's corner of Marvel's connected universe.
With The Punisher due out this year and both Jessica Jones Season 2 and Luke Cage Season 2 coming in 2018, The Hand is unlikely to raise its boring five-fingered head again any time soon. For that, at least, we can be thankful for what took place in The Defenders.
Give your coffee table a makeover with the latest of Final Fantasy 15 collector's items. The Art and Design of Final Fantasy 15 art book is up for pre-order now.
Never has the world of Eos looked so good. Tucked inside each of the standard and limited versions of the book are 220 full-color pages of the monsters, characters, world, and food of Final Fantasy 15 and its CG film Kingsglaive. These works were hand-picked for this book and range from rough pencil sketches to digital paintings and renderings.
We're giving away 500 closed beta keys to The Amazing Eternals on PC.
Entry is open Worldwide. Your closed beta key will be emailed to you within 24 hours.
Enter below (the additional entries are optional):
About The Amazing Eternals:
The Amazing Eternals is a new free-to-play competitive hero shooter from Digital Extremes, the studio behind Warframe. Players have the ability to construct and customize decks from sets of cards unique to each Eternal before each match. This offers players an additional layer of strategy and customization. These cards can give players powerful passive buffs, upgrades to their abilities, even devastating weapons that can turn the tide of battle in key moments.
The picture itself didn't confirm anything, as Bettany could have just been visiting. But according to SlashFilm's sources, Bettany will play the character that Williams was originally set to, but with a big change. The character is now a human instead of a motion-capture alien, according to the report.
This is the third time Howard and Bettany have worked together, following A Beautiful Mind and The Da Vinci Code.
The Han Solo movie stars Alden Ehrenreich as Solo and Joonas Suotamo as Chewbacca, while Donald Glover will portray Lando Calrissian. Woody Harrelson, Thandie Newton, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and Emilia Clarke also star. It hits theaters on May 25, 2018.
Recently, we learned that a new Joker origin movie is in the works with legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese involved as a producer. Now, a new report has more exciting and interesting news about the film in the area of potential casting.
Sources told The Hollywood Reporter that Oscar winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio is being eyed to play the Joker. No offer has been made to DiCaprio, so this is not a done deal by any stretch; THR also reports that Scorsese's deal is not finalised.
It sounds like a longshot for DiCaprio to come aboard, but it's an exciting prospect to think about regardless. "The chances of landing DiCaprio could be slim to none. But the attempt in itself sends a signal to talent that Warners wants to hire serious filmmakers to make serious films," THR reported.
Scorsese and DiCaprio have worked together on many big-name movies including The Departed, Gangs of New York, The Aviator, and The Wolf of Wall Street. The new Joker movie is to be directed by The Hangover's Todd Phillips.
Jared Leto played the Joker in Suicide Squad and will reprise the role in its sequel, as well as a spinoff movie, but he won't play the role in the new origin film. Sources told THR that Leto made his unhappiness known to his CAA agents about the possibility of there being two Jokers.
The untitled Joker spinoff will be a "gritty and grounded hard-boiled crime film set in the early '80s Gotham City." Interestingly, WB is reportedly setting up the film not as a DC movie but rather like one of Scorsese's '80s-set movies like Raging Bull or Taxi Driver.
Phillips is writing the script alongside 8 Mile's Scott Silver. No release date has been set, and overall it still sounds like very early days.
Would you like to see DiCaprio play the Joker? Let us know in the comments below!
PC's ambitious Monster Hunter-like game Dauntless is still a few months away from release, but players now have a chance to try the title early. Beginning today, the cooperative action-RPG enters into closed beta.
According to developer Phoenix Labs, the Dauntless closed beta will "build upon" the game's live service with a regular stream of updates and content. This will include new weapons and gear, story expansions, and Behemoths to slay.
Players who'd like to jump into the closed beta can gain access by purchasing one of the Founder's Packs from the game's website. Along with beta access, each pack contains an assortment of items to use in-game. The cheapest option retails for $40 and grants players "champion status" for 90 days, increasing Behemoth drops. It also includes a kit of consumable items, an in-game title and forum icon, and an exclusive flare. The $70 Hero pack, meanwhile, contains all of the aforementioned items along with 10 Chromo Cores to dye your gear and 10 Transmog Stones to change your gear's appearance but retain its stats.
Those who are attending PAX West in Seattle this weekend will also have a chance to try the game. Phoenix Labs is featuring hands-on demos of the Dauntless closed beta at its booth. Phoenix says that players who "emerge victorious from battle" will earn exclusive rewards and be granted access to the beta.
Dauntless is still without a firm release date, but Phoenix Labs says it will release as a free-to-play downloadable game by the end of 2017. An open beta will also be available, though that, likewise, doesn't currently have a date. We got to play Dauntless at E3 2017 earlier this summer and found that, despite its similarities to Capcom's series, it isn't just a simple Monster Hunter clone.
Splatoon 2's next Splatfest competition is set to begin soon. The event kicks off in the US tonight at 9 PM PT/12 AM ET and in the UK tomorrow, September 2, at 3 PM BST.
As before, the Splatfest runs for a full 24 hours. This time, the theme revolves around superpowers. Players must pick which ability they'd rather have: flight or invisibility.
To participate in the Splatfest, choose a side from the voting booth in Inkopolis Square and you'll be matched up with other players from your team, with each win going toward your team's overall score. All participants will be rewarded with Super Sea Snails depending on your rank by the end of the Splatfest, which can be used to add additional slots to your gear.
Stages take on a slightly different look during Splatfests. While Turf Wars are typically held during the day, each map is set at night for Splatfests. The game's newest stage, Manta Maria, will be one of the maps featured during this weekend's competition, as will the Splatfest-exclusive stage Shifty Station, which will have a different layout this time.
Also arriving tonight is Splatoon 2's next free DLC weapon, the Forge Splattershot Pro. This high-powered shooter is complemented by the Suction Bomb sub-weapon and a brand-new special, the Bubble Blower. Once activated, players can create up to three large bubble that can explode if shot with your team's ink.
The results for the competition will be revealed on September 3. So far, this is the second Splatfest in Splatoon 2 since the game launched earlier this summer. Last month's event saw Team Mayo narrowly defeat Team Ketchup in a battle of condiment preference. Prior to the game's release, Nintendo held a Splatfest World Premiere demo event that asked players to choose between ice cream or cake.
Nintendo is continuing its weekly rollout of Splatoon 2 content. The game's next free DLC weapon arrives later today, and it comes with a brand-new special in tow.
Starting tonight, players will be able to purchase the Forge Splattershot Pro from the Ammo Knights shop. Like the recent string of DLC items, the Forge Splattershot Pro is a returning weapon from the first Splatoon. It's a high-powered shooter, but it burns through your ink supply quickly.
The Forge Splattershot Pro comes with Suction Bombs as its sub-weapon. Most notable, however, is its special: the Bubble Blower, a brand-new ability in Splatoon 2. Once activated, players can create up to three large bubbles that will explode when shot with your team's ink.
The Forge Splattershot Pro will roll out just ahead of Splatoon 2's next Splatfest. The competition kicks off tonight at 9 PM PT/12 AM ET and, as before, runs for a full 24 hours. This Splatfest asks players which superpower they'd rather have: flight or invisibility.
Headset manufacturer Astro revealed the A20 at PAX West, which is a wireless gaming headset that shares many design similarities to its wired counterpart, the Astro A10. It's slated for release at an unspecified date in October with versions for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles priced at $150 USD (both SKUs are compatible with Windows 10 PCs). Astro is also putting out two additional versions with Call of Duty branding for $160 USD, which the company said to support the launch of Call of Duty: WWII.
The A20 connects via a 5.8 GHz wireless signal and is said to last up to 15 hours straight off a full charge. It features a flexible microphone that automatically mutes when flipped upward. Like the A10, the new wireless headset is equipped with foam-padded ear cups wrapped in a microfiber upholstery. The key feature that makes these headsets stand out from others is their durability; the frame is designed to flex and withstand high impact without affecting its physical integrity. You can check out what we put the A10 through in our video review.
PS4 edition of the Astro A20 headset.
Astro's Command Center PC application lets users tune equalization settings and set custom EQ modes to the headset. The A20 also features an on-the-fly chat/in-game volume mixer on the headset itself.
The Call of Duty edition sports a different color scheme, a subtle camouflage pattern, and the game's branding (though not specific to the upcoming game). PAX West attendees will see the A20 on display and can test it out at the show. To get an idea of how the A20 will perform, be sure to check out our review of the Astro A10 that came out earlier this year.
The classic cop show Starsky & Hutch is returning to TV screens. It has been confirmed that Amazon has acquired the reboot of the much-loved '70s show, which will be produced by Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn.
As reported by Variety, Amazon will partner with Sony Pictures to produce the new Starsky& Hutch. Sony's involvement in the show's development was first announced last week, but the Amazon deal includes a script-to-series commitment, ensuring that it will screen on the streaming service.
Gunn is set to produce the show alongside his brother Brian and cousin Mark, who will also write the series. In a statement, Gunn said, "When I was a kid, Starsky & Hutch was the first 'adult' show I ever saw, and I fell in love. It instilled in me a lifelong love of gritty street shows, of killer '70s threads, and muscle cars. So when Neal Mortiz asked me if I wanted to be a part of an all new Starsky & Hutch on TV, I was instantly intrigued.
"I teamed up with the two writers I trusted most in the world to work with us, my brother Brian Gunn and my cousin Mark Gunn, and together we came up with a show that I'm really proud of. At Amazon I believed we would have the most freedom to create something that is different, challenges the audience, and that strays outside the parameters of genre from time to time."
The original Starsky & Hutch aired for 93 episodes between 1975 and 1979. It starred David Soul and Paul Michael Glaser as the two Southern California cops of the title, and was also known for characters such as the streetwise informant Huggy Bear and no-nonsense boss Captain Dobey. There was a movie reboot in 2004, starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, plus a tie-in video game released the previous year.
The reboot of the classic '90s movie The Crow is not having the easiest journey to the screen. The film, titled The Crow Reborn, has been close to production several times, but legal issues have continued to stall the project. Last year, it was announced that Aquaman star Jason Momoa was attached to star, but further delays have put his involvement in doubt. However, it has now been reported that the property has been bought by Sony Pictures.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Sony is looking to use The Crow Reborn to kickstart a new franchise. Although Momoa and director Corin Hardy are not officially attached, THR's sources state that "the plan does include them coming on in the near term."
The rights to The Crow Reborn were owned by the production company Relativity for many years. The film got close to shooting in 2015 but stalled when the company filed for bankrupcy. Another attempt to make it followed the company's emergence from administration, but that also failed. In October 2016, Relativity was put up for sale, and the property has ultimately ended up at Sony.
The Crow first appeared on the screen in the 1994 movie, which was adapted from James O'Barr's comic book. The film was a critical and financial hit, but it was overshadowed by the accidental death of star Brandon Lee on set. An unsuccessful sequel, The Crow: City of Angels, was released in 1996.
After it went live ahead of schedule yesterday, Call of Duty: WWII's second beta weekend is officially underway on consoles. You can already jump in and check out the beta, which includes several additions from last weekend's more limited test.
Players noticed on Thursday that the beta had become accessible well before its planned September 1 start dateIf you've pre-ordered the game on either PS4 or Xbox One and received a code for the beta, you can start playing as soon as it's downloaded. If you still haven't received a code, you can check on its status here.
This is the second beta weekend for Call of Duty: WWII; the first was exclusive to players who pre-ordered on PS4. This current beta test features some content that wasn't in the first weekend. Most notably, the Aachen multiplayer map is now playable. In addition, you can try out the M1A1 Carbine, new Scorestreaks, and a new sniper rifle. Team Deathmatch, Domination, Hardpoint, and the new stage-based War Mode are all available, as well.
The beta ends on Monday, September 4. Call of Duty: WWII launches on November 4 for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. One notable omission on the multiplayer side from this beta that you'll see on launch day is Headquarters, the game's new social space.
With Sonic Mania out on all platforms--and quite good--next up for the series is Sonic Forces, the new 2D/3D hybrid action game. Sega today announced the details of a special physical edition of the game that comes with some nice bonuses.
The Bonus Edition of Sonic Forces is a limited, physical version of the game that's available for pre-order now for $40/£45. It comes with four art cards and a Forces-themed skin for the DualShock 4, Xbox one controller, or Joy-Cons, depending on which platform you purchase it for.
At least in Europe, a Shadow the Hedgehog costume is also available as an added pre-order incentive for the Bonus Edition at certain retailers. This is not referenced in a press release for North America; we've followed up with Sega to see if that offer stands in other regions.
AMD has come out strong this year with Ryzen and Threadripper CPUs, and the company continues to roll out more versions of its new processors. The 1900X is the 8-core/16-thread CPU on the sTR4 socket and X399 platform, and it's now the cheapest option in the Threadripper family at $550.
Those familiar with AMD's current CPU lineup might be wondering why an 8-core/16-thread Threadripper exists when the Ryzen 7 1800X ($500) sports the same core/thread count and similar clocks speeds. What differentiates the two is that the 1900X packs in many of Threadripper's advantages: quad-channel memory configuration, more PCI-express lanes, bootable NVMe RAID, and support for more USB ports. The following chart outlines the specs for Threadripper CPUs currently available:
Threadripper 1950X
Threadripper 1920X
Threadripper 1900X
Cores / Threads
16 / 32
12 / 24
8 / 16
Base Clock Speed
3.4 GHz
3.5 GHz
3.8 GHz
Boost Clock Speed
4.0 GHz
4.0 GHz
4.0 GHz
XFR Clock Speed
4.2 GHz
4.2 GHz
4.2 GHz
TDP
180 W
180 W
180 W
PCIe Lanes
64
64
64
Price
$1000
$800
$550
One drawback between Threadripper and Ryzen 7 is thermal design power (TDP), which is the maximum heat output from a processing unit and its power draw potential. The 1900X is rated at 180 watts while the 1800X is at 95 watts. Those in the market for a high-end desktop (HEDT) processor should expect to match their CPU with a robust cooling solution and power supply.
The real draw of the 1900X is its performance with heavy workloads in tasks like video encoding and production, and image rendering. Compared to the Ryzen 7 1800X, the Threadripper 1900X pulls ahead by 4-10% in POV-RAY, Blender, Handbrake, and Veracrypt.
When AMD matched up the 1900X with its more powerful counterparts, it was 29-39% behind the 12-core/24 thread 1920X, and 58-73% slower than the 16-core/32 thread 1950X in the aforementioned CPU-heavy workloads. This shows the 1900X to be a great value by comparison, but it also proves the strong scalability of AMD's Zen architecture; as the core/thread count increases, performance improves accordingly.
All three Threadripper CPUs traded blows in gaming performance with the four games mentioned earlier, but never differed more than 10 FPS.
Supernatural adventure title Oxenfree has been confirmed for the Nintendo Switch. The title's developer Night School Studio revealed the news through a tweet in Morse code. We did the hard work for you; it says "COMING SOON."
While we still don't have a release date quite yet, we can expect to see a more formal announcement before too long. Night School Studio has not released any details on how the gameplay will change on the Switch, such as if it will feature motion controls. This announcement is one of many titles coming to Switch that Nintendo revealed earlier this week.
Oxenfree follows teenager Alex and her friends on a trip to a local island for the weekend. During their stay, however, some strange happenings occur, leading the group uncover the secrets of the island, which may or may not contain ghosts and several paradoxes. It is an adventure game, but it doesn't play quite like the ones you may be used to. This game has no cut scenes and focuses on character interaction and conversations to progress the story.
At PAX West, Studio Wildcard announced the Aberration pack, which will launch for all platforms this October. According to the developer, Aberration takes place "on a damaged Ark whose internal atmosphere has leaked away." The result of this is a harsh landscape with "a plethora of lush underground biomes containing all-new exotic creatures and items to be acquired." You can see a glimpse of this strange world in the screenshots below.
Players who've purchased Ark's Explorer's Edition will receive Aberration at no additional cost, but everyone else will have the option to purchase the expansion separately for $20. Owners of the Explorer's Edition will also receive a few additional perks in the form of Aberration-themed cosmetic items, such as the Aberration Helmet and Aberration Sword.
Aberration is the second expansion for Ark: Survival Evolved, following the desert-themed Scorched Earth pack that released last year. Along with the aforementioned map, Aberration introduces new creatures to tame, 50 new items, and a number of new challenges to overcome like the Nameless, which the developer describes as "unrelenting, Element-infused monstrosities, requiring constant vigilance to defend against."
As with anything as popular as the Wii, Nintendo has faced numerous lawsuits over the years regarding its home console. One such case came to a close just this week--at least for now--with a jury ruling against Nintendo and ordering it to pay $10 million.
This particular lawsuit was first filed by the tech company iLife in Texas District Court back in 2013. It alleged that Nintendo had infringed on patents owned by iLife, claiming devices like the Wii, Wii Remote, and Wii U "contain systems or methods for body movement detection, body movement evaluation, body movement analysis, receiving body movement signals, analyzing body movement signals, responding to body movement signals, and remotely monitoring body movement signals." It was one of several such lawsuits iLife filed around that time.
It's unclear what, exactly, iLife has used its patents for, and there were questions at the time if it was functioning as a patent troll. Despite that, the jury in the case against Nintendo has now reached a verdict, finding it did indeed infringe on one specific patent. As a result, Nintendo has been ordered to pay iLife $10.1 million--far less than the nearly $150 million iLife originally sought.
As is to be expected, Nintendo said that it plans to appeal, meaning this process is not yet at its end. "On Aug. 31, 2017, a jury in Texas found that certain Wii and Wii U video game systems and software bundles infringed a patent belonging to iLife Technologies Inc. related to detecting if a person has fallen down," Nintendo said in a statement shared with GameSpot (first reported by Glixel). "The jury awarded iLife $10 million in damages. Nintendo disagrees with the decision, as Nintendo does not infringe iLife's patent and the patent is invalid. Nintendo looks forward to raising those issues with the district court and with the court of appeals."
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