Activision hunting Warzone leaker, DMCAs Reddit to learn identity

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Feb 23, 2020 10:57 AM CST

Activision is hunting down the Reddit user who leaked out Call of Duty Warzone's artwork, and is using the Digital Millennium Copyright Act to secure the leaker's personal info from Reddit.

Activision hunting Warzone leaker, DMCAs Reddit to learn identity

Activision has filed a DMCA subpoena to Reddit in an attempt to unmask Assyrian2410, the Reddit user who revealed key art for the publisher's new Call of Duty Warzone battle royale.

As The Hollywood Reporter notes, sites like Reddit aren't held liable for copyright infringement from leaks as long as they take the content down and adhere to requests made by the copyright holders--in this case, Reddit is pressured to surrender the user's digital identifiable information.

Continue reading: Activision hunting Warzone leaker, DMCAs Reddit to learn identity (full post)

Boston Mayor wants Sony to come back to PAX East

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Feb 23, 2020 7:19 AM CST

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is asking Sony to "set a good example" and come back to PAX East.

Boston Mayor wants Sony to come back to PAX East

Sony recently announced it would skip PAX East in Boston, Massachusetts because of potential coronavirus risks, cancelling big events like a hands-on gameplay demo of The Last of Us Part II in the process. Boston's Mayor Marty Walsh wants the billion-dollar games-maker to change its mind and come back to the show. Walsh's motivations are an attempt to re-vitalize the annual games showcase that brings lots of tourism to Boston, and to reverse the cultural stigma that the coronavirus has caused.

"As a large, international company, you have an opportunity to set a good example. As a leader in technology, you can show that you are motivated by facts, not fear. As a leader in gaming and culture, you can show that you believe in connection, not isolation," Mayor Walsh said in a letter to Sony's CEO Kenichiro Yoshida obtained by WCVB.

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Here's our battle plan for 'planet-killing' asteroids hitting Earth

Jak Connor | Science, Space, Health & Robotics | Feb 23, 2020 1:36 AM CST

One of the biggest problems we all face on Earth is if a large asteroid decides to line up Earth. It's an even bigger problem if that asteroid is so large that it falls into the category of "planet-killing".

Here's our battle plan for 'planet-killing' asteroids hitting Earth

So, in the event of one of those asteroids making its way over to Earth, how do we defend ourselves as a planet? MIT researchers have announced a battle plan for dealing with a "planet-killing" asteroid being on a collision course with Earth. According to the new paper, there are three options for missions that could be prepared in reasonably short notice. The first is "type 0", and is when a single, heavy spacecraft is fired at the asteroid using all information gathered from Earth to knock it off course.

The second is "type 1" mission, and that is when a scout craft is launched first to examine the asteroid. With the data gathered from the scout craft, humans back on Earth would be able to launch an impactor craft more accurately. The third option is "type 2" mission, which is when an impactor craft is launched at the same time as the scout craft. The scout craft then examines the asteroid after the initial impact, then relays data back for a second impactor that should finish the asteroid off.

Continue reading: Here's our battle plan for 'planet-killing' asteroids hitting Earth (full post)

The Witcher Season 2 starts filming, new cast + Game of Thrones star

Jak Connor | TV, Movies & Home Theatre | Feb 23, 2020 1:07 AM CST

Netflix has revealed some additional cast members that will be seen throughout The Witcher season 2. Filming has also begun!

The Witcher Season 2 starts filming, new cast + Game of Thrones star

Netflix has announced that seven new cast members have been added to season 2 of The Witcher and that filming for the season has already begun. One of the cast members that will appear in season 2 is Kristofer Hivju, who starred in Game of Thrones as Tormund Giantsbane. Henry Cavill will return to his role of Geralt of Rivia, along with Anya Chalotra as Yennefer, Freya Allan as Ciri, and Joey Batey as Jaskier.

Other actors who will also be coming to season 2 are: Yasen Atour from Young Wallender as Coen, Agnes Bjorn as Vereena, Paul Bullion from Peaky Blinders as Lambert, Thue Ersted Rasmussen from Fast and Furious 9 as Eskel, Aisha Fabienne Ross from The Danish Girl as Lydia, and Mecia Simson, as Francesca. Netflix estimates that the next season of The Witcher will be launched in 2021.

Continue reading: The Witcher Season 2 starts filming, new cast + Game of Thrones star (full post)

Deep Space radio burst pattern could be aliens, says Harvard scientist

Jak Connor | Science, Space, Health & Robotics | Feb 23, 2020 12:31 AM CST

It was only a few weeks ago that astronomers announced that they received what is called Fast Radio Bursts from deep space. Now, a Harvard scientist and astronomer have said that it could be aliens who are sending the signals.

Deep Space radio burst pattern could be aliens, says Harvard scientist

If you don't know what Fast Radio Bursts (FRB) is, here's a quick summary of what has happened so far. In January 2020, astronomers picked up FRB's from deep space, and while this is originally a rare finding, these signals are usually traced back to a cosmic event such as stars colliding. What puzzled astronomers were that these new FRB's were arriving in a regular pattern.

The pattern was that the FRB goes through a four-day cycle of regular activity almost every hour, then after those four days, it would go dormant for 12 days. The researchers also said that the source of the FRB would sometimes skip it's four-day activity period and only let out a single burst. This discovery broke all explanations towards for what the source of the FRB could be.

Continue reading: Deep Space radio burst pattern could be aliens, says Harvard scientist (full post)

Bethesda pulls games from GeForce Now, includes Fallout and Skyrim

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Feb 22, 2020 11:41 PM CST

Bethesda is removing their games from NVIDIA's new game streaming service GeForce NOW, with some major games getting flushed away. NVIDIA also announced there are over 1 million people now using GeForce NOW.

Bethesda pulls games from GeForce Now, includes Fallout and Skyrim

NVIDIA's new GeForce NOW game streaming service loses the likes of many Fallout games, Skyrim, The Elder Scrolls 5, and more -- the only one staying is going to be Wolfenstein: Youngblood, something I benchmarked with RTX and DLSS features enabled. GeForce NOW will however lose all other Wolfenstein games.

Activision-Blizzard dropped its games from GeForce NOW in a move that NVIDIA called a "misunderstanding", with NVIDIA taking to its blog recently to explain: "As we approach a paid service, some publishers may choose to remove games before the trial period ends. Ultimately, they maintain control over their content and decide whether the game you purchase includes streaming on GeForce NOW. Meanwhile, others will bring games back as they continue to realize GeForce NOW's value (stay tuned for more on that)".

Continue reading: Bethesda pulls games from GeForce Now, includes Fallout and Skyrim (full post)

1 million gamers are already using GeForce NOW, 1500 games coming soon

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Feb 22, 2020 11:30 PM CST

NVIDIA launched its game streaming service GeForce NOW just a couple of weeks ago and the company has already seen over 1 million gamers sign up for it. With games like Cyberpunk 2077, and Google Stadia sucking in comparison (and GeForce NOW being much cheaper), it's no wonder NVIDIA is seeing success.

1 million gamers are already using GeForce NOW, 1500 games coming soon

GeForce NOW supports over 400 games, while another 1000 are available for single-session installations -- all taking place on NVIDIA's servers. You can play your own games through your own accounts on Steam, the Epic Games Store, or Uplay -- while there's a free tier, NVIDIA also offers the premium Founders tier.

NVIDIA's premium Founders tier for GeForce NOW offers up longer play sessions, while both the free and premium tiers have RTX on (ray tracing) but the free version of GeForce NOW only has it for a 90-day introductory period. NVIDIA also announced that they have 1500 more games coming to GeForce NOW in the near future.

Continue reading: 1 million gamers are already using GeForce NOW, 1500 games coming soon (full post)

MTG Arena will 'aggressively expand' onto other platforms through 2020

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Feb 22, 2020 8:59 PM CST

Magic: The Gathering Arena has been tremendously successful on PC, and Wizards of the Coast are eager to expand the game's reach to other platforms.

MTG Arena will 'aggressively expand' onto other platforms through 2020

MTG Arena is likely coming to every single platform and addressable market in the games industry. The free-to-play online-based digital CCG, which puts an emphasis on monetizing randomized card packs, is prime territory for dedicated consoles like the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, or the on-the-go handheld Switch hybrid. It's even a contender for Stadia, Google's new cloud streaming service. But Arena's true potential for massive earnings is on the $68.5 billion mobile market.

Now in a recent Hasbro investor's meeting at ToyFair, Wizards of the Coast not only confirms Arena will release on mobile in 2020, but the game will see a dramatic expansion to other devices and services.

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Baldur's Gate 3 will be playable in 2020 via early access

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Feb 22, 2020 5:31 PM CST

Gamers will get the chance to help shape Baldur's Gate 3's development with an early access build releasing in 2020.

Baldur's Gate 3 will be playable in 2020 via early access

Baldur's Gate 3 is coming to early access later this year, Wizards of the Coast President Chris Cocks confirmed in a recent investors presentation.

"Larian will be showing off the game to the public next weekend at PAX East before entering early access later this year," he said.

Continue reading: Baldur's Gate 3 will be playable in 2020 via early access (full post)

Nintendo sends mixed messages on Animal Crossing Switch save recovery

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Feb 22, 2020 12:24 PM CST

Nintendo sends mixed signals to fans who are disappointed with its clandestine and awkward approach to Animal Corssing: New Horizons save backups.

Nintendo sends mixed messages on Animal Crossing Switch save recovery

Nintendo just pulled an interesting move that has some far-reaching implications. The company just edited and re-uploaded the recent Animal Crossing: New Horizons showcase with one key bit of info omitted out--the rather draconian save recovery policy.

Before the edit, the Direct outlined the strict stipulations to getting back their precious save data. Users can only recover save data in the event of a lost or damaged console, only a single time, and only if they're Switch Online subscribers, indicating that Nintendo automatically backs up your saved data anyway but blocks off user access. (That's really the only way they could restore your data if you lose a system, whereas they could manually transfer the saves from your old broken system to a new working one in their facilities.)

Continue reading: Nintendo sends mixed messages on Animal Crossing Switch save recovery (full post)