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In October, The Haunting of Bly Manor was everyone’s go-to Halloween show. Following up on The Haunting of Hill House, it had everything to create a perfect spooky formula: a mansion where people died under mysterious circumstances, creepy children, ghosts with grudges, and a diverse cast of trauma-ridden adults. But in the final episode, the fate of a certain pair has fans questioning whether the show used a certain controversial trope....

No Man’s Sky is frequently cited as one of the most exciting evolving games out there, and with its near-infinite intergalactic possibilities, it’s not difficult to see why it stands out in its genre. While it may have failed to meet the hype with its initial launch, developer Hello Games have since released a constant stream of downloadable content and quality-of-life updates that have done much to revitalise the game’s reputation....

While it’s easy to assume that Okami has been completely forgotten, the series’ legacy does continue to survive to this day. Capcom may not be making a new sequel any time soon, but the company clearly remembers it and is aware of its popularity, with main protagonist Amaterasu being added to the crossover card game Teppen. It also licenses it out so new merchandise can be made, like this recently announced Nendoroid figure of Shiranui....

Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in America is as epic as The Godfather, gorier than Goodfellas, and as streetwise as Mean Streets. It tells a full history, from childhood to old age, street hustles to political suicides, community toilets to opium dens. The version which is right now available on Netflix has been amazingly restored by Italy’s Bologna Cinematheque L’Immagine Ritrovata lab. I don’t think I have ever seen the film so clear, and it is a perennial to me, as is The Godfather....

In the realm of anime, a common trend seems to be scarfing down huge amounts of food. Characters in these Japanese tales often take joy in stuffing their faces at the speed of light. One protagonist that’s oddly suited for this is Luffy from One Piece. When this wannabe pirate sees a dish that he likes, his stomach is bottomless. Next to Goku from Dragon Ball, Luffy is among the hungriest characters ever put to screen, able to consume food on a level rarely seen onscreen....

With Jon Favreau, Taika Waititi, and Peyton Reed all directing episodes of The Mandalorian, and with the announcement that Waititi also has a Star Wars film in the works, it seems that Star Wars is pulling a lot of talent from Marvel over into their camp. It makes sense that more Marvel directors might follow in their footsteps, but which ones are the right fit for moving to a galaxy far far away?...

Obsidian Entertainment’s action role-playing title The Outer Worlds launched in October 2019. So far, the first of the two promised narrative expansions for the game has been released. Peril on Gorgon is a good length, providing players with approximately six hours of new content and up to 15 for completionists. And according to Metacritic and Steam, the DLC received fairly positive reviews. After completing The Outer Worlds, players will undoubtedly notice that there are still four planets locked on Halcyon’s navigation map: Eridanos, Hepahestus, Olympus, and Typhon....

This review contains spoilers for Outlander season 6 episode 2. Outlander Season 6 has the challenge of a condensed timeline to pull together multiple plot elements. Episode 2 had the additional challenge of answering questions previous seasons left blank. Fans who didn’t read the book may still be confused, but it’s clear this episode has to set up the potential for future political clashes. At the end of last week’s episode, Jamie accepted the assignment from the new governor to become the Indian Agent....

A free new update to Overcooked! 2 has released titled Sun’s Out Buns Out. Overcooked 2 was originally released back in August 2018 by developer Ghost Town Games, and previously saw the Gourmet Edition release on the Switch in April of this year. Previous DLCs include Carnival of Chaos, Night of the Hangry Hoard, Campfire Cookoff, and Surf ’n’ Turf. Available now on all platforms, Sun’s Out Buns Out, is the game’s summer-themed pack that includes two new dog chef characters to play as, new summer-inspired recipes to cook including ice cream floats and summer salads, five brand new levels, and a new kitchen layout that moves along parade floats....

Another season of the Overwatch League has officially come to its conclusion. OWL 2020’s Grand Finals ran from October 8 through October 10, with the finals just having wrapped up on Saturday. A familiar champion has reclaimed the OWL trophy, but this season was by no means an easy win. OWL 2020’s champion is the San Francisco Shock, making it the team’s second consecutive victory in Overwatch’s top competitive league....

The sniper Ana, the latest hero addition for Blizzard’s team-centric multiplayer shooter Overwatch, contains the capacity to boot players from the game entirely. With Overwatch’s support sniper Ana recently making her way onto PS4 and Xbox One after having been debuted on PC platforms, fans of Blizzard’s incredibly successful first-person shooter have found her sleep dart to be a helpful tactic to keep enemy forces at bay by knocking them out for a limited amount of time....

Paradox Interactive, the publisher behind hit titles such as Crusader Kings 3 and Stellaris, has reported that 2020 was the company’s best year ever in terms of growth. This news comes from gamesindustry.biz who shared Paradox’s financial results for 2020. Paradox reportedly saw a 39% increase in revenue year-on-year, reaching $216 million, after an investment of $73.9 million in game development, a 45% increase compared to the year prior. Although, Paradox’s fourth quarter was substantially weaker than the rest of the year, which saw operating profit decrease....

ReedPop and Penny Arcade announced that PAX East 2021, which was scheduled to be held in-person in Boston from June 3 through June 6, has been officially cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. However, ReedPop confirmed that the event will go on in an online format via PAX Online, which will be held from July 15 through July 18 — over a month from the original PAX East event....

It’s been a long, winding road to completion for the game formerly known as Final Fantasy Versus 13. Originally announced nearly a decade ago as a PlayStation 3 exclusive, the game has gone through many transformations over the years, eventually becoming the next main series FF game, now known as Final Fantasy 15. Since Final Fantasy 15 was renamed at E3 2013, development on the game has picked up considerably. For the first time since it was originally revealed, there actually feels like there’s an end in sight for the long anticipated title....

If not the fiery Scorpion, fans of Mortal Kombat will likely instantly recognize Sub-Zero and his signature mastery for ice. Unlike other fighting game characters, Sub-Zero makes no hesitation when it comes to freezing his opponents solid before aiming for the swift kill. It’s his chilling Fatalities, alongside the gory killing blows of others, that made Mortal Kombat such a controversial franchise. However, it’s also his iconic rivalry with Scorpion that made it have such a mark to the hearts of fans....

Mortal Kombat 11 recently pulled the curtain back on its first DLC character, Shang Tsung. Shang Tsung will be added to the game for Kombat Pack 1 owners on June 18, and will be available for individual download on June 25. Shang Tsung will be bringing a very unique move-set with him, including one of the game’s most creative fatalities. Shang Tsung fighting style sees him transform into other characters on the roster mid-battle, and so it’s fitting that one of his Fatalities also uses another character from Mortal Kombat lore....

Aside from a small selection of new fighters with unique fighting styles and abilities, Mortal Kombat 11 hasn’t seen a ton in the way of new content. However, it appears that may be changing with some brand-new story DLC that has been previewed on Twitter. A video posted to the official Twitter account for Mortal Kombat 11 early Tuesday morning teased what looked like a bit of story DLC that will be coming to Mortal Kombat 11....

Zendikar is one of many planes of existence in Magic: The Gathering’s Multiverse. It is a place where mighty reservoirs of mana can be found. This attracts Planeswalkers, explorers, and adventurers of all kinds. But reaping the resources to be had here is dangerous because the wildlife, inhabitants, and even the geography can pose grave threats to the unprepared. If one intends to visit Zendikar, they need to be wary of constantly shifting terrain, massive beasts, and traces of chaotic titans....

Those in charge of assigning ratings to NBA players in NBA 2K have enough data to work off of for the most part. The players in the game are based on their counterparts in real life, so a look at their style of play and stat sheets will be more than enough for them. However, that’s not the case for rookies. Creating ratings for incoming rookies is kind of a shot in the dark as you never know what kind of jump they might make from amateur to pro....

Battle Royale games have been all the rage lately, no doubt thanks in part to the immense $223 million Fortnite made in March. With interest increasing, more Battle Royale style games are being introduced which may quickly oversaturate the market. To properly contend with the current Battle Royale giants, a new game will have to innovate substantially to hold its footing, and Crazy Justice may have found the perfect way to do that as it is now the first official Battle Royale game to head to the Nintendo Switch....