Following a pair of back-to-back mass shootings, some American politicians and pundits have once again turned their ire towards video games. The most high-profile of these was President Donald Trump, suggesting that video games contribute to a culture of violence that causes people to feel flippant with the sanctity of human life. However, he was far from the only or even the first politician to cast blame. But where does this reaction come from, and does the scientific evidence support it?Playing PoliticsThough the pair of tragic shootings in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio on August 3 and 4 have revived the topic of video game violence, politicians expressing concern over the effect of violent video games on young people is anything but a new phenomenon.Prompted by games like Mortal Kombat, Night Trap, and Lethal Enforcers, Congress held hearings on video game violence in 1993-1994. Led by Senators Joe Lieberman and Herb Kohl, the planned hearings were given extra furor thanks to Bureau of Justice statistics that showed gun-related violence had reached record highs in 1993. Politicians pointed the finger at violent media, especially video games."I'd like to ban all the violent video games," Lieberman said at the time. "It's hard to control every measure of this, especially in a society that values free speech and First Amendment rights."During the hearings, Lieberman argued that the average video game player was 7-12 years old, and so violent games were being marketed to children. Recognizing that an outright ban was impractical, however, Lieberman threw his support behind warning labels for violent video games. Congressional pressure had made clear that the government would take action to regulate the industry if it did not regulate itself. The result was the industry banding together to form and abide by ratings given by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB).The next significant political challenge to video games came from a California law that eventually made its way up to the Supreme Court of the United States. Brown v Entertainment Merchant's Association was a suit concerning a 2005 law restricting violent video game sales to minors without parental supervision. The law, drafted by former California State Sen. Leeland Yee and signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, demanded labeling beyond the standard ESRB labels and would fine retailers for selling violent games to minors. It defined violence under an obscenity statute that had previously only been used to restrict the sale of sexually explicit material. The EMA argued that the law unfairly treated video games as fundamentally different from other media, the sale of which is not restricted to minors.In a rare 7-2 ruling, the famously conservative Justice Antonin Scalia wrote in the Court's opinion that video games are subject to the free speech protections afforded by the First Amendment. He was joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Anthony Kennedy, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan, with Justice Samuel Alito concurring. Only Justices Stephen Breyer and Clarence Thomas dissented. Significantly, Scalia's written opinion explicitly rejected California's argument that a causal link existed between media violence and real-world aggression."The State's evidence is not compelling," Scalia wrote. "California relies primarily on the research of Dr. Craig Anderson and a few other research psychologists whose studies purport to show a connection between exposure to violent video games and harmful effects on children. These studies have been rejected by every court to consider them, and with good reason. They do not prove that violent video games cause minors to act aggressively … They show at best some correlation between exposure to violent entertainment and some minuscule real-world effects."Despite this standing opinion from the highest court, politicians still regularly point fingers at video games, especially in response to acts of real-world violence. This latest example isn't even the first time we've seen it from President Trump. Following the mass shooting in 2018 at a high school in Parkland, Florida, the president convened a roundtable with industry groups and critics on the same subject. It similarly used depictions of video game violence to suggest a causal link between exposure to violent games and real-world violence.So why does this keep happening?The Renewed FurorThe shootings in El Paso and Dayton took place over the course of less than 24 hours. Though mass shootings have become almost routine in American life, two mass casualty events occurring in such quick succession appeared to shake Americans to their core. Heartbroken citizens looked to leaders for guidance and action.Almost in unison, conservative leaders rallied against video games as a culprit. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Republican House minority leader Kevin McCarthy both appeared on Fox News Channel on the morning of August 4, calling for action against video games and suggesting a causal link between violent games and violent actions. President Trump's prepared remarks on Monday morning gained the most attention, but he was largely following a narrative already set by other conservative leaders."We must stop the glorification of violence in our society," Trump said. "This includes the gruesome and grisly video games that are now commonplace. It is too easy today for troubled youth to surround themselves with a culture that celebrates violence. We must stop or substantially reduce this, and it has to begin immediately."Critics of the president have suggested the tendency to blame video games is something of a stalling tactic, to shift the focus away from discussions of gun control that often take place following mass shootings. And to be sure, this would have strategic merit. American interest in gun control legislation waxes and wanes with current events, so muddying the waters and waiting it out could work, if one's goal was to simply maintain the status quo.Whatever political maneuvering might be at play, some segment of the broader population does genuinely believe video game violence contributes to real-world violence. Their strong concerns may be based in good faith, but the evidence is inconclusive at best.What The Evidence Actually ShowsOne of the most common arguments against a link between video game violence and real-world is anecdotal and intuitive. It has been stated many times and in many ways: video games are enjoyed the world over, and countries with similar or much higher video game adoption rates have significantly lower levels of gun violence.The ESA stated this in its initial response to President Trump's remarks, saying, "Other societies, where video games are played as avidly, do not contend with the tragic levels of violence that occur in the US."Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick echoed this sentiment days later, calling Trump's comments disrespectful to the victims and their families. "The fact is entertainment is consumed world-wide," he said, "but gun violence is uniquely American. So we need to address the real issues."This sentiment isn't new. The Daily Show host Trevor Noah lampooned the Trump administration along the same lines in a 2018 segment following the roundtable after the Parkland shooting. In the segment, Noah argued that stricter gun regulations are "most effective and realistic way to limit gun violence," citing lower homicide rates in countries like Japan--despite their fondness for video games.A more authoritative refutation can be found in a policy statement issued by the American Psychological Association in 2017. It argues, "Scant evidence has emerged that makes any causal or correlational connection between playing violent video games and actually committing violent activities." The policy statement goes on to point out that a 2002 analysis from the United States Secret Service "suggested that school shooters tended to consume relatively low amounts of violent media compared to normative levels for same-age peers." It's careful to note that this finding does not conclude that increased consumption of violent media would result in less real-world violence, just that a link cannot be established.The paper concludes that public officials and the media should refrain from suggesting a causal link between media violence and real-world acts of violence. At most, it says, media figures should refer to studies that may link video games to "aggression." It argues this because, as Justice Scalia noted in his 2011 ruling, the studies linking media violence to actual aggression are disputed, and usually extend to minor acts of aggression such as "the administration of unwanted hot sauce to make food too spicy, making someone put his or her hand in freezing ice water or bursts of white noise in laboratory experiments." The APA suggests that these findings are not conclusive and the methodology "remains a matter of reasonable debate."On the other hand, a 2016 statement by the American Academy of Pediatrics is more sharply critical of media violence. First, it draws a distinction between aggression and violence, to help parse terms.“For example, a snarling dog is behaving aggressively; once it bites, it has resorted to violence,” the statement says. “A person who verbally abuses another would not be committing an act of violence by this definition. Thus, all violent acts are aggressive, but not all aggressive acts are violent.”It argues for a “broad scientific consensus that virtual violence increases aggressive thoughts, feelings, and behaviors,” and dismisses the landmark Supreme Court ruling as based upon First Amendment grounds rather than scientific merit. It does concede, however, that laboratory aggression as a proxy for real-world aggression has proven to be a research challenge. Though increased aggression in a laboratory setting has been consistently shown and studied, this does not necessarily result in real-world violence. Finally, it states that an experimental, real-world study linking virtual violence with real-world violence has never been conducted, because the rarity of violence precludes a large enough sample size to be accurately studied. On the whole, though, the AAP appears to suspect some link may exist, and recommends more stringent enforcement mechanisms.ConclusionWhile scholars may disagree regarding the weight and emphasis of conclusions offered by laboratory studies, even the sharpest scientific critics of video game violence draw a cautious distinction between findings of heightened aggression and the soundbite-ready conclusion that video games are a primary cause in these ongoing national tragedies. Regardless, politicians have been looking to the medium for more than 20 years, and they likely will again the next time a tragedy hits close to home.Info from Gamespot.com

Black Panther director Ryan Coogler took the stage alongside Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige this weekend during Disney's D23 Expo to officially announce the release date for the upcoming Black Panther sequel--which, apparently, will not be officially called Black Panther 2.Whatever the sequel's real name may be, it will be hitting theaters as part of Marvel's ever-expanding Phase 4 efforts on May 6, 2022.That may seem far away--because it is. Coogler, who returns as writer and director for the sequel, admitted as much, but explained that they're eager to get this one right."We're definitely not taking our time with this one," the director said. "We just want it to be right."Just announced at #D23Expo, Ryan Coogler returns to direct Marvel Studios’ BLACK PANTHER 2, in theaters May 6, 2022. pic.twitter.com/9zfcFzOi6z — Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) August 24, 2019That's understandable. The first Black Panther movie, released in 2018, was exceptionally well-received, building plenty of hype for Avengers Infinity War, which released shortly afterward. The Avengers' arrival in Wakanda partway through Infinity War was one of the movie's highlights.In our original Black Panther review, we said it's "a top tier Marvel movie with all the humor, style, action, passion, and fun that the MCU has come to embody" and "a cultural event that's going to be hard for Marvel to top." Naturally, we're looking forward to the sequel.We don't know a heck of a lot else about Black Panther 2, however. The movie was conspicuously absent during Marvel's San Diego Comic-Con panel in July, and the portion of Disney's D23 presentation devoted to BP2 was brief. That said, there's been plenty of other news out of D23: more returning MCU characters in WandaVision's cast, the reveal of Disney Plus's Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk, and Moon Knight shows, more details about the Loki and Falcon and Winter Soldier shows, and more.On the Star Wars side, Disney confirmed that Ewan McGregor is returning to the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi, announced the release date for Star Wars Clone Wars Season 7, and revealed a Disney+ show starring very dead Rogue One characters.Info from Gamespot.com

The sequel to Black Panther will release on May 6, 2022, it has been announced. The date was revealed during D23, where Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige came out on stage, bringing with him the first movie's director, Ryan Coogler.The pair noted that the sequel will not be called "Black Panther 2," but didn't say what it will be called. While the 2022 release date may seem far off, Coogler said that the the creative team wasn't just spinning its wheels, and was instead focused on making a worthy sequel."We're definitely not taking our time with this one," he said, "We just want it to be right."D23 has been very fruitful for Marvel fans, we've already learned about more returning MCU characters in WandaVision's cast, the exciting reveal of Disney Plus's Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk, and Moon Knight shows, and got more details about the Loki and Falcon and Winter Soldier shows, and more.Star Wars fans were also taken care of, as Disney confirmed that Ewan McGregor is returning to the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi, announced the release date for Star Wars Clone Wars Season 7, and revealed a Disney+ show starring very dead Rogue One characters.Info from Gamespot.com

It's been a pretty big weekend for Star Wars fans, thanks to D23. The trailer for The Mandalorian dropped, and we learned more about the Obi-Wan TV series. Both of these are landing on Disney+ this fall. And during the Disney Movies panel at the convention on Saturday, those attending got to see new footage for Star Wars Episode IX: Rise of Skywalker.Although the only people who actually got to watch the new footage were those who attended the panel, GameSpot's Chris E. Hayner was on the ground to tell us exactly what went down during the fast-paced video sequence. It opens up with Rey, Poe Dameron, Finn, Chewbacca, and C-3PO arriving on a planet. A fleet of Resistance fighters are coming out of lightspeed, which then turns into a reveal of a fleet of Star Destroyers, lined up in space in an attack position.Back on the ground, Rey chops down a tree by throwing her lightsaber at it. This leads to a battle between Rey and Kylo Ren on what seems to be the planet from the end of the first Star Wars: Episode 9 trailer. At one point, Rey is using a double-sided, red lightsaber. What's different about this lightsaber is that it's like a switchblade knife. It started originally with two red beams, side by side, then snapped out to become double-sided. During this, Rey is wearing a hooded robe, which paired with the red lightsaber gives her a serious Dark Side vibe.During the panel, the cast hit the stage to talk a little bit about their characters. Keri Russell spoke a bit about her role as Zorri Bliss, who has been a bit of a mystery to fans. "I had this amazing costume and this helmet, which I actually loved to wear and didn't take it off for the first two days," explained Russell. "I found it strangely empowering and exciting. [Zorri Bliss is] very cool and a little bit shady. She's kind of a criminal and sort of this old friend of Poe's."Additionally, a new movie poster was revealed for the movie. It features Rey and Kylo Ren battling each other. A star-lit space is the backdrop, as well as the transparent face of The Emperor, who died in Return of the Jedi but makes his return in The Rise of Skywalker. Check it out below.We'll have to wait and learn more about Zorri Bliss and the rest of Episode 9 until the movie hits theaters on December 20. Additionally, the Disney Movies Panel at D23 also revealed more info on the Black Widow, Eternals, and Black Panther 2 films.Info from Gamespot.com

The cast of Marvel's Eternals just keeps on adding star power. This weekend, at Disney's D23 Expo, it was announced that both Kit Harington and Gemma Chan would be joining the cast.News of Harington's reported involvement in the MCU broke before the official announcement, prompting fans to speculate about every possibility, including the potential re-casting of Hugh Jackman's Wolverine in the wake of the Disney/Fox merge. Similarly, the news that Chan was being courted for the project broke earlier this month, leading fans to wonder how this new role would affect her Captain Marvel involvement.The cast of Marvel Studios’ The Eternals takes the stage at the #D23Expo pic.twitter.com/TR1gYEEq1w — Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) August 24, 2019In Harington's case, the truth turned out to be much simpler than the fantasy that theorizing created. He will play Dane Whitman, aka Black Knight, a superhero who--this is not a joke--dresses like a medieval knight and rides around on a pegasus-like flying horse (maybe he and Valkyrie will have something to talk about?)Things for Chan are a bit more complicated. She will not be reprising her Captain Marvel role as the Kree soldier Minn-Erva, and instead, be re-cast as the trickster Eternal Sersi. This is a rare case of an actor playing two different characters in the MCU--and likely means we won't be seeing Minn-Erva around in future Captain Marvel instalments.Though, interestingly, Sersi's superpowers do revolve around matter manipulation and shapeshifting, which could potentially make for a very interesting in-universe loophole to explain how and why Chan could be two unrelated characters at once. Perhaps the Minn-Erva we briefly saw back in the 90s wasn't actually Minn-Erva at all.The Eternals hits theaters on November 6, 2020. Info from Gamespot.com

During the D23 Movies panel, which gave us a look at Star Wars: Episode 9, as well as more info on Black Panther 2, and The Eternals, fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe were in for quite a treat when they got to see footage from the upcoming Black Widow movie. Set to release in 2020, those attending the panel learned that the movie is still filming as they watched an on-set video of Scarlett Johansson, David Harbour, and Florence Pugh. The cast was on a helicopter saying they wanted to attend D23, but they're in the middle of making the movie.Johansson is a major part of the movie, and many of these scenes show to the crowd featured her and Pugh's character, assassin Yelena Belova. Some of this footage was shown at Comic-Con back in July.Panel-goers got a quick recap of Black Widow from previous movies before seeing what the new movie had to offer. The new footage with Natasha Romanova walking through the empty streets of Budapest. She gets into an elevator. Then, Nat and Yelena have guns drawn on each other in an apartment. What follows is an intense battle where the two characters are trying to kill each other in the kitchen, which gets demolished. Yelena charges at Nat with a knife, and they try to strangle each other with a curtain.In the next shot, Nat says, "It's good to see you too, sis," as they drink vodka together. There is a shot of the Nat, Yelena and Red Guardian (Harbour) all in costume and bearing people up, which leads to a face-to-face moment with Nat and the movie's main villain, Taskmaster.Black Widow will hit theaters on May 1, 2020. In other Marvel news, a Ms. Marvel TV show was announced for Disney+, Game of Thrones star Kit Harington joined MCU in The Eternals, and Moon Knight is getting a Disney+ series too. If that wasn't enough She-Hulk is also getting her own show. You can see all the latest news in our D23 roundup. Info from Gamespot.com

It has been a wild week for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as it may lose one of its biggest characters--Spider-Man--because of a dispute between Sony and Disney over the rights. In the middle of the madness is actor Tom Holland who plays Peter Parker/Spider-Man in the MCU films. Regardless of the final outcome though, Holland showed up to D23 on Saturday to promote his upcoming Pixar movie, Onward, which is set for release in Spring 2020.The portion of the panel kicked off with a video. The movie takes place in a magical world filled with faeries, mermaids, elves, and more. Then, a jet flies by, and the magical world is gone, and it's our modern day, filled with these creatures living what seems to be a normal life--there are gnomes mowing lawns!Director Dan Scanlon, producer Kori Rae, actor Chris Pratt were in attendance, alongside Holland, who previously starred with Pratt in Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame. "Firstly, it's so good to be back here at D23," Holland said. "This is the best day of the year. Last time we were here, we were space buddies fighting on Titan. And now we're elf buddies fighting in LA."At this point, nothing about Spider-Man had been mentioned. However, after the new footage was shown to the crowd--detailed below--Holland turned to the crowd and said, "It's been a crazy week, and I want you to know I am grateful from the bottom of my heart, and I love you 3000." He left the stage with the audience screaming.Eight minutes of footage was then shown to everyone attending the D23 panel. The scenes shown were from early on in the film, and Tom Holland jumped down to watch it. Here's what happens: The mother of the two elf boys, played by Julia Louis Dreyfus, tells her kids their dad left something for them. Pratt's character says it is a wizard staff. The boys learn that magic used to exist, and their father left them a spell that would bring him back for one day only to see how they turned out when they grow up.Pratt's character tried to do the spell over and over again, but it never works. Both of the elf boys are bummed, especially Holland's character who has no memories of his father. Holland's character begins to successfully do the spell, but Pratt's character breaks it before it's complete. As a result, their father's bottom half is there, just walking around. The boys have 24 hours to finish the spell and make him whole, but they need to find a "Phoenix Gem" to do so, as it powers the wizard staff. So, they head off on a quest.In the final clip shown, the boys are off on their adventure, and the van they're traveling in ran out of gas. They try using magic to get it back on the road, but Holland's character accidentally shrinks his brother.As for the future of Spider-Man in the MCU, the future is uncertain. Both fans and Sony remain optimistic about Spider-Man's inclusion in future MCU films though. "Much of today's news about Spider-Man has mischaracterized recent discussions about Kevin Feige's involvement in the franchise," Sony said in a series of tweets. "We are disappointed, but respect Disney's decision not to have him continue as a lead producer of our next live-action Spider-Man film. We hope this might change in the future, but understand that the many new responsibilities that Disney has given him--including all their newly added Marvel properties--do not allow time for him to work on IP they do not own. Kevin is terrific and we are grateful for his help and guidance and appreciate the path he has helped put us on, which we will continue."Disney is also hopeful a deal will be worked out between the two companies, as Marvel Studios executive producer Jon Favreau told ET: "As a fan, [I'm] cautiously hopeful that something will come together, because I think all the fans wanna see those characters together. ... Things don't always--what you read isn't always indicative of where things are now, so hopefully, I'll find out more while I'm here. Holding out hope that this isn't the final chapter of that story."Regardless of any potential Spider-Man involvement in the future of the MCU, Marvel Studios isn't slowing down anytime soon. It was revealed yesterday that in addition to the MCU shows previously announced for Disney+ that Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk, and Moon Knight would each get their own original series. Info from Gamespot.com

A movie that continues the story of AMC critically-acclaimed drama series Breaking Bad is on the way. A listing for "El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie" appeared on Netflix, with the description reading, "Fugitive Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) runs from his captors, the law and his past." [Update] A trailer for El Camino has been released and features a character talking about Jesse. It seems he's being interrogated by people looking for the meth cook, who has escaped captivity and is now on the run. You can watch the first El Camino trailer and see the poster below.What happened to Jesse Pinkman?El Camino: A Breaking Bad MovieOctober 11 pic.twitter.com/PuoWBgfDJ0 — Netflix US (@netflix) August 24, 2019According to the listing Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan is writing and directing the movie. The New York Times reports that Netflix will officially announce the Breaking Bad movie on August 26 and then it will become available to stream on October 11. The publication also says AMC will air the movie at a later date."It's a chapter of Breaking Bad that I didn't realize that I wanted," said Aaron Paul in an interview. "And now that I have it, I'm so happy that it’s there. It was a hard, emotional thing for all of us and when the finale happened, we all got together and hugged it out and said I love you. And that was it."According to Paul, Gilligan contacted him about two years ago and presented the idea for bringing Jesse back. Of course, Paul agreed and, addressing skepticism that will inevitably arise when fans learn that the story will continue, he said his own misgivings were cast aside when he read the script for El Camino."I couldn’t speak for a good 30, 60 seconds," he said. "I was just lost in my thoughts. As the guy who played the guy, I was so happy that Vince wanted to take me on this journey." Asked about whether Brian Cranston would appear as Walter White, he said, "all I can say, I think people will be really happy with what they see."Breaking Bad followed the dysfunctional relationship between Jesse Pinkman, a meth cook and his science-teacher-turned-partner, Walter White. The show ended in September 2013, and, for the most part, is regarded as having a strong finale. Naturally, people will wonder whether bringing it back for a movie is the right move, given how well the series ended. We'll find out in October, it seems.Info from Gamespot.com

While there was plenty of Star Wars and Marvel news to talk about from the Walt Disney Studios panel during the 2019 D23 Expo, that's not all that was unveiled. Among the many titles teased for the D23 crowd was Jungle Cruise, which stars Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Emily Blunt. And yes, it's that Jungle Cruise--the iconic Disneyland boat ride--that is the basis of the movie.Johnson and Blunt were both on hand to talk about the film, bringing dueling trailers. Johnson put his character Frank, the skipper of a jungle riverboat, firmly in the spotlight. Blunt, on the other hand, cast her character Lily Houghton as the true hero of the story as she set off on an adventure and hired Johnson to help her along the way.The trailers played up a humorous competitive relationship between Blunt and Johnson, as they battled for attention in the panel with both even getting elaborate entrances--Johnson arrived on an actual Jungle Cruise boat, while Blunt was driven into the arena in a classic car. However, these first looks at the film also have an idea of what the audience can expect from the film.With Blunt's character in search of this mystical tree, which has healing powers, she enlists Frank to take her up-river. Along the way, they encounter marauders and wild animals, find themselves in fights--one of which ends when Lily accidentally punches Frank in the face. In addition to the comedy, there are plenty of nods to the theme park ride. At one point, while giving a tour, Johnson shows his passengers the "eighth wonder of the world," the backside of water. On the ride, this is done by going behind a waterfall. For Frank's boat tour, though, he simply turns on a faucet, in one of the sillier moments of his trailer.Both trailers led to the same moment, which revealed a man-made of snakes. While a full shot of the slithering character wasn't shown, Frank and Lilly had very different reactions. "That's impossible," a dumbfounded Frank uttered. Lily, on the other hand, was astonished. "It's real," she said.Neither of these trailers has been released to the public, and unfortunately, it'll be a while before you can see the movie. Jungle Cruise is in theaters on July 24, 2020. Info from Gamespot.com

At D23, we learned about plenty about Disney's upcoming movies, including Jungle Cruise, Star Wars: Episode 9, Marvel's Black Widow, and more. However, one big surprise came from the details to the 101 Dalmatians prequel. We got to see what Cruella DeVille would look like in the upcoming live-action movie.Starring Emma Stone as the titular character, those that attended the movies panel on Saturday at the Disney convention learned a bit more about the movie, which won't hit theaters until 2021, on the 50th anniversary of the animated classic, 101 Dalmatians.Fans got their first look at Stone from the set, complete with the half-black, half-white hair, which you can see above. In a behind-the-scenes video filmed by Stone for the D23 crowd, she revealed the movie would be set in 1960s London. Stone appeared on screen, discussing the film, while yelling at a poor dog off screen. Emma Thompson, Stone's co-star in the film, was also mentioned. However, details about her character have yet to be revealed. There have been rumors she'll be playing Baroness, but as to who or what that character is, no one knows at this time.We'll learn more in the upcoming year, but Cruella is still a ways off, as it won't be released theatrically until May 28, 2021.D23 was a huge weekend for news, as those in attendance got to see eight minutes of footage of the upcoming Tom Holland/Chris Pretty Pixar movie, Onward. Additionally, we learned a lot more about plenty of Disney+ TV series, including the Star Wars shows The Mandalorian and Obi-Wan. As for Marvel, three new Disney+ TV series were announced at the convention She-Hulk, Moon Knight, and Ms. Marvel.Info from Gamespot.com

The world of Oninaki has a complex and interesting relationship with death. For the people living in this realm, death is not just accepted, but sometimes even embraced, as they believe that they will be spirited onto their next life upon their passing. But sometimes people don't just go peacefully into reincarnation. They have unfinished business, lingering desires, or unbearable pain that prevents them from completing the cycle--and if they can't find relief, they may transform into terrifying monsters called Fallen. That's where the Watchers come in. They are a group of humans gifted with the ability to cross into the parallel realm of death, and they must both guide lost souls to their next destination and deal with those who have become Fallen.As the Watcher Kagachi, you not only have to help find and guide lost souls, you must fight off the Fallen in both realms. In fact, you'll be doing significantly more fighting than soul-guiding, because there are a lot of Fallen wandering around nowadays. That, combined with issues like a dearth of new births, a weird cult, and a vicious murderer known as the Night Devil roaming about, has the populace worried about the foundations of death and reincarnation collapsing.This concept is undeniably cool, and it's ripe for storytelling potential about dealing with the inevitability of death and finding peace and acceptance. The beautiful graphics and world design of Oninaki bolster the intrigue of this setting, too; serene fields, plant-filled marshes, elaborate ruins, and craggy mountains have a zen-like quality to them that feels both contemplative and somber, which contrasts starkly with the crowded, anxious mood of the bustling cities, palaces, and other man-made dungeons and structures. When you "cross the veil" to the realm of the dead to search for lost souls, familiar things immediately transform into an eerie miasma of dark shadows and bright neon lights, giving an otherworldly vibe that really makes you feel like you've reached a place far beyond the senses of normal humans. The combination of intriguing setting and visuals really does a lot for Oninaki, and it's one of its strongest elements.But this beauty is just skin-deep, because once you get into combat, problems start to come to the surface. Kagachi doesn't fight by himself; he enlists the help of lost, memory-devoid souls called Daemons to possess and provide him with weaponry, skills, and combat expertise. There are a wealth of different Daemons you encounter throughout Oninaki, and each one has a unique weapon and combat style they can bestow to Kagachi when possessed. Kagachi can carry up to four Daemons at once and swap between them on the fly, giving you access to different weapons, movement, and fighting styles you can change when needed.This sounds fantastic on paper, but there's one big problem: Every Daemon you recruit is extremely weak when you first get them. Daemons level up separately from Kagachi, and only gain combat skills--active and passive, offensive and defensive--through a skill tree that unlocks with weapon stones dropped when using that Daemon. When you first get a Daemon, no matter how far along in the game you are, they have next to no skills and no weapon stones, requiring you to grind with their limited skillset to get them to a point where they are maybe, possibly fun and effective to use.Even then, some of the Daemons are poorly designed. The long-range fighter Dia, for example, tends to get overwhelmed by frequent enemy mobs thanks to her slow startup and recovery on attacks. Acquiring a new Daemon should be exciting, but the struggle to make new ones viable makes it something to dread. Eventually, you'll probably find yourself focusing on a few specific Daemons and ignoring others, which feeds into the larger issue of repetitive and frustrating combat.There are a lot of enemies roaming both the realm of the living and the dead in Oninaki, and they tend to get reused quite often. Usually they come in large mobs to distract from the fact that it's yet another swarm of walking flowers or scorpions. Sometimes they get changed up a bit (This time the scorpions belch fire!), but their appearances and attack patterns remain similar. Exacerbating this issue is how spongey even the small enemies can get, especially if your current Daemon's not well-levelled yet. Using a powerful Daemon you've been putting a lot into, however, makes combat boring, as you're encouraged to use the same special attacks over and over in hopes that one of them might randomly gain a permanent special attribute. Boss fights can change things up a bit, and there are some genuinely cool and challenging encounters. However, most of the bosses also soak up damage like crazy. Strategy tends to devolve into using attacks with evasive bonuses and quick recovery until you get enough energy to "Manifest" your Daemon for a huge damage boost, then wailing on them with your biggest attacks until that runs out, repeating until dead and hoping you have enough healing incense to make up for mistakes.Using a powerful Daemon you've been putting a lot into, however, makes combat boring, as you're encouraged to use the same special attacks over and over in hopes that one of them might randomly gain a permanent special attribute. Boss fights can change things up a bit, and there are some genuinely cool and challenging encounters. However, most of the bosses also soak up damage like crazy. Strategy tends to devolve into using attacks with evasive bonuses and quick recovery until you get enough energy to "Manifest" your Daemon for a huge damage boost, then wailing on them with your biggest attacks until that runs out, repeating until dead and hoping you have enough healing incense to make up for mistakes.One might be willing to put up with gameplay flaws if the setting and story are good enough, and while Oninaki's world is fantastic, the game frequently falters in storytelling. Kagachi is a very bland and uninteresting protagonist, and his shy little-girl partner Linne isn't much better. The game has a wealth of NPC characters, but they don't have much to offer; their interactions with Kagachi are brief and uninteresting, and you don't get much on their backgrounds and personalities. As a result, when the game tries to deliver an emotional payout--it's a game about death, so there's a lot of dying in the story--it feels toothless, because you aren't connected to these characters and lack a reason to care about their pain and grief. The pacing of the overall story is poor, as well; it often feels like a lot of nothing happening, then a really big event, and then back to something that's distracting from the plot thread you're actually interested in. It's very frustrating to see the story finally living up to its potential and going in interesting places, only to be interrupted by a mandatory fetch quest that feels like pure padding.Oninaki is a game that frequently sabotages itself. Its beautiful environments and mood are dampened by annoying hordes of samey enemies. Its amazing concept and world design are wasted on a story that's poorly paced and doesn't give you an adequate reason to care. Its varied and interesting combat styles get dragged down by the need to grind Daemons and uneven difficulty overall. There's certainly some beauty to be found in Oninaki's tragic world, but these flaws make this a circle of life that you can skip over.Info from Gamespot.com

Disney's D23 Expo comes along every two years, bringing with it all kinds of news about upcoming movies, theme park rides, and TV shows. From Pixar's upcoming animated films to the latest Star Wars and Marvel Cinematic Universe offerings, there's plenty to learn about and 2019's expo will be no different when it runs between Friday, August 23, and Sunday, August 25. As with all big events, news slips out a little earlier, and that's been the case with D23 too. For example, it has been reported that a Ms. Marvel TV show is coming to Disney+, Game of Thrones star Kit Harington is joining the MCU, Moon Knight is getting a Disney+ series, as is She-Hulk. When it comes to Star Wars, Clone Wars Season 7 has been confirmed as returning in Febraury 2020, and if that wasn't enough a new spy series featuring Rogue One's Cassian Andor and K2SO is also in the works for Disney's streaming service.If that wasn't enough for you, Ewan McGregor is going to be putting on the robes and picking up the lightsaber once again to play Obi-Wan Kenobi in a new Star Wars project.This might be the biggest D23 yet. On the heels of Marvel Studios revealing its Phase 4 slate at San Diego Comic-Con, D23 will present panels that focus on Walt Disney Studios, as well as the upcoming Disney+ streaming service. That means we'll not only likely get more details about what's to come from the MCU on the big and small screen, but also looks at Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and the upcoming original series The Mandalorian. On the latter front, we've already gotten a look at the first Mandalorian poster.Then, of course, there are the theme parks. There's a Marvel land in the works at Disney California Adventure, along with an immersive Star Wars hotel in Florida, and a new ride at both Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge lands that will likely be discussed this weekend. So far, we've learned about the Avengers Campus that will be housed at Disneyland.GameSpot will be on the ground at D23, gathering all the information you could possibly need. However, several of the expo panels will also be streaming online this year via D23.com. You can take a look at the biggest panels of the three-day convention below, as well as the ones that will be available to watch online, so you can adequately prepare your weekend. All of the times below are PT.Friday, August 23, 2019Disney Legends Ceremony - 10:30 am (STREAMING)The Music and Sounds of Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge - 12:30 pmDisney+ Showcase - 3:30 pmVader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series - Episode II First Looks - 2 pmMarvel's Agents of SHIELD - 3 pmBehind the Art of Disney Costuming – 4 pm (STREAMING)Saturday, August 24, 2019Behind the Scenes with The Walt Disney Studios - 10 AMThe Simpsons, 10 amWomen of Impact: Meet the Nat Geo Explorers Changing the World – 10 am (STREAMING)Haunted Mansion: Celebrating 50 Years - 12:30 pmImmersive Worlds: Bringing Films to Life in Disney Parks - 3:30 pmMarvel Comics: Marvel’s 80th Anniversary – 5:30 pm (STREAMING)Sunday, August 25, 2019Heroines of the Disney Galaxies presented by BoxLunch – 10 am (STREAMING)Sneak Peek! Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products - 10:30 amInspiring Women Behind Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge - 2 pmThe Art of Disney Storytelling – 3 pm (STREAMING)The Biggest D23 NewsMs. Marvel Coming To Disney+A TV show based on teenage superhero Ms. Marvel, also known as Kamala Khan is in the works. Bisha K. Ali is attached as writer and showrunner. It should be something fresh and different, if only because Kamala is a unique character among Marvel's stable of heroes. She's a Pakistani American Muslim and, as such, has a very different cultural perspective. Interestingly, Kamala will be introduced in the show and then appear in the MCU movies later.Another Game of Thrones Star Is Joining The MCUThe MCU is quickly becoming the go-to destination for Game of Thrones alum. Reports have indicated that Kit Harington will be joining one of Marvel and Disney's MCU projects. Harington played Jon Snow in HBO's massively-successful fantasy series. However, as of yet it isn't clear which project that is. If it's happening in Phase 4, it could be that Harington will be added to the ensemble cast for The Eternals, where he would appear alongside fellow Game of Thrones alum Richard Madden.Monsters Inc. Workplace Comedy Series Coming to Disney+Disney announced that a spin-off Monsters Inc. series called Monsters At Work is coming to Disney+. It'll star Ben Feldman and Aisha Tyler, who appeared on stage so explain that the series is a workplace comedy.Marvel's What If? Introduces Captain Carter, Zombie Steve RogersA brief What If? teaser was shown during Marvel's segment on the D23 panel and it featured a zombified Steve Rogers, Peggy Carter as a super solider called Captain Carter, and Uatu The Watcher, who will serve as the narrator and a kind of guide for the audience.Familiar Faces Join WandaVisionWandaVision takes two of the MCU's most interesting characters and puts them together in one TV show where, we hope, they get to live a somewhat normal life. Of course, it won't be smooth sailing all the way given that they're both superheroes and members of the Avengers. Further still, they'll be visited by a few familiar faces.Loki's Story Isn't OverAre you wondering what happened to Loki after he picked up the Tesseract during Avengers: Endgame? Do you think about whether the god of mischief can make a real friend? Do you want to know if the sun will really shine of Loki again? That's all the questions that the Loki series on Disney+ will answer, among many others.Moon Knight Arrives On Disney+Along with Ms. Marvel, two other new Marvel shows were announced for Disney+. One of them was Moon Knight, a beloved character in the Marvel comics universe, who is now stepping onto the small screen. What will happen to Marc Spector and how much will the Egyptian god Khonshu, who Moon Knight draws his power from, factor into his life? We'll find out.She-Hulk Smashes Onto Disney+Bruce Banner is no longer the only green gamma goliath in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as his cousin, Jennifer Walters--better known as She-Hulk, will be appearing as the star of her very own Disney+ series. Smashing!Star Wars Spy Series Will Reunite Rogue One CharactersIf you're a fan of Cassian Andor and K2SO, two of the central characters from Star Wars: Rogue One, you'll be happy to hear that the duo is returning for a Star Wars spy series that will air on Disney+. Although the series has a title, head of LucasFilm Kathleen Kennedy didn't say what it is. We do know that it will be a prequel and it's filming in London.Finally, A Clone Wars Season 7 Release DateIf you're one of the many Clone Wars fans that have been desperately waiting to see the series continue with Season 7, you'll no doubt be happy to hear that Clone Wars will return on Disney+ in February 2020.Hello there! It's Obi-Wan KenobiEwan McGregor will reprise his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi for a new Star Wars project. Details on exactly what it is weren't provided, so it's unclear whether it's a TV show or movie, or if it's a Disney+ exclusive. All we know is it's happening and LucasFilm has the scripts pretty much ready.Info from Gamespot.com

Microsoft contractors have listened to audio recordings of Xbox users speaking in their homes, a report by Motherboard has revealed. Audio from Xbox One users was sometimes triggered and recorded by mistake when contractors were working to improve the console's voice command functions.The practise began at the beginning of the Xbox One's life cycle but was only meant to capture audio following voice commands like "Xbox" or "Hey Cortana." It's the latest example of contractors working on behalf of Microsoft to listen to audio captured by several of the company's products. An earlier Motherboard report revealed that human contractors were listening to some Skype calls and audio recorded by Microsoft's virtual assistant, Cortana."Xbox commands came up first as a bit of an outlier and then became about half of what we did before becoming most of what we did," one former contractor told Motherboard. "Most of the Xbox related stuff I can recall doing was obviously unintentional activations with people telling Cortana 'No' as they were obviously in the middle of a game and doing normal game chat," a current contractor said. Each contractor signed an NDA so Motherboard has kept them anonymous to protect their identities.The Xbox One launched in 2013 with the capability to be controlled via voice commands using Kinect. At the time, many were concerned with the idea of Kinect listening to Xbox users, but Microsoft released a statement addressing privacy concerns saying that "Kinect for Xbox 360 was designed and built with strong privacy protections in place and the new Kinect will continue this commitment.""The Xbox stuff was actually a bit of a welcome respite, honestly," the former contractor added. "It was frequently the same games. Same DLCs. Same types of commands, 'Xbox give me all the games for free' or 'Xbox download [newest Minecraft skins pack]' or whatever. Occasionally I heard 'Xbox, tell Solas to heal,' or something similar, which would be a command for Dragon Age: Inquisition."The former contractor said that most of the voices they heard were of children, and that listening continued as the Xbox One moved from using Kinect for voice commands over to Cortana in 2016. A current contractor provided Motherboard with a document, describing how workers should work with different types of Cortana audio, including Xbox voice commands."A domain for controlling gaming features, such as finding friends lists, creating a 'party,' inviting players to a party. Most Xbox controlling will belong to this domain," the document reads. A "domain" is a topic that transcribed Cortana audio should be sorted into to improve the system.Microsoft has now owned up to these issues, and the service did gradually improve. "As time went on, we got less apparently accidental stuff as the feature improved," the former contractor said. Microsoft removed Cortana from Xbox One back in July, but the virtual assistant can still be used to control the console via the Cortana Android and iOS apps.A Microsoft spokesperson responded to Motherboard's report, saying that the company recently stopped listening to audio to improve its products. "We stopped reviewing any voice content taken through Xbox for product improvement purposes a number of months ago, as we no longer felt it was necessary, and we have no plans to re-start those reviews," the spokesperson said. "We occasionally review a low volume of voice recordings sent from one Xbox user to another when there are reports that a recording violated our terms of service and we need to investigate. This is done to keep the Xbox community safe and is clearly stated in our Xbox terms of service.""We've recently updated our privacy statement to add greater clarity that people sometimes review this data as part of the product improvement process," the company added. "We always get customer permission before collecting voice data, we take steps to de-identify voice snippets being reviewed to protect people's privacy, and we require that handling of this data be held to the highest privacy standards in the law. At the same time, we're actively working on additional steps we can take to give customers more transparency and more control over how their data is used to improve products."Microsoft offers a dedicated page for users to delete any audio captured by the company's products.Info from Gamespot.com

Riot Games has had a turbulent 12 months. In August of last year, Kotaku published a story alleging that the League of Legends developer has a toxic and sexist workplace environment. This was followed up earlier this year when five lawsuits were filed against the company from employees who state the studio has violated the California Equal Pay Act. Each of the five lawsuits cites in-house sexism influencing hiring practices and creating a "bro culture" within Riot Games. When the company responded by filing a forced arbitration against two of the cases, more than 150 employees staged a walkout in protest.One of the lawsuits--a class action that alleged claims of gender discrimination in pay and promotion, sexual harassment, and retaliation against women working at Riot offices in California--has, in principle, been settled outside of court"We realize that this is a path that many companies in our position may not have chosen," a Riot statement says, "but we felt it was the strongest statement we could make to Rioters, and prospective Rioters, that we're prepared to go over and above in order to move forward. Both sides believe that this proposed settlement, once finalized, is fair for all parties involved. In addition, we're hopeful that the settlement will allow us to continue our momentum (as described here and here) in making Riot a leader in inclusive workplaces."Riot says it has been working to review and address the concerns that were raised in the lawsuits. "We will continue to strive to be a great company and one that cares about its employees and its players," the statements goes on to say. "After extensively reviewing these issues, we can confidently state that gender discrimination (in pay or promotion), sexual harassment, and retaliation are not systemic issues at Riot."But, what we also learned during this process was that some Rioters have had experiences that did not live up to our values or culture. In addition, we've encountered considerable fatigue among Rioters, who have been drained by constant engagement with the internal and external dialogues emerging from these lawsuits and recurring media cycles."Finalizing the settlement is still in its early stages so details are sparse, but Riot has expressed a desire to be transparent with its communication. "We're continuing to work with the class plaintiffs and their counsel to finalize the details. Most importantly, we want to emphasize that any proposed settlement will be subject to the Court's oversight, and the Court will need to review and approve all details of any agreement. We want to be respectful of this process."You can find the full joint press release from the plaintiff's counsel and Riot Games below:Preliminary Settlement Agreement Reached in Lawsuit Filed by Women Against Riot GamesAugust 22, 2019 - LOS ANGELES - All parties have reached an agreement in principle today to resolve the class action case against Riot Games."This is a very strong settlement agreement that provides meaningful and fair value to class members for their experiences at Riot Games," said Ryan Saba of Rosen Saba, LLP, the attorney representing the plaintiffs. "This is a clear indication that Riot is dedicated to making progress in evolving its culture and employment practices. A number of significant changes to the corporate culture have been made, including increased transparency and industry-leading diversity and inclusion programs. The many Riot employees who spoke up, including the plaintiffs, significantly helped to change the culture at Riot."The parties will now move toward seeking court approval of the proposed settlement, and we will provide additional details about its terms when that filing takes place."We are grateful for every Rioter who has come forward with their concerns and believe this resolution is fair for everyone involved," said Nicolo Laurent, CEO of Riot Games. "With this agreement, we are honoring our commitment to find the best and most expeditious way for all Rioters, and Riot, to move forward and heal. Over the past year, we've made substantial progress toward evolving our culture and will continue to pursue this work as we strive to be the most inclusive company in gaming."Info from Gamespot.com

Fez is currently free on the Epic Games Store until August 29. After that, both Celeste and Inside will be available for free until September 5.The two critically revered games should not be missed, especially for the absurdly low price of absolutely nothing. Oscar Dayus reviewed Celeste for GameSpot in January 2018, rewarding the tough-as-nails but incredibly heartfelt platformer a score of 9/10."It's a testament to convincing writing and ingenious design that after playing Celeste I felt like I'd been on the same journey as Madeline," the review concludes. "Her struggle is one made easy to empathize with, her low points painful to watch, and her high notes exhilarating to experience. Her tale is delicately told and beautifully illustrated, confidently coalescing with the satisfying, empowering game it lies within. Not bad for a game about climbing a mountain."There's even free DLC on the way for Celeste, though creator Matt Thorson is reluctant to announce a release date after numerous delays. The new content will feature over 100 new levels that form a continuous chapter, featuring new items and mechanics, and a daunting difficulty that's tougher than the game's current hardest levels.Inside, meanwhile, received an 8/10 from reviewer Alex Newhouse back in 2016. "This is a beautiful, haunting, and memorable game, a worthy follow-up to Limbo," the review says. "Its puzzles, although rarely difficult, are engaging complements to the story. The real achievement of this game, though, is the way that it crafts its narrative: detailed environments convey the bizarre world that you travel through; introspective moments are filled with minimalist sound design and just the barest touches of music; and the things you must do to complete your journey force you to confront the realities of humanity, freedom, and existence. The puzzles might not bring you back to play it again, but the opportunity to learn more about the world alone is enough motivation to return to Inside's dystopia."Playdead's Limbo, the eerie puzzle-platformer from 2010, was recently free on the Epic Games Store, too. If you picked it up and fancy more from the Danish studio, Inside is a fantastic follow-up with one of the best ending sequences in recent memory.Epic recently implemented new changes and improvements to the Epic Games Store. The company also opened a new development studio in Germany led by the former founders of Factor 5, the creators of Star Wars: Rogue Squadron. Info from Gamespot.com