The new big bad in Mortal Kombat is named Kronika, and she's causing a ruckus by messing with time and rewriting history. Characters are getting erased or colliding with their past selves, while alliances are reverting and new ones are being made--it's the kind of chaos that's ripe for conflict. Nothing that happened with Mortal Kombat before really matters anymore; the series is giving itself a clean slate, and not just with the lore in the story. NetherRealm's multifaceted fighting system has been streamlined, and comprehensive tutorials and practice functions are focussed on making sure no matter where you're coming from, you're well-equipped to dive deep into Mortal Kombat 11.It's hard not to get excited about the story mode in a NetherRealm game given the studio's history of crafting involved narratives, and Mortal Kombat 11 unsurprisingly delivers an entertaining and polished blockbuster-style cinematic experience with its tale of Kronika's time-bending antics. Combat is woven in with a number of cutscenes, though you'll probably spend more time watching well-choreographed action rather than participating. But the story is a great primer for some of the series' more popular characters nonetheless, and the joys of Kronika's time manipulation means that even if you're a passing fan and aren't up-to-date with all of the wacky stuff that's happened in the universe lately, you can still get a kick out of seeing classic versions of familiar faces, who are just as baffled as you about what's happened to their future selves since.Watching the character interactions between young and old selves are a highlight, and with the exception of a somewhat flat Sonya Blade, the solid performances are endearingly sincere with some unexpected moments of introspection. By the time it ended I was eager for more--more of Johnny Cage being embarrassed by his younger self, more of the bromance between Liu Kang and Kung Lao, the sappy dynamic between parents and children. But the story mode hits that perfect balance of being just enough and not overstaying its welcome. The plot conceits are regularly ridiculous, especially when family members and lovers get into fatal tiffs, but it's a delightfully bombastic and outlandish visual spectacle if nothing else.Mortal Kombat 11's eclectic roster includes a solid selection of the series' iconic fighters, along with some of the great additions from Mortal Kombat X, like gunslinger Erron Black and the grotesque insectoid D'Vorah. Three brand new characters do their best to help the lineup branch out--Geras is an imposing heavy with the ability to rewind and manipulate time, Cetrion is an elder god with flashy elemental projectiles, the Kollector has a wonderfully unsettling and bamboozling six-armed demonic design--and they all add an inspired diversity to the familiar roster of magical ninjas and military hard-asses. Character variations also help to keep things diverse. A returning concept from Mortal Kombat X, each character can select between different sets of special moves that alter their playstyle. You can now customize these loadouts in MK11, but only two predetermined movesets are acceptable for serious competitive play. Even so, it means there are a few things to consider when picking which fighter to use.Some key changes streamline the mechanics of MK11, resulting in a fighting system that feels more active and aggressive than its predecessors. The special meter system has been simplified, allowing for amplified maneuvers to be used at almost any time--gone is the idea of needing to hold back and save up two or three bars of a meter to perform a particular kind of technique. Separate meters for offensive and defensive techniques, along with rapid recharge rates, mean they can be used more liberally, too. "Fatal Blows" replace MKX's X-Ray techniques, serving as a last-ditch comeback mechanic that can be activated once per match when your health is nearly depleted, adding a heightened tension when things get down to the wire. Significant block damage discourages you from being overly defensive, while learning the perfect-timing demands of the "flawless block" system is encouraged to mitigate some damage and open up turnabout opportunities. Running and stamina meters have been removed and dash distances feel shorter, honing MK11's focus on always being within striking distance of your opponent. All of these tweaks mean there is rarely a low moment in a Mortal Kombat 11 fight.If you're new to the series, learning all those intricacies of the fighting system, special moves, and combo strings for characters can be intimidating. Fortunately, Mortal Kombat 11 does a lot to help onboard you to almost all of its concepts. Following the good work seen in Injustice 2, Mortal Kombat 11 features a comprehensive series of fantastic practical tutorials, with everything from teaching you basic attacks to more advanced lessons on managing the ebb and flow of a match, strategies on how to change or maintain the dynamic of a fight (like dealing with corners or projectile spam), and how to approach building your own combos. What's more, there are also a series of tutorials that succinctly break down expert-level concepts, such as one that shows you what frame data is and how it works in clear, visual terms. Not only that, there are lessons on how to interpret that information and use it in a practical scenario--it'll teach you what makes a move "safe" or "unsafe," how to create pressure in a fight, and even how to perform frame traps. It's an impressive resource that doesn't just give you a better understanding of Mortal Kombat 11's systems, but a deeper understanding of fighting game mechanics in general--knowledge that you can take to any other title.Character-specific tutorials exist, too, and are more than just a simple rundown of all available techniques. These helpful lessons focus on the most useful and practical abilities and combos for a particular character and give you suggestions on when to use them, the pros and cons of doing so, and what you could follow up with. Furthermore, the in-game move lists are incredibly comprehensive, providing all sorts of helpful data for each move's properties, so you can easily discern something like which of your character's moves has the quickest startup. It's valuable information and knowledge that NetherRealm has been building upon in its last few games and is presented at its best in MK11. Of course, if you're the kind of player that couldn't care less about the advanced stuff and just wants to jump in and see blood spilled, Mortal Kombat 11 can certainly be just as entertaining. Predetermined combo strings, flashy special moves, and humorously over-the-top barbarity means that the game is a joy to watch and participate in, whether the players are just messing around or taking it seriously.In addition to the game's story mode, MK11 sees the return of Klassic Towers, a more straightforward single-player mode where you fight a series of opponents before eventually facing big boss Kronika. But the real meat of the single-player offering is the Towers Of Time, MK11's version of the limited-time ladders seen in other NetherRealm games, which feature unique modifiers that can affect the playing field, combatants, and mechanics.When our review-in-progress was first published, the balance of difficulty seen in the Towers Of Time was in such a state that the odds were always stacked against you--negative environmental modifiers only affected you and not your opponent, AI difficulty was relentlessly high, opponents were more robust, and as a result the challenges often felt horribly cruel and unbalanced. The mode's focus on using "Konsumables," a variety of limited-use items that you can equip and activate during the fight, did little to even the playing field, and their method of attainment was too dependent on luck to even make them a reliable strategy in the first place. In fact, the drip-feed of rewards you received from completing towers were overall too meager (and random) at the game's release to justify the amount of effort they demanded.One week later, NetherRealm released a major patch (1.03) that acknowledged and adjusted a large number of variables related to the Towers of Time, reducing (and in some cases, eliminating) a number of unbalanced modifiers, normalizing the resilience and difficulty of AI opponents, and increasing the amount of rewards for completing activities across the board. That's fortunate, because the modifiers in the Towers of Time add genuinely interesting dynamics to MK11's already enjoyable fighting flow. One tower might pit you against a series of fighters who can poison you if they get a string of hits in, another might place a totem in the middle of the stages that electrocute whoever is standing closest. Other towers might team you up with two or three other online players to take down a particularly hardy "boss" fighter, letting you tag each other in, or perhaps assist the active fighter with Konsumables.These kinds of challenges are a welcome exercise that push you to consider different ways to approach a MK11 fight, forcing you to, say, become extra defensive or keep a closer eye on your positioning. The variety of Konsumables--which have abilities that range from letting you call in another character to perform an assist attack, rain missiles down from the sky, or simply replenish your health--can give you extra tools to help keep a handle on the situation. But, in my experience after the 1.03 patch, using Konsumables isn't strictly necessary, so long as you're playing diligently.As they stand at the time of writing, the Towers of Time succeed in providing an endless, compelling palette of single-player content to tackle once you've completed the story mode. The difficulty curve and number of challenges you need to tackle are reasonable enough that achieving the prizes at the end of a tower, and the end of a whole island of towers, always feels within reach. What was previously a frustrating experience at launch is a compulsive one a week later. Even the demanding boss fight-style challenges only ask you to endure one round before showering you with the payouts on offer. They're enticing pools of goods, too--the aforementioned Konsumables, character cosmetics, and large denominations of the various currencies needed to open chests in the Krypt, MK11's third-person quasi-puzzle-adventure mode designed for unlocking even more collectibles.The Krypt in Mortal Kombat 11 is a completely reimagined recreation of Shang Tsung's island, the location of the very first Mortal Kombat game from 1992. Exploring the location, which involves finding items to open up paths to new areas, is an exciting experience in itself--there's a basic joy in simply taking in the visual splendor of certain locations, especially if you retain any memories of Mortal Kombat's stages (although it should be noted that the Nintendo Switch version is noticeably less visually splendorous). A mess of treasure chests litter the island, requiring one of three different currencies to open them, but the catch is that aside from chests that require "Hearts," the rewards you get seem to be completely randomized. Regardless of their asking price, chests have the capacity to furnish you with something exciting, like new costumes or brutality finishers for a specific character, or something as basic as a piece of concept art. It can be a bummer to come away from a Krypt session with nothing of value for your favourite fighter, but it's at least heartening to know that the game doesn't have any avenues to let you spend real-world money to open more chests, and that your pool of currencies will continue to grow at a steady, reasonable rate by simply playing the game.Now, it's pertinent to mention that Mortal Kombat 11 relies on a persistent online connection to keep track of progression in every single mode. Naturally, being offline means that you can't access the game's rotating Towers of Time, but it also means you won't get rewarded for playing the story mode or tutorials until you reconnect. In most cases, given the ever-connected nature of PCs, PS4s, and Xbox Ones, this aspect should rarely present any major issues, but it certainly can. There was one instance where game servers went down on all platforms, and I lost my progress on a Tower of Time. Losing progress can also be an issue if, for example, you duck out to your console's dashboard to share a video clip of a close victory, which will suspend your game and disconnect you from its servers. The always-online nature of the game can pose a much larger concern on Nintendo Switch, however, especially if you're looking to play the game in handheld mode away from a wireless connection. Even if you're content to simply hang out in practice mode or play a standard tower on the train, you'll be hounded by network error messages every step of the way.There are a range of online multiplayer modes, of course, including ranked and casual matchmaking, a king-of-the-hill mode, and forthcoming ranked seasons, as well as private options like lobbies and the ability to use practice mode with a friend. MK11 also features tools that help you have some control over your experience--in casual matches, you have the ability to see your opponent's win/loss ratio, your estimated chance of success, and information about each player's internet connection--and the game thankfully allows you to decline a match if you think you're going to have a bad time. I encountered no major issues with online play during the game's first week, and found matchups to be fairly even in most cases, meaning fights were often heart-poundingly close. The robust online options make it a worthwhile avenue to pick a fight without the modifiers of the Towers Of Time.MK11 isn't just a sequel for series fans and NetherRealm devotees, it's a gateway into the realm of fighting games for anyone who has a passing interest in watching ruthless warriors beat each other silly. Streamlined mechanics keep the act of fighting furiously exciting no matter what your skill level, and comprehensive tutorials encourage you to dig into the nitty-gritty. There's a diverse roster of interesting characters and playstyles, and the story mode is an entertaining romp. The randomization of Krypt rewards and the odd issue with the game's always-online nature can occasionally chip away at your patience, but Mortal Kombat 11 absolutely hits where it matters. Info from Gamespot.com

The Call of Duty franchise continues to soar. Activision announced today that the shooter series has now cleared 300 million copies sold since it debuted back in 2003. For comparison, the Pokemon franchise passed 300 million copies sold after the release of Ultra Sun and Moon back in 2017. Meanwhile, the Sonic the Hedgehog series reached 350 million copies a few years ago. Exact numbers for other franchises are tougher to track down.The Call of Duty series premiered in 2003 with Infinity Ward's World War II shooter Call of Duty. No mainline Call of Duty game was released in 2004, but a new entry has launched every year since, with development shifting around between Activision-owned studios like Infinity Ward, Treyarch, and Sledgehammer Games, with support from other owned studios like Raven Software and High Moon, among others. Activision has not provided a breakdown of sales by individual title or brand, but the Black Ops and Modern Warfare brands are believed to be the most successful. The next Call of Duty game is launching later this year, and it's rumoured to be Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 from Infinity Ward, which created the brand. The game will be announced in the coming months. On top of that, a new Call of Duty mobile game from Tencent is coming.Info from Gamespot.com

Every kid who loved Pokémon growing up (and every adult who loves it still) has dreamed about what life would be like if Pokémon were real. The Detective Pikachu movie's greatest strength is in showing that possibility--albeit not always in the ways you might personally have imagined it.Detective Pikachu transports viewers to Ryme City, a bustling NYC-like metropolis teeming with human and Pokémon life. The setting comes with an odd conceit: The city was founded by Howard Clifford (Bill Nighy), a successful CEO who envisioned a utopia in which Pokémon and people live in harmony, with no Poké Balls, battles, gym leaders, or any of the other series mainstays fans might hope to see.Tim Goodman's (Justice Smith) detective father Harry has been distant most of his life (yes, much like that of the protagonists of every Pokémon game). When he's killed in a car crash, Tim heads to Ryme City to get his father's affairs in order. There, he meets Harry's former Pokémon partner, an amnesiac Pikachu in a detective cap with whom Tim can somehow, miraculously, talk (and who is voiced, hilariously, by Ryan Reynolds). Nobody else understands the Pikachu, and Tim can't talk to any other Pokémon, the rest of which mostly grunt, squeak, or recite their own names like we've come to expect. Together, Tim and Pikachu unravel the mystery of what happened to Detective Harry Goodman.As a longtime Pokémon fan, I think the very specific quirks central to Ryme City as a setting are an unnecessary wrinkle. The goal seems to be to have a setting where every shot can be filled with Pokémon. But they could have simply done all that without the need for an info-dump explaining how Ryme City is special; previous Pokémon games, anime, and movies are filled with examples of the little pocket monsters hanging around outside their Poké Balls in everyday life.Read Next: How The Detective Pikachu Movie Makes Pokemon Work In Real LifeRegardless of how they choose to frame it, Ryme City is a place in which any Pokémon fan would be thrilled to live. Sleeping Snorlaxes block broad avenues filled with cars, while Machamps direct traffic with their quadruple arms. Aipoms hang from street signs, and Golurks stand sentinel outside the doors of police stations, where officers and detectives come and go with their sidekick Growlithes and Snubbuls. Through the course of Tim and Pikachu's investigation, they encounter dozens of different types of Pokémon: Greninjas attack them with aquatic throwing stars, Charizards bear down on them breathing fire, Ludicolos serve them drinks, Mr. Mimes need interrogating (probably the movie's best scene)--and these Pokémon all look and act true to the source material, cute or disgusting or terrifying as needed. Seeing these Pokémon in this live-action setting probably shouldn't work, but it somehow does. Along the way, Tim and Pikachu also meet Lucy Stevens (Kathryn Newton), a young reporter (read: unpaid blogging intern) with a hapless Psyduck at her side. If you never watched the original Pokémon anime, you might be unaware that this unassuming yellow duckling is a bomb waiting to go off--if Psyduck gets too stressed out, he might unleash a wave of destructive psychic energy, as Reynolds-voiced Pikachu constantly reminds his friends. It's a good example of the ways Detective Pikachu pulls in elements from throughout Pokémon history, while also adding to the Pokémon mythology.The mystery unfolds in unexpected directions. It takes a meandering route to get to its climax, including one particularly expensive-looking, CG-heavy, completely pointless detour that would have fit better in a disaster movie than one about a reluctant detective and his cute, furry sidekick trying to find his father. The movie's pacing sometimes feels a little off, and every time it goes down a narrative cul-de-sac like that, you'll wish that it instead was spending time somewhere else, exploring another corner of Ryme City and introducing an even wider variety of Pokémon.Smith makes a sympathetic and believable reluctant hero, as Goodman's distance from his father plays into how the story takes shape. Reynolds was a great choice for Pikachu, although you may at times struggle to hear a yellow mouse and not a certain red-spandex-clad superhero when he talks. You're The Worst's Chris Geere is extremely good at playing a douchebag CEO's sociopathic son, while Ken Watanabe is somewhat wasted as a police lieutenant we only meet a couple of times. And there are still more characters whose true identities and purposes will surprise you. I give this movie a lot of credit for expanding beyond the original 151 Pokémon to include monsters from throughout the game generations. With the recent introduction of Meltan and Melmetal in Pokémon Go, there are 809 Pokémon total, and that's not even including the new ones revealed for the upcoming Pokémon Sword and Shield. This movie relies on a general knowledge of Pokémon--even if it's just nostalgia for the original Red, Blue, and Yellow games--to be enjoyed, and it could have easily played it safe by sticking to the originals. Ryme City feels much more expansive as a result of this great choice.Detective Pikachu even comes up with new capabilities for some of the most well-known and beloved Pokémon--although the one most crucial to the plot is likely to leave you scratching your head, as it's hard to see exactly how it works. If you've played the Detective Pikachu game, you may know what I'm referring to, as the movie does take several plot elements from the 2018 3DS title.Detective Pikachu should prove enjoyable for any and all Pokémon fans, young or old. It presents fun answers to the fantasy of what life would be like if Pokémon were real. It introduces new wrinkles to the world of Pokémon, although not all of them completely work. Still, as the first official live-action trip to the world of Pokémon, Detective Pikachu presents characters I want to see again and a setting I'd like to return to.The GoodThe BadLive-action Pokémon look great and act truePacing sometimes feels off, with unfortunate story detoursLikable characters, from protagonists to villainsAdds some new wrinkles to Pokémon that don't completely workExpands beyond the original 151 Pokémon An inventive portrayal of a city where humans and Pokémon coexist Some unexpected twists in the story Info from Gamespot.com

Disney's next live-action revival movie, Aladdin, opens this Memorial Day weekend in the United States, and it's expected to make a lot of money over its opening weekend. Early box office tracking numbers suggest the film will make $80 million or more over the long weekend.The estimates, which were obtained by The Hollywood Reporter, further state that Aladdin's opening-weekend US/Canada haul could actually be closer to $100 million as Disney ramps up its marketing efforts. For comparison, Disney's latest revival film, Dumbo, opened to a disappointing $45.9 million in the US and Canada back in March. Aladdin is of course a bigger, more widely known name than Dumbo, so it is expected to do better. Disney's next new live-action remake, The Lion King, opens in July and surely it is eyeing a bigger opening-weekend box office haul.Aladdin, which is based on Disney's 1992 animated classic, stars Mena Massoud as Aladdin. He discovers a magical lamp, which conjures a singing, dancing, wise-cracking genie (Will Smith). The genie grants him three wishes, with which he sets about wooing Princess Jasmine (Naomi Scott) and avoiding the evil Jafar (Marwan Kenzari). Sherlock Holmes director Guy Ritchie is directing the new Aladdin.Aladdin opens in the US on May 24. It doesn't have a huge amount of competition, but also out that day is Brightburn, the superhero horror movie produced by James Gunn. Info from Gamespot.com

Cloud gaming is poised to potentially be the Next Big Thing for gaming, and one of the companies that stands to benefit the most is Activision Blizzard, according to CEO Robert Kotick. In an earnings call, Kotick said new platforms like Google Stadia are good for gaming to help grow the market, but these platforms can't succeed without content.Activision Blizzard owns and controls decades worth of content, and that positions the company uniquely, Kotick said. "When you own 30 years of IP like we do, there's probably never been a better time to be in the games business," Kotick said. "When these big, well-funded companies are building out platforms where they have limited amounts of content to actually serve up to customers, I'd say there's a great opportunity for a company like ours.""For starters, they will all try to broaden the audience for gaming and make big investments and commitments to doing so and that's just helpful for growing the market," Kotick added. "But in each case, none of these platforms can succeed without great content. Truthfully, they really don't know how to make it. So when you think about what will be required, it will be support from us [and other game publishers] to allow them to actually build an audience. We have a better audience than most to capitalise on all these new platforms."Google Stadia's announcement in March was light on content partners, leading some to shrug the service off. Stadia boss Phil Harrison teased that more details will be announced in June, so it could be soon that we learn more about who Google is partnering with. Stadia has also created an internal game development team, Stadia Games led by industry veteran Jade Raymond, that will create games for Stadia.Microsoft is working on its own game-streaming service, xCloud, and it's not a stretch to imagine that the company will tap into its long list of owned studios to make new content for the platform. Sony, too, has its PlayStation Now streaming service that will likely continue to leverage first-party studios in an addition to third-parties to build out its content catalog as Xbox is expected to do.Outside of those companies that are directly tied to game development, Amazon, Verizon, and Wal-Mart are among the non-gaming companies that are confirmed or rumoured to be building cloud gaming platforms. Those companies will need game content to build out their services.Going back to Kotick, he said distribution models are always evolving and changing for games, and he expects this to continue with cloud gaming. In the next 5-10 years, Kotick said there will be "more ways and places to engage players [and] that serves us better than almost any other company." Kotick added that, beyond partnering with the new cloud gaming services, Activision has a unique opportunity to connect directly with its massive network of 345 million monthly active players across its catalog of games.Kotick is not the first gaming executive to discuss the issue of cloud gaming companies and a potential struggle to get compelling content. Xbox boss Mike Nichols said about Stadia, "They don't have the content."What do you think about cloud gaming? Let us know in the comments below! You can also read GameSpot's cloud gaming primer to find out everything you need to know.Info from Gamespot.com

This review contains minor spoilers about mission structure and overall story direction. There are no spoilers for major narrative moments.Around 10 hours into Days Gone, you're thrown into a hunting tutorial apropos of nothing. The over-the-top libertarian character takes you out with a rifle and shows you how to track a deer, although you've already had a tracking tutorial. You're then tasked with getting more meat for you and your buddy because your supply is running low, something you never have to do again. You also don't cook or eat; you can only donate meat to camps around the map to earn a negligible amount of trust and money with them. After a little while, even stopping to get meat off wolves that attacked you doesn't seem worth it.Like many things in Days Gone, hunting exists just to be there, an idea that is picked up and then abandoned at random. Unlike hunting, some of those ideas are even good in the moment. But most aspects of Days Gone lack purpose. Its many narrative threads flirt with being meaningful and interesting but never quite commit, with characters whose actions and motivations don't make sense. Riding a souped-up motorcycle through the world and taking out zombie nests and hordes is satisfying in the way that completing open-world checklists often is, but by the end, you're left to wonder what the point of it all was.The first act of the game--about 20 hours or so--sets up quite a few narrative arcs. Two years after the initial "Freaker" outbreak, biker buddies Deacon St. John and Boozer have become drifters doing odd jobs for nearby survivor camps and keeping mostly to themselves. Deacon's wife, Sarah, had been stabbed at the very beginning of the outbreak; Deacon put her on a government helicopter bound for a refugee camp so she could get medical attention, but when he and Boozer arrived, the camp has been overrun by Freaks, and Sarah had apparently died. Deacon is understandably not coping with it well. Boozer suggests riding north and leaving the memories behind, but Deacon's bike breaks down and is subsequently looted for parts, so one of your main goals is to earn trust and credits at the nearby camps in order to rebuild your motorcycle.The motorcycle is central to everything you do in Days Gone. Getting anywhere, including by fast travel, requires your bike, and if you want to save while out in the world, you better be right next to it. Getting off your bike is a matter of both your entrance and your exit; you need to stop far enough away from enemies so they don't hear you coming, but you also need to be able to run to your bike quickly if things go south and you need to escape. And, as you're sneaking past Freakers to loot things like bandages and ammo, you also need to be on the lookout for a gas can and some scrap metal to keep your bike in top shape--if it breaks down or runs out of gas, you're basically screwed. That said, gas and other loot do regenerate if you leave and return to a location, so you'll never truly run out of anything so long as you put in the time to look for it.At the beginning, you do jobs for two camps: Copeland's conspiracy theorist stronghold and Tucker's hellish forced-labor camp. Copeland's has a mechanic capable of upgrading your bike, while Tucker's has a well-stocked weapons merchant. Your starter junk bike gets about a mile per gallon, and you can't store a gas can on your bike or your person, so you either have to return to a camp to fuel up or constantly scrounge for gas cans out in Freaker territory. This makes wandering around and doing things in the open world frustrating at first, so you do a lot of throwaway missions for the two camps to start.Many of these early missions consist of cookie-cutter bounty-hunting and rescue jobs in which you go to a place, track a person using your apparently psychic Survival Vision to highlight footprints and other clues, and then kill some bandits or Freakers. Some of these require you to take the target alive, which often means chasing them on your bike and shooting at their tires with your pistol. If you happen to run out of gas or ammo, or if your bike is already weak and breaks down after a couple of bumpy turns, you auto-fail these missions and have to start over. You also accelerate with R2 and shoot with R1, which, while not horrible, is clunky and awkward.One early scene involving a drug thief kicks off a series of missions like these that, once completed, has no bearing on the rest of the game despite initial appearances; once you track down the stolen drugs you have to choose which camp to return them to, but there are no consequences either way, and then the situation is dropped entirely. The only result is getting some trust and credits with one of the camps--I chose Copeland simply because I wanted money for a better fuel tank. A lot of the story missions going forward, as you discover a third, more narratively relevant camp, follow the same structures as these earlier missions. But the focus on Tucker and Copeland specifically amounts to hours of nothing in the grand scheme of the story. Tucker's forced labor doesn't come back to bite anyone, and while Tucker and Copeland don't seem to like each other, doing work for one camp doesn't affect your relationship with the other. Once you get to the third camp, Lost Lake, Tucker and Copeland cease to matter at all, not least because Lost Lake has both a better mechanic and better weapons.Once you upgrade your bike a bit, though, the world opens up. No longer bound by low gas mileage and a weak arsenal, you can head further out and more handily take on enemy-controlled areas around the map. You clear ambush camps by killing everyone present and eliminate Freaker infestation zones by burning all their nests. In addition to trust and credits, clearing an ambush camp nets you resources to loot, a map of the area, and a new fast travel point; destroying an infestation zone allows you to fast travel in the area. Unlocking the map and neutralizing threats is satisfying in the way that cleaning up clutter bit by bit is, and you can see your work pay off in your bike's upgrades. However, there's little variety between each ambush camp and infestation zone, and they get repetitive early--especially because Deacon dry-heaves and whines about the nests smelling horrible at each one.The real motivation to do all of this is twofold. Early on in the game, Deacon's best friend Boozer is attacked by a group of Rippers, a doomsday cult with a number of bizarre rituals. The Rippers singe a tattoo off Boozer's arm and leave him with third-degree burns, so Deacon's purpose in life is to keep Boozer alive and healthy. This mostly involves finding sterile bandages and the one mission where you gather meat for him. On top of that, though, Deacon sees a helicopter belonging to the government agency NERO, which had been involved in the initial relief effort, flying overhead. That gives Deacon a bit of hope that Sarah might still be alive, since he'd put her on a NERO helicopter after she was stabbed, so you start stalking the NERO soldiers and scientists to investigate further.There are a number of flashbacks to Deacon's relationship with Sarah before the outbreak, bolstered by his hope that she's alive. They're largely awkward cutscenes interspersed with short sections of walking slowly while Sarah and Deacon talk about surface-level topics, and they don't ever provide a convincing reason why they're together. Deacon is a biker and Sarah is a "nice girl" scientist, which is fine, but "opposites attract" isn't enough to make their relationship compelling. It's romantic in that Deacon hasn't given up on Sarah, but the main takeaway from the flashbacks is that they're physically attracted to each other and that Deacon doesn't talk about his feelings.The NERO arc is where things really pick up. Spying on the NERO scientists consists of insta-fail stealth missions. They can be frustrating before you unlock abilities to improve your stealth skills, but the conversations you overhear are legitimately interesting and answer questions that other zombie fiction often neglects. For example, you learn from one eavesdropping on a scientist studying Freaker scat that they eat more than just other people and each other--they also eat plants, and that means they're not going to starve any time soon (like in 28 Days Later). Deacon quickly gets in contact with a NERO researcher who uses government resources to track down what might have happened to Sarah. Even though their relationship is confusing, it is a tempting mystery.Abandoned Nero medical units and research sites contain more small details, including recorders that play snippets of scenes--a scientist studying a Freaker specimen, the moment a camp got overrun, or just banter between soldiers. Getting inside a unit is a matter of refueling the generator, making sure to find and disable every speaker nearby so the noise doesn't attract Freakers. Finding each speaker can be a bit tricky at certain sites, which makes the moment you turn the power on more exciting and the realization that you're in the clear more of a relief. And in addition to satisfying your curiosity, you're also given the more tangible reward of an injector that improves your health, stamina, and bullet-time-like focus ability.As you learn more about NERO and the Freakers, you're introduced to new, more powerful types of Freaks, including a berserker and an all-female variant that screams to attract more Freaks your way. They don't really provide new challenges so much as slow you down, and they feel like a stopgap measure to tide you over until the first horde-based mission around 40 hours into the game. That first horde mission is exhilarating--running around while using tight spaces and molotovs to keep the horde off you, eventually taking out hundreds of Freakers, is a well-earned victory. But that mission is followed very quickly by another one, and after a short break, you have two more nearly back-to-back horde missions that lead up to the end of the main story. Without any breathing room, the hordes are exhausting to deal with, and you'll likely have to stop everything to loot and rebuild your stockpile of resources after each one just so you can progress.Ultimately, though, Days Gone isn't about NERO or Sarah or the Freakers. It's about Deacon, and what he wants is what matters. Narrative threads are dropped as soon as Deacon no longer has a use for them. Copeland and Tucker only matter until Deacon gets to a camp that has better supplies. Boozer's health is only important because it's Deacon's reason for living. Even the fascinating little details about the Freakers are useless to Deacon, who only cares about Sarah--but not what Sarah wants or needs, just that his "ol' lady" might be alive somewhere. Every character is seen through this Deacon-focused lens, and as a result, they're two-dimensional.Deacon is selfish, and it's simply boring that the game is uncritical of him.Deacon does not learn anything over the course of the game, and the story is concerned with validating his actions and feelings above all else. When one character urges him not to kill anyone in cold blood, Deacon "proves" that murder is better than mercy. As Boozer nearly breaks through to Deacon about learning to let go, Deacon learns something new about NERO and clings to his hope even harder. Deacon also has a policy where he doesn't kill unarmed women, which does not affect the story in any way and goes completely unexamined. There's no introspection here; Deacon is selfish, and it's simply boring that the game is uncritical of him.I did a lot of things in Days Gone. I burned every single Freaker nest; I cleared every ambush camp; I maxed out my bike; I took out a few optional hordes just because. Like Deacon with Sarah, I kept going because I hoped to find something, to follow a thread to a possibly fascinating or satisfying or impactful conclusion. But at the end of it all, I'd only gotten scraps.Info from Gamespot.com

Game of Thrones fans figured that a lot of characters to die during the massive battle at Winterfell in Episode 3, "The Long Night." In terms of body count, the episode lived up to those expectations. All told, seven minor-to-main characters were killed, if you including the Night King--to say nothing of the entire Dothraki horde, seemingly down to the last man, and by the looks of it, most of the Unsullied too. On paper, it sounds glorious.So why were so many fans--myself included--disappointed once the credits began rolling? Despite being viewed by a record-breaking 17.8 million people, "The Long Night" has emerged as Game of Thrones' second-lowest-rated episode ever on Rotten Tomatoes, next to only the Season 5 episode in which Sansa got raped. Plenty of people thought the episode was great--trust me, I've heard from them on Twitter since writing my review--but many fans also agree that the episode was oversimplified, underwhelming, and just plain disappointing.Technically speaking, this episode was full of good deaths. So why did it leave me feeling so cold? As I watched characters like Dolorous Edd, Theon Greyjoy, Beric Dondarrion, Jorah Mormont, and even little Lady Lyanna die gruesomely on the battlefield, I felt nothing but a growing dread that this most crucial of episodes was shaping up to be a major letdown. And I think I know at least one reason why.Many fans have felt mildly traumatized by Game of Thrones' most shocking deaths over the years, whether we read them on the page or watched them unfold onscreen first. Nevertheless, I was prepared for more as the final battle at Winterfell approached. I wanted to feel that feeling again--the electrifying despair of Ned's execution, Robb's murder at the Red Wedding, or even Jon's more recent (and very temporary) trip to the afterlife. There's a specific reason those deaths were so effective: These characters had a lot left to do.They didn't die like storybook heroes; they died like real people in real life, with work undone, promises unfulfilled, and regrets weighing heavy on their souls. Ned never told Jon the truth about his parentage, left his daughters to be devoured by lions in King's Landing, and never even said goodbye to his wife. Robb won the battles but lost the war, and all because of his foolish devotion to lofty ideals like love and honor. He led his loyal subjects to an all-encompassing slaughter, and left the surviving Starks--his brothers and sisters--more vulnerable than ever. All his plans for revenge and strategies to take the Lannisters down died with him. And Jon died without even a hint of the knowledge of who he really was, with the Night's Watch in ruins and his most important battles unfinished.Even many of the series' villains got similarly ill-timed ends. Tywin's scheming may never have stopped if Tyrion hadn't sent a quarrel through his gut, and the subsequent battles would have turned out much differently. When Khal Drogo gave Viserion his crown of molten gold back in Season 1, he cut short the would-be Targaryen king's entire life work--conquering Westeros and regaining the Iron Throne for his family. Viserion believed he was the Last Dragon, which made his death somewhat tragic--even if it was also well deserved. These deaths hit fans hard because they rang true. In real life, very few people get the privilege of fulfilling their "character arcs" before they die. Unlike in stories, there's never a good time to go. This is one of the many ways Game of Thrones has always adhered to a relative sense of realism, and it's one of the things that has made the series so beloved and addictive. These deaths weren't devastating gut punches simply because they were unexpected or shocking--it was because their victims left so many plot threads hanging, so much undone and unsaid.This is one of the many failures of "The Long Night." Look at most of the major deaths: Jorah, Theon, Beric, and Edd all had no possible role to play going forward. Yara has secured the Iron Islands and has no need for Theon, Jorah returned to his queen and died protecting her, Beric fulfilled his purpose of protecting Arya, and Edd doesn't need to uphold the Night's Watch anymore, because there is no Night's Watch after this. They all died with their character arcs complete, their farewells given, their failings redeemed or forgiven, and their plot threads tied up into neat little narrative bows.Certainly Lyanna Mormont, who Jorah recently reminded us was "the future of their House," is an exception. But she was by any definition a minor character in the grand scheme of things, and the dooming of House Mormont is nothing compared with the tragedy for which fans had prepared in this episode. There are many more characters whose deaths would have been more shocking, emotional, and impactful, precisely because they would have left acts undone, things unsaid, and destinies unfulfilled: Daenerys or Jon, Bran, Arya, or Sansa, Tyrion or Jaime, Sandor, Varys, Sam, or even Gendry. Obviously, I want as badly as any Game of Thrones fan to see the Hound light his brother the Mountain's stupid, giant head on fire, for Sansa to rule the North with Tyrion at her side, for Jaime to turn on Cersei and end her reign of terror once and for all, for Gendry to be legitimized and revive House Baratheon from the ashes, for Sam to write the Song of Ice and Fire, and a million other things. You know what else I wanted? For Ned Stark to expose Cersei's lies, for Catelyn to hug her children again, for Robb to conquer the South, for Stannis to retake Winterfell from the treacherous Boltons, for Kahl Drogo to lead the Dothraki across the Narrow Sea with Daenerys at his side and conquer the Seven Kingdoms in her name--you get my point.The shocks of those threads being left hanging in the wind made Game of Thrones a better story, and knowing there were real stakes in the show's biggest battle ever would have too. This was literally the fight between life and death, the heroes' last stand against a seemingly unstoppable force of nature itself. And the main characters all had so much plot armor that Sam was able to spend large swathes of the battle simply lying on the ground sobbing with a mob of hungry zombies piled on top of him, and come out fine on the other side.It may make for a happier ending when the final three episodes have aired and all is said and done, but this is not the Game of Thrones I used to love. Image: HBO/Helen SloanInfo from Gamespot.com

Note: This post contains a bunch of spoilers for the third episode of Game of Thrones Season 8, The Long Night. We suggest you watch the episode first before reading further.The Red Woman Melisandre has been wandering Westeros for most of the run of Game of Thrones, trying to prepare people for the Great War--the final battle between the living and the dead. When the Night's Watch was trying to convince the lords of Westeros to send help to the Wall, Melisandre was one of the only people who believed in the threat immediately. She was the one who convinced Stannis Baratheon to help the Night's Watch defeat the Wildlings, to protect the realms of men from the army of the dead.When the army of the dead finally reached Winterfell in Episode 3 of Game of Thrones Season 8, The Long Night, Melisandre had already had a big influence on everything that happened leading to that point. She resurrected Jon Snow after he was betrayed by his Night's Watch brothers; she led Stannis to his doom fighting the Boltons at Winterfell, which led Davos to join up with Jon; and she suggested Daenerys meet with Jon and hear what he had to say about the threat of the Night King. And when Melisandre ran into Arya Stark during the battle, she had an influence on her, as well--one that recalled their earlier meeting, way back in Season 3.If you don't remember the interaction between Arya and the Red Woman, it's because it was pretty fleeting. It happened back in Season 3, when Arya, Gendry, and Hot Pie were nabbed by the Brotherhood Without Banners. Gendry had decided to stay with the Brotherhood and smith for them, but that changed when Melisandre caught caught up with them.In exchange for the money they needed to feed and arm themselves, the Brotherhood--led by the moral outlaw Beric Dondarrion--sold Gendry to the Red Woman. She intended to use his king's blood--Gendry is King Robert Baratheon's bastard--for her spells to help Stannis defeat his enemies and take the Iron Throne.Arya confronted Melisandre briefly as she and Stannis's men were carting Gendry away."You're a witch," Arya said. "You're going to hurt him."Melisandre, for her part, was arrested by seeing Arya and immediately did her magic vision schtick."I see a darkness in you," Melisandre replied. "And in that darkness, eyes staring back at me. Brown eyes, blue eyes, green eyes. Eyes you'll shut forever. We will meet again."It wasn't clear what Melisandre was foreseeing during the interaction, other than the fact that Arya was going to go on to become a frighteningly effective killer. "Brown eyes, blue eyes, green eyes" seemed to refer to the many victims she's racked up over the years. But then Arya found Melisandre at Winterfell, and both instantly recalled their last meeting and how Melisandre said they would meet again."You said I'd shut many eyes forever," Ayra said in their final meeting. "You were right about that too.""Brown eyes, green eyes--and blue eyes," Melisandre answered. The two locked eyes as Arya realized what Melisandre meant in that moment: She was referring to the blue eyes of the White Walkers, and it was that revelation that sent Arya to the godswood.While it seems like Melisandre's prophecy for Arya was realized once she took down the Night King, we know Arya still has scores to settle--her kill list still includes Cersei Lannister and the Mountain. There's a theory that speculates that the rest of Melisandre's prophecy refers to the Lannister queen, who has green eyes (they're even called "emerald green" in the A Song of Ice and Fire novels on which Game of Thrones is based). Now that the focus of the show is returning to the war for the Iron Throne with the final three episodes of the series, Arya might finally get her chance to cross those final names off her list.We've got even more Game of Thrones coverage in Season 8. Check out our review of Season 8 Episode 3, a rundown of who has died this season, a list of the Easter eggs and references you might have missed in The Long Night, and some theories for the rest of Season 8. We can also catch you up on what happened to Jon Snow's dragon, Rhaegal, and his direwolf, Ghost--who both made it out of Episode 3. Finally, we explain why it's really dumb to say Arya Stark is a Mary Sue. Info from Gamespot.com

Yet another video game is getting spun into a movie. Deadline reports that a film based on Saints Row is in development, with F. Gary Gray attached to direct. Gray directed Straight Outta Compton, The Fate of the Furious, and the upcoming Men in Black: International. Greg Russo is writing the script; it's at least his second video game job, as he's also writing the script for the Mortal Kombat reboot movie in the works at Warner Bros. The movie is produced in part by Koch Films, a division of Koch Media, which owns Deep Silver and the rights to Saints Row. THQ previously held the rights, but Koch Media acquired the rights and developer Volition out of THQ's bankruptcy auction. Last year, Volition and Saints Row returned to THQ ... sort of ... when THQ Nordic (which itself acquired the THQ name) acquired Koch Media and all of its assets.The Saints Row movie has been in the works for a long time. Back in 2009, the rapper 50 Cent announced that he was working on a Saints Row movie when the franchise was with THQ.There have been four main Saints Row games so far, but it's not clear if the story will be based on any plot from the franchise or if it's something entirely new. Also unknown is who will star in it, when production may begin, and when it could be released. In Hollywood, projects tend to get announced and take a long time to materialize, if they ever do.Info from Gamespot.com

Last month, Oculus revealed that its next step in VR gaming would be a two-pronged approach: a revision of its original headset with the Rift S and a standalone headset in the Quest. Specs and features had been detailed alongside a Spring 2019 release window and a $400 / £400 price tag (Australian pricing is yet to be announced) for each package. Now, Oculus has announced that both will launch simultaneously on May 21--pre-orders for Rift S and Quest are now open as well.The Rift S makes several improvements over the original Rift, a platform that has been out since March 2016. First off, the Rift S has an increased resolution; it'll display 1280x1440 per eye, 2560x1440 in total, although it now displays in 80Hz (down from 90Hz). Another addition is integrated audio on the headset and a more comfortable, secure headstrap. The biggest feature, however, is the company's new inside-out tracking technology called Oculus Insight. This negates the need for external motion sensors since there are five built into the headset, capable of full positional tracking.Oculus Quest (left) and Oculus Rift S (right)While the Rift S remains a PC-based platform, the Oculus Quest packs everything you need into the one unit. The standalone VR headset is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor--a significant upgrade over the specs of the lesser mobile counterpart the Oculus Go. Quest also features Oculus Insight with four built-in sensors to offer full positional, six degree-of-freedom tracking. It'll display an impressive 2880x1600 resolution (a bit of a bump from the Rift S), but at a lower 72Hz. Two options for storage space will be available: 64GB at $400 / £400 and 128GB at $500 / £500.A pair of revised Touch controllers come with each headset, which reposition the motion sensor rings to be above the face buttons to track better with the new Insight sensors. We've spent some time with the Oculus Quest and will have a definitive review on GameSpot soon. Info from Gamespot.com

Marvel's superhero movies are some of the biggest films ever. The latest one, Avengers: Endgame, has already made more than $1.3 billion after less than a week in theatres. Now, a report reveals how much money Disney/Marvel pays the cast's biggest stars.Starting with the biggest payday, Iron Man actor Robert Downey Jr. earned $75 million from 2018's Avengers: Infinity War alone, according to The Hollywood Reporter. This was the result of a unique deal he made with Marvel boss Kevin Feige that gives the actor "backend" on the Avengers movies. A backend deal means an actor gets a percentage of box office grosses.Infinity War was a massive commercial success, making $2.048 billion at the box office. Downey Jr.'s reported $75 million from that movie is likely tied to that huge performance.THR's report also claims that Downey Jr. was paid $5 million PER DAY for three days to film his parts on 2017's Spider-Man: Homecoming. The story doesn't have any details on Downey Jr.'s salary for Avengers: Endgame. But if he struck a similar backend deal, Downey Jr. could stand to make another big bucket of money from the film. It's already broken box office records in the US and worldwide and is poised for continued success.As for the other big-name Marvel actors, THR's story says Scarlett Johansson will be paid a figure in the $20 million range for the 2020 standalone Black Widow movie that she'll star in and produce. Chris Hemsworth, who plays Thor, signed a five-year deal in the $15 million to $20 million range, while Captain America actor Chris Evans also had a five-movie deal in the same salary range, according to The Hollywood Reporter.Actors can also earn extra money from bonuses tied to commercial performance--though they're getting more challenging to earn, it seems. THR says Marvel originally paid actor bonuses when a movie cleared $500 million in worldwide grosses, before moving to $700 million. Today, Marvel reportedly doesn't generally pay actor bonuses until a film, especially an Avengers movie, reaches $1.5 billion. Infinity War reached that and Endgame should, too.Plans for the future of the MCU are unclear; we know Spider-Man: Far From Home is coming in July and will mark the end of Phase 3. Beyond that, there are a variety of projects known to be in the works, such as the aforementioned Black Widow movie, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and The Eternals, but specific dates are unclear. For more, check out what we know about Marvel's Phase 4.Info from Gamespot.com

May is finally here, and ThinkGeek is ready to do some spring cleaning on its clearance section. To kick off the new month, the digital store is offering 75% off all clearance items, plus an additional 25% off all items in your cart. That 25% off discount applies both to full-price items and clearance items that have already been slashed by 75%. In case you don't feel like doing the math, that's a full 81% off clearance items that are already on sale.Some important information: This sale only runs for 24 hours, so you'll want to grab whatever you're interested in buying between now and 9 PM PT on May 1 (12 AM ET on May 2). Once you add things to your cart, you'll see the discount automatically applied--no coupon code needed.If you're not familiar with ThinkGeek, the retailer is one of the top online places to get officially licensed merchandise and collectibles from practically any fandom or interest, from Star Wars and Game of Thrones to Pokemon, Borderlands, Dungeons & Dragons, and many, many more. ThinkGeek's stuff tends to be reasonably priced in general, but with this sale, you're getting multiple stacked discounts that make these items more affordable than ever.The clearance section currently offers quite a wide range of items, including Star Wars, Star Trek, Harry Potter, Pokemon, Legend of Zelda, and Marvel products. Some of them are ThinkGeek exclusives, and everything is officially licensed. Browse the full collection of items on sale at ThinkGeek, and see some of the products that caught our eye below.SHOP THINKGEEK'S ONE-DAY CLEARANCE SALE »[UPDATE 3:17 PM ET]: All of the below items have sold out. However, the sale is still going strong over at ThinkGeek, so be sure to check out the clearance section and grab anything you want before the sale ends tonight.Solar Orbit NecklaceCHECK PRICEJust a reminder--Mother's Day is coming up in just a couple of weeks, so this might be a good chance to pick up something your mom or significant other would like. This solar system necklace crafted with gemstones is particularly stunning. (Plus, check out our other Mother's Day gift ideas if you need some more inspiration.)Twerkbot9000CHECK PRICEThis little dude has one purpose only: to twerk until his little plywood body can twerk no more. This DIY robot kit comes with 212 laser cut pieces and other supplies so you can actually put it together yourself--and of course, display it somewhere where everyone can see and be amazed.Borderlands Hand-Painted Framed Resin MasksCHECK PRICEThese hand-crafted resin masks come mounted in a shadow box frame for display. Note that right now, only the Psycho Bandit replica appears to be available.Star Wars BB-8 USB Car ChargerCHECK PRICE Take Star Wars' adorable rolling droid with you on the go, plug it into your 12V vehicle power adaptor, and let it charge your electronics with its two 2.1A USB charging points.Fallout Shower CurtainCHECK PRICEBased on Bethesda's Perk poster, this Fallout shower curtain is both practical and a cool piece of decor for your bathroom.Super Nintendo Triptych CHECK PRICEBeen looking for some wall art for your gaming area? This wall art set pays tribute to the SNES controller, and each piece comes framed with a metal wall hanger on the back.Pikachu Coin BankCHECK PRICEIt's a Pikachu that will hoard all your spare coins--what else do you need to know?Undertale Soundtrack Vinyl 2LPCHECK PRICEWhether you actually own a record player or enjoy collecting vinyls for the aesthetic, you've got some solid options to consider in this sale, including this gorgeous Undertale album or this double LP for Dark Souls II.Star Wars C-3PO and R2-D2 Chrome Figure SetCHECK PRICEIt's a great time to pick up this chrome-plated figure set if you're a Star Wars collector, as its full list price is $200 and it's already 50% off (pre-discounts). Featuring the OG droids, each model lights up and comes with interchangeable accessories.Twinkling Milky Way SkirtCHECK PRICEThis gorgeous skirt is a dream for anyone who likes cosplay, space, and/or sparkly things. The three-layered skirt is woven with over 60 small LED lights and has six adjustable modes.The Art of God of War: Exclusive EditionCHECK PRICEThis collector's item comes with a digital download for God of War, a hardcover coffee table book offering a behind-the-scenes look at the game, and a cloth-covered portfolio with art inspired by the game. This particular edition is exclusive to ThinkGeek with only 1,500 total available to sell.Info from Gamespot.com

Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn's next movie is the superhero horror film Brightburn starring Elizabeth Banks (The Hunger Games) and David Denman (The Office, Big Fish). The film follows the story of a child who crash-lands on Earths and is adopted by the characters played by Banks and Denman, Tori and Kyle. They recognize his super-abilities and try to raise him to use them for good. But he doesn't. Instead, he wreaks havoc on a small Kansas town, and people aren't happy about it.Brightburn comes to theatres later this month, and GameSpot can exclusively reveal a new clip from the film today where we see actor Matt Jones (Breaking Bad) enduring a harrowing visit from the young man, Brandon, who is played by Jackson A. Dunn. Check out the clip in the embed above.Brightburn opens May 23 in Australia and then a day later on May 24 in the United States over the Memorial Day weekend. It was directed by David Yarovesky (The Hive) with a script by James Gunn's brothers Brian and Mark Gunn. James Gunn and Kenneth Huang served as producers.Here is the full plot description for Brightburn: "After a difficult struggle with fertility, Tori's dreams of motherhood come true with the arrival of a mysterious baby boy. Brandon appears to be everything Tori and her husband Kyle ever wanted-bright, talented, curious about the world. But as Brandon nears puberty, a powerful darkness seems to manifest within him, and Tori becomes consumed by terrible doubts about her son. Once Brandon begins to act on his twisted urges, those closest to him find themselves in grave danger, as the miracle child transforms into a vicious predator unleashed on an unsuspecting Kansas town."Info from Gamespot.com

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 has been a much-discussed movie in part due to how Marvel fired director James Gunn over controversial tweets and then re-hired him. Now that he's back in the director's chair, when can fans expect the movie to actually get underway? According The Hollywood Reporter, Marvel is planning to begin shooting in 2020.Not only that, but the stars are all expected to return for the third movie in in the trilogy.Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was originally expected to hit theatres in May 2020, but plans changed when Gunn was fired. Before he was re-hired, Gunn signed with Warner Bros. to write and direct The Suicide Squad. That movie is releasing in August 2021, so some expected Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 to not shoot until later. But it looks like plans have shifted forward. The entire future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is unclear at this stage. Marvel plans to reveal its plans for Phase 4 after the release of Spider-Man: Far From Home in July. That's right around when Comic-Con takes place in San Diego.In others Guardians of the Galaxy news, Star-Lord's outfit and other related gear is now available in Fortnite--check out all the images here.Next up for Gunn is the superhero horror movie Brightburn, which he is producing. You can check out a harrowing new clip from the film here. Info from Gamespot.com

Gearbox has given fans a few glimpses at Borderlands 3 earlier this year, but now the developer has properly unveiled the title as part of a big gameplay reveal event on May 1. The hour-long livestream gave us our first good look at the upcoming shooter in action, as we got more information about its new playable characters/Vault Hunters, weapons, gameplay wrinkles, and much more.You can rewatch the event above. We'll also be livestreaming our own Borderlands 3 gameplay (showcasing the new character Zane; you can see Amara the Siren below) from there to further give you a sense of what to expect. We also got to chat with Gearbox ahead of the event and try the game out for ourselves, where we found you can play solo without any issues, which will be welcome news to some. (Local and online co-op play is also supported, with the option to share loot or not.) Gearbox's Randy Pitchford also noted Borderlands 3 won't have loot boxes, although there will be microtransactions in some form. Post-launch DLC was also confirmed, but not with any specifics.New gameplay details include the ability to crouch-slide and climb up ledges; we also got a look at some skill trees and some of the new characters and their abilities in action. Gearbox also showcased the game's new villains, the Calypso twins, and how it (sort of) brings back Handsome Jack.Borderlands 3 takes inspiration from Titanfall, which is always a welcome point of comparison, and it brings back Sirens--who are very important in Borderlands 3's story (which didn't originally start out on Pandora).Borderlands 3's release date is set for September 13 on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Stay tuned for more coverage of the game, and check out the video below for a recap of the highlights of what we learned during the gameplay reveal event. The original story follows.Gearbox is giving the world another look at Borderlands 3. The developer is holding a big livestream reveal event today, May 1, which will showcase the first hands-on gameplay of the upcoming loot shooter.The Borderlands 3 gameplay reveal stream will be broadcast on the official Borderlands website and Twitch channel. You'll be able to tune in right here on GameSpot as well when the time comes and watch the stream above. Fans will also have the ability to potentially earn some in-game loot by watching Twitch streamers play the game via a new Echocast extension.Borderlands 3 Gameplay Reveal Stream Start Times10 AM PT1 PM ET6 PM BSTBorderlands 3 had long been rumored, but Gearbox officially announced the title last month in a rather...memorable livestream presentation during PAX East 2019. A few days later, the developer shared another trailer for the game. This one introduced its cast--including its four new playable Vault Hunters--and confirmed its released date: September 13, 2019.The latest Borderlands 3 trailer also gave us our first look at the game's antagonists, the Calypso twins, and confirmed a handful of returning characters. You can read more about the upcoming game in our roundup of what we know about Borderlands 3.Borderlands 3 is coming to PS4, Xbox One, and PC. However, players hoping to pick it up on the latter will need to do so from the Epic Games Store, as the game will be exclusive to Epic's storefront until April 2020. That move certainly wasn't met without controversy, however, and users began review bombing previous Borderlands games on Steam in response.Info from Gamespot.com