"Kate Forbes still has her own leadership ambitions, setting them aside this Spring in the interest of party unity to accept Mr Swinney's offer to become Deputy First Minister."

Sir Keir Starmer's beleaguered former chief of staff will no longer take up the position of “envoy to the nations and regions.”

A "renowned" restructuring advisory business has been acquired by a major player.

Family business Graham’s Family Dairy has secured a multinational listing

A rural housing project branded as ‘truly transformative’ has been completed

Former MP Joanna Cherry has said that the SNP rules which prevented her from standing for a seat at Holyrood would not block Stephen Flynn from doing the same.  

A film about a campaign to ban greyhound racing in Scotland has won an animal welfare award at a ceremony in London.

The site, on the shores of a famous Scottish loch, has been acquired for a luxury lodge development

Anna Marie briefly stops by to tell us about what she's been playing while recovering. The Series X has a price now, will the PS5 get one this week? Also, PAX is happening!

The post RPG Cast – Episode 555: “Kelley Just Wants to Fight You” appeared first on RPGamer.

We can't believe we have to say this, but this week Chris tries to understand water vapor. Anna Marie takes a week off to go date some demons. Josh frequents a sex shop to pick up some weapons. Pascal starts vaping in his Xbox. And Robert and Kelley are testing the jiggle physics of sacks in World of Warcraft.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 563: “Isn’t Compile Heart Jail Against the Geneva Convention?” appeared first on RPGamer.

Alex looks so good he must be rendered. Robert rickrolls all the things. Kelley is our Neptunian Angel. Chris is getting ready to Rise, but first he must Ryza.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 578: “Sorry, I Just Don’t Care” appeared first on RPGamer.

The podcast trio is not at all ready for the flood of September releases. Anna Marie is kind of sick of the trigger, Chris insists Eclipse is owed an apology, and Kelley wants to know what is this garbage and how she can get more of it.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 599: “Serious Health Issues? No, Just a Cat” appeared first on RPGamer.

Chris embraces our cyberpunk subscription overlords. Josh kills the innkeeper (accidentally). Meanwhile Robert plunges down the .Hack hole.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 610: “No One Should Learn Japanese from Super Robot Wars” appeared first on RPGamer.

On this week's show, Chris gets run over by a wheat thresher, Robert throws his phone at a car, Kelley's cat gets offended at being a prop for gaming, and Josh goes kart racing in Horizon Forbidden West.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 620: “I Just Got Barbecued in a Grave Pit” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley runs to Benny Hill theme music. Chris is imprisoned in the dimension of PS Plus madness. And Josh gets a new harness.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 638: “F for Josh’s Inventory” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley thinks like a cat. Chris experiments with broccoli. Josh sells weed with Snoop Dogg. Don't tempt the mouse.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 639: “Can We Just Kill This Guy and Get a New Hero” appeared first on RPGamer.

Chris has a picnic with Emet-Selch. Kelley gets kicked out of the guild by her husband. Vahn drowns in gacha games. And everyone is honking. What is going on?

The post RPG Cast – Episode 662: “That’s Just a Skill Issue” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley is the master of the hunting horn. Chris is too old to play Solid Snake. Robert only steals from old people. And Ryan stuffs all the kids into the cannon.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 667: “Nintendo Has an Animal Crossing Jail?” appeared first on RPGamer.

Chris sets out to get justice for Hana. Kelley complains about vegan technology. Robert tells us all about the vacuum cleaner machine gun. And Ryan wonders why the "silent" princess won't shut up.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 694: “There’s No D in Journey” appeared first on RPGamer.

Sam wants two things, coke and nuggs. Robert hails the hypnobooty. Ryan has to go recruit more Ryans. And Chris commissions a new Sesame Street horror adventure. Guard your eyes.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 695: “Jason Statham Is the Best Dinosaur” appeared first on RPGamer.

Josh increases his charisma with Sega BASS fishing. Chris plays something other than Path of Exile. Kelley thinks the world sucks and goes to pet a cat. Cook my toast.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 709: “2004 Jankiness in 2024” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley risks her life trimming her cat's nails. Chris optimizes Eiyuden Chronicle live on stream. Robert plays dental roulette.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 722: “They’re Just a Stack of Rocks” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley makes a Morgen Wonk. Chris loves the smell of Gundam in the morning. Phil plays some Mathfinder while listening to his favorite new band, Creepy Lego Waifus. The cake has arrived.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 728: “Cats With Jiggle Physics” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley tells us about her new clawed abomination: the cat-raptor. Chris tries to figure out who cross Ross is and why he's so angry. Robert is "surprised" to find horse girls show up on the sheet. Josh is definitely here for the icons.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 730: “Never Played a JRPG” appeared first on RPGamer.

Deller on politics, music and his film Everybody in the Place, now showing at The Vinyl Factory's Reverb exhibition.

The post Interview: Jeremy Deller appeared first on Fact Magazine.

IMAGINE if you’d spent a grand on a single Berkshire Hathaway share 31 years ago. That stock just passed $US200,000 and is still climbing.

JOHN Akers, who led IBM as its longtime dominance of the computer industry began to wane, has died, aged 79.

THE Federal Bureau of Investigation is probing a possible computer hacking attack on J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.

INVESTORS swarmed over the shares of a maker of valves on Friday as China broke its self-imposed freeze on initial public offerings.

Super Mario Party Jamboree (NS) has remained in first place on the retail charts in Japan with sales of 57,522 units, according to Famitsu for the week ending October 27, 2024. 

Farmagia (NS) debuted in eighth place with sales of 4,296 units.

Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven (NS) remained in second place with sales of 14,646 units. The PS5 version fell from third to seventh place with sales of 5,097 units.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (PS5) is up one spot to third place with sales of 8,620 units and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (NS) re-entered the top 10 in fourth place with sales of 5,782 units.

Professional Baseball Spirits 2024-2025 (PS5) is up two spots to fifth with sales of 5,729, and The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (NS) is up two spots to sixth place with sales of 5,492 units.

The Nintendo Switch was the best-selling platform with 60,096 units sold. The PlayStation 5 sold 13,965 units, the Xbox Series X|S sold 2,610 units, and the PlayStation 4 sold 53 units.

Here are the best-selling games in Japan:

1. [NSW] Super Mario Party Jamboree (Nintendo, 10/17/24) – 57,522 (364,484)
2. [NSW] Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven (Square Enix, 10/24/24) – 14,646 (85,013)
3. [PS5] Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (Activision, 10/25/24) – 8,620 (35,567)
4. [NSW] Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Nintendo, 04/28/17) – 5,782 (6,044,039)
5. [PS5] Professional Baseball Spirits 2024-2025 (Konami, 10/17/24) – 5,729 (84,989)
6. [NSW] The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (Nintendo, 09/26/24) – 5,492 (294,371)
7. [PS5] Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven (Square Enix, 10/24/24) – 5,097 (37,254)
8. [NSW] Farmagia (Marvelous, 11/01/24) – 4,296 (New)
9. [NSW] Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo, 03/20/20) – 4,253 (7,943,533)
10. [NSW] Minecraft (Microsoft, 06/21/18) – 4,242 (3,666,338)

Here is the hardware breakdown (followed by lifetime sales):

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463007/super-mario-party-jamboree-tops-the-japanese-charts/

The Nintendo Switch was the best-selling console in Japan with 241,803 units sold for October 2024, according to VGChartz estimates. The Nintendo Switch has now sold an estimated 34.30 million units lifetime in Japan.

The PlayStation 5 sold an estimated 49,056 units to bring its lifetime sales to 6.12 million units. The Xbox Series X|S sold 5,862 units to bring their lifetime sales to 0.64 million units. The PlayStation 4 sold an estimated 162 units to bring its lifetime sales to 9.68 million units.

PS5 sales compared to the same month for the PS4 in 2017 are down by nearly 53,000 units, while the Xbox Series X|S compared to the same month for the Xbox One are up by over 5,000 units. PS4 sold 101,851 units for the month of October 2017 and Xbox One sales were at 563 units.

Nintendo Switch sales compared to the same month a year ago are down by 41,368 units (-14.6%). PlayStation 5 sales are down by 17,208 (-26.0%) and Xbox Series X|S sales are down by 2,294 units (-28.1%). The PlayStation 4 is down by 5,362 units (-97.1%) year-over-year.

Looking at sales month-on-month, Nintendo Switch sales are down up nearly 67,000 units, the PlayStation 5 sales are down by over 4,000 units, and Xbox Series X|S sales are up by over 2,000 units.

2024 year-to-date, the Nintendo Switch has sold an estimated 2.47 million units, the PlayStation 5 has sold 1.16 million units, and the Xbox Series X|S has sold 0.09 million units.

Monthly Sales:

Japan hardware estimates for October 2024 (Followed by lifetime sales):

1. Switch - 241,803 (34,300,699)
2. PlayStation 5 - 49,056 (6,121,649)
3. Xbox Series X|S - 5,862 (636,764)
4. PlayStation 4 - 162 (9,679,626)

Weekly Sales:

Japan October 12, 2024 hardware estimates:

1. Switch - 55,097
2. PlayStation 5 - 11,810
   
3. Xbox Series X|S - 429
4. PlayStation 4 - 31

Japan October 19, 2024 hardware estimates:

1. Switch - 58,866
2. PlayStation 5 - 11,324
3. Xbox Series X|S - 1,612
4. PlayStation 4 - 36

Japan October 26, 2024 hardware estimates:

1. Switch - 67,736
2. PlayStation 5 - 11,951
3. Xbox Series X|S - 1,207
4. PlayStation 4 - 40

Japan November 2, 2024 hardware estimates:

1. Switch - 60,104
2. PlayStation 5 - 13,971
3. Xbox Series X|S - 2,614
4. PlayStation 4 - 55

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463008/switch-comfortably-best-seller-japan-hardware-estimates-for-october-2024/

Nintendo and The Pokémon Company in September filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Palworld developer Pocketpair. 

At the time Nintendo did not share which patents Palworld infringed on, however, Pocketpair has now revealed what patents Nintendo are claiming were infringed on.

"As announced on September 19, 2024, The Pokémon Company and Nintendo Co Ltd (hereinafter referred to as the Plaintiffs) have filed a patent infringement lawsuit against us," said Pocketpair. "We have received inquiries from various media outlets regarding the status of the lawsuit, and we would like to report the details and current status of this case as follows.

"The Plaintiffs claim that Palworld, released by us on January 19, 2024, infringes upon the following three patents held by the Plaintiffs, and are seeking an injunction against the game and compensation for a portion of the damages incurred between the date of registration of the patents and the date of filing of this lawsuit."

Nintendo and The Pokémon Company are each seeking an injunction and damages of five million yen plus late payment damages.

Pocketpair added, "We will continue to assert our position in this case through future legal proceedings. Please note that we will refrain from responding individually to inquiries regarding this case. If any matters arise that require public notice, we will announce them on our website, etc."

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463022/nintendo-and-the-pokemon-company-seeking-injunction-and-damages-from-pocketpair/

Here we see data representing the sales through to consumers and change in sales performance of the three current platforms (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch) and two legacy platforms (PlayStation 4 and Xbox One) over comparable periods for 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024. Also shown is the market share for each of the consoles over the same periods.

Year to Date Sales Comparison (Same Periods Covered)

Market Share (Same Periods Covered)

2021 – (January 2021 to October 2021)

2022 – (January 2022 to October 2022)

2023 – (January 2023 to October 2023)

2024 – (January 2024 to October 2024)

"Year to date" sales for 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 sales are shown in series at the top of the table and then just below a comparison of 2024 versus 2023 and 2024 versus 2022 is displayed.  This provides an easy-to-view summary of all the data.

Total Sales and Market Share for Each Year

Microsoft

• Xbox Series X|S
• 0.09 million units sold year-to-date
• Down year-on-year 0.03 million units (-23.2%)

Nintendo

• Nintendo Switch
• 2.47 million units sold year-to-date
• Down year-on-year 0.75 million units (-23.4%)

Sony

• PlayStation 5
• 1.16 million units sold year-to-date
• Down year-on-year 0.94 million units (-44.9%)
• PlayStation 4
• 0.01 million units sold year-to-date
• Down year-on-year 0.05 million (-77.2%)

Note: VGChartz 2024 estimates through October includes 44 weeks, while 2023, 2022, and 2021 estimates includes 43 weeks.

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463009/ps5-vs-xbox-series-xs-vs-switch-2024-japan-sales-comparison-charts-through-october/

ublisher Bethesda Softworks and developer MachineGames have released a gameplay deep dive video for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle that is nearly 15 minutes in length.

"From locations and puzzles to gear and combat, MachineGames Audio Director, Pete Ward, takes us on a whirlwind journey through the world of The Great Circle," reads the description to the video. "Get ready for launch with this look at Indy’s grand adventure."

View the gameplay deep dive below:

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will launch for the Xbox Series X|S, PC via Steam and Microsoft Store, and Xbox Game Pass on December 9.

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463033/indiana-jones-and-the-great-circle-gets-gameplay-deep-dive/

The VGChartz sales comparison series of articles are updated monthly and each one focuses on a different sales comparison using our estimated video game hardware figures. The charts include comparisons between the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch, as well as with older platforms. There are articles based on our worldwide estimates, as well as the US, Europe, and Japan.

This monthly series compares the aligned Japanese sales of the PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4.

The PlayStation 5 launched in November 2020 in Japan, while the PlayStation 4 launched in February 2014. This does mean the holiday periods for the two consoles do not lineup.

PS5 Vs. PS4 Japan:

Gap change in latest month: 277,262 - PS4

Gap change over last 12 months: 300,542 - PS4

Total Lead: 234,400 - PS4

PlayStation 5 Total Sales: 6,121,649

PlayStation 4 Total Sales: 6,356,049

October 2024 is the 48th month the PlayStation 5 has been available for. In the latest month, the gap grew in favor of the PlayStation 4 when compared to the aligned launch of the PlayStation 5 by 0.28 million units.

In the last 12 months, the PS4 has outsold the PS5 by 0.30 million units. The PS5 is currently behind the PS4 by 0.23 million units.

The 48th month for the PS5 in Japan is October 2024, while for the PS4 it is January 2018. The PS5 has sold 6.36 million units, while the PS4 sold 6.12 million units during the same timeframe.

The PS4 crossed 7 million in month 53, 8 million in month 61, and 9 million in month 72. The PS4 has sold 9.68 million units to date. The PS5 is currently 3.56 million units behind the lifetime sales of the PS4 in Japan.

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463011/ps5-vs-ps4-sales-comparison-in-japan-october-2024/

Tencent Games subsidiary LightSpeed Studios has announced Hideaki Itsuno, who recently left Capcom after 30 years working for the company, will be leading a new video game studio called LightSpeed Japan Studio.

LightSpeed Japan Studio will have two locations in Tokyo and Osaka and is focused on developing original AAA games.

"Joining LightSpeed Studios is an exciting new chapter for me," said Hideaki Itsuno. "With LightSpeed’s strong development capability and global network, I look forward to creating original AAA action game titles together with the amazing team and building aesthetic and innovative experiences for the global player community. We welcome all talented and passionate game creators from the world over to join our vision."

LightSpeed Studios president Jerry Chen added, "It is our great honor to have Hideaki Itsuno join LightSpeed Studios. The establishment of LightSpeed Japan Studio is a significant step in LightSpeed Studios’ expansion and demonstrates our commitment to bringing the best possible games to our players."

Itsuno directed entries in the Rival Schools, Power Stone, Capcom VS. SNK, Devil May Cry, and Dragon’s Dogma franchises.

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463041/hideaki-itsuno-to-lead-new-aaa-developer-lightspeed-japan-studio/

Publisher Xbox Game Studios and developer Compulsion Games have released a 30-minute long documentary on for South of Midnight titled "Weaving Hazel's Journey."

The video share a behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming third-person action-adventure game. It explores the development and world building, as well as providing a look at new gameplay.

View the documentary below:

South of Midnight will launch for the Xbox Series X|S, PC via Steam and Microsoft Store, and Xbox Game Pass in 2025.

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463044/south-of-midnight-gets-30-minute-weaving-hazels-journey-documentary/

Publisher indie.io and developer Maple Powered Games announced G.I. Joe: Wrath of Cobra will launch for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch on November 21.

The game is currently available for PC Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG.

View the console reveal date trailer below:

Read details on the game below:

Cobra rears its ugly head yet again and it’s up to G.I. Joe to save the world! Embracing the 1980s era of the iconic universe, Wrath of Cobra is a retro side-scrolling beat ’em up. Play as one of the legendary G.I. Joe characters, including Duke, Scarlett, Roadblock, Snake Eyes, and more. Defeat hordes of Cobra troopers, Vipers, Crimson Guards and more of Cobra’s malevolent machinations.

Bring Cobra down, striking back at the likes of Destro, Serpentor, Baroness, and Cobra Commander himself! Fight your own way: Rely on your fists and get up close and personal using each character’s unique combos and special moves or keep your foes at a distance with a variety of weapons!

Retro Gameplay in a Modern Era

Wrath of Cobra takes the classic arcade beat ’em up and brings it into the modern age: Easy to play, hard to master, and smoother than a ride in a H.I.S.S. Want to play with your friends? The game supports local multiplayer (eg. from your couch) and online co-op!

Play as Classic Heroes

Fight Cobra as your favorite G.I. Joe heroes, painstakingly recreated in beautiful pixel art. The differences between characters aren’t just cosmetic: Each hero has different movesets and unique abilities. From the fast and nimble Snake Eyes to the rough and tumble Roadblock, each character is true to form!

Battle Iconic Villains

Cobra isn’t just the Cobra Commander, it’s also its legions! Face hordes of troopers, armored Alley Vipers, artificial B.A.T.s, armed with some of the most iconic weapon systems in the franchise, including the H.I.S.S., C.L.A.W., and the notorious Trubble Bubble.

Retro-Infused Soundtrack

Foil the Commander’s plot to the beat of classic G.I. Joe themes, reimagined by industry veterans at Kid Katana Records, bringing a modern twist to classic arcade music!

Post-Launch Support

Like Destro’s plots, Wrath of Cobra will continue with extensive post-launch support, bringing more G.I. Joe heroes into the fray, adding new game modes, levels, and more to keep the G.I. Joe legacy alive!

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463047/gi-joe-wrath-of-cobra-releases-november-21-for-ps5-xbox-series-xs-and-switch/

Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance boldly said “no,” Donald Trump did not lose the 2020 election, when pressed on the issue at a campaign event Wednesday in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

The Ohio senator has avoided directly denying the results over the past few weeks.

When quizzed by The New York Times about the results over the weekend, for example, he refused multiple times to answer the question, on one occasion claiming he was “focused on the future”—echoing an answer he gave to Democratic opponent Tim Walz at the vice presidential debate.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

In his monologue Wednesday, Jimmy Kimmel played a montage of Fox News anchors praising Bret Baier for his interview with Kamala Harris, where they described Baier’s performance as “incredible” and “a masterful job.”

Kimmel responded, “Alright, save it for the post-show orgy, everybody! Come on now.”

The late night host was skeptical that the Fox News pundits’ praise came from a genuine place of journalistic integrity. “They all sit there in fear, imagining Donald Trump on the toilet watching them,” he said.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Former President Donald Trump said Wednesday that Jan. 6, 2021— the day his supporters occupied Congress in a failed insurrection to try to stop lawmakers from certifying Joe Biden’s election victory—was a “day of love.”

Trump made the baffling claim during a televised election town hall hosted by Univision.

Ramiro González, a construction worker from Tampa, told the meeting he deregistered as a Republican because he found Trump’s “inaction” during both Jan. 6 and the COVID-19 pandemic “disturbing.” He asked Trump to square his controversial behavior during the attack on the U.S. Capitol—and the fact that many of his own former administration officials don’t support him any longer—with why he should be re-elected.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

The Elder Scrolls: Legends, the free-to-play card game set in Bethesda's fantasy world, has been removed from sale on Steam. Its servers will shut down for good on January 30th, 2025, after which it will no longer be playable. The closure comes five years after the game was last updated.

Read more

Twitch have introduced a new "Politics and Sensitive Social Issues" label for streams that "focus" on topics like "elections, civic integrity, and war or military conflict". As with the streaming giant's existing labels for M-rated material, sexual themes or depictions of gambling, the idea is that viewers can filter out such streams in advance by altering their settings.

Advertisers, similarly, can "make better choices about the content they want to advertise next to" - in other words, pull their ads from a whole swathe of material if they don't want to be associated with anything controversial. Twitch's hope is that "the labels will allow advertisers to have more context to inform which types of streams they show their ads alongside, which we expect to increase brands’ confidence in running ads on Twitch, and could bring new advertisers to our service."

Read more

Minor spoilers for the first few hours of Veilguard and heavy spoilers for Baldur’s Gate 3

For all the things I ended up enjoying about Dragon Age: The Veilguard, it isn’t much of an RPG. What little roleplaying it does offer revolves around what flavour of supportive hero you prefer, and you can count the number of impactful dialogue decisions on a three-fingered hand. This might sound utterly damning in the wake of Baldur's Gate 3’s incredible reactivity, and if I approached games as some sort of tedious comparative intellectual exercise rather than just, y’know, seeing how I felt about them, then I suppose it would be. Weirdly, though, the recent memory of Baldur’s Gate 3 didn’t diminish my time with Veilguard at all. It was actually the opposite: it freed Dragon Age from having to carry the torch for a certain period in Bioware’s history, and let me enjoy Veilguard for what it was.

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Calling a game ‘no frills’ or ‘no nonsense’ is always a back-handed compliment, because it sounds like you're saying it's a bit straightforward and simple. And yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying here. Acts Of Blood feels like a spiffy PS2 action brawler; a slightly tighter old Yakuza game, or a stripped-back Sifu. It’s snacky and a bit janky, but it’s also great coffee break fodder, assuming you want to spend your break breaking a selection of heavy objects over the crumbly skulls of ne’er-do-wells. I mean, they might have done some things well, I don’t know them. But they aren’t doing any well to my character in the game, so violence it is.

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I first played Taiko no Tatsujin in an arcade (in Japan, because I am very cool), where it's controlled by hitting a recreation of an actual taiko drum. It was fun enough that I wish there was a taiko drum peripheral available for PC now the series is on our platform.

Taiko no Tatsujin: Rhythm Festival is out now via Steam, where it offers over 70 songs to drum through, and a subscription service through which to unlock over 700 more. Maybe I should try to get my Donkey Konga drums working on PC, but I'll probably settle for playing it with a gamepad.

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"The cool thing about bombs is that you can hide them in anything," is probably my favourite Oppenheimer quote of all time, and in the case of Ian Hitman, it does raise an important question: with so many everyday objects equal to the rubber duck in its unthreatening aura, yet more inconspicuous, why choose to put an explosive in this one?

The simplest answer is that’s it’s a recurring bit of levity, a holdover easter egg, elevated to the status of key mission item in Hitman: Codename 47 before being given pride of place as an explosive in the World Of Assassination games. But to ascribe such unassuming purpose to the duck is to ignore its revelatory power. We must go deeper.

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After nearly a year of public beta honing, the Nvidia App – Team Green’s new one-stop shop for desktop GPU management – is out in full. Not alongside the upcoming RTX 50 series, as rumoured, but right-now-today-this-minute. I’ve been testing out the launch version and while it’s not without some dud features, it does agreeably achieve its stated goal of combining the functions within Nvidia Control Panel and GeForce Experience. And if installing it means never having to use the latter again, well, that’s 149MB well spent.

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JUDY WOODRUFF: And in the day’s other news: A federal judge in Hawaii struck down the Trump administration’s latest travel ban.

That temporarily blocks enforcement of the order nationwide, but the Justice Department says it will appeal. The ban extended to six mostly Muslim nations, plus North Korea and Venezuela.

Pennsylvania Congressman Tom Marino withdrew today from consideration to be President Trump’s drug czar. That followed an investigation by The Washington Post and CBS News. They found Marino was key in passing a 2016 law that limits the Drug Enforcement Administration’s ability to rein in opioid distribution.

A new verbal battle has broken out between the president and Republican Senator John McCain. It began last night in Philadelphia, when the Arizona senator and former Vietnam POW appeared to criticize Mr. Trump and his followers. He cited a list of failings.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, R-Ariz.: To fear the world we have organized and led for three-quarters-of-a-century, to abandon the ideals we have advanced around the globe for the sake of some half-baked, spurious nationalism cooked up by people who would rather find scapegoats than solve problems.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

JUDY WOODRUFF: The president answered by saying, “At some point, I fight back, and it won’t be pretty.”

In turn, McCain said, “I have faced tougher adversaries.”

In Afghanistan, Taliban bombings and shootings left at least 74 people dead today. The worst was Paktika province in the east, where two car bombs killed dozens, including the provincial police chief, and wounded more than 100 others. Taliban militants also staged attacks in the south and west of the country.

In Syria, militia forces backed by the U.S. say they have retaken the Islamic State group’s de facto capital. The city of Raqqa had been under ISIS control since 2014. The battle to recapture it began in June. Today, Kurdish-led fighters celebrated as they moved into the city center. The U.S. military said 90 percent of Raqqa has been taken, with pockets of militants remaining.

There’s word that U.S. airstrikes in Yemen killed dozens of Islamic State fighters on Monday. The strikes were apparently carried out by drones. The Pentagon says the targets were training camps for recruits.

In Northern Iraq, Kurdish forces withdrew from more territory today, as Iraqi government troops advanced. It came on the heels of the Kurds’ vote for independence. Federal forces and allied militia had already forced the Kurds to leave the area in and around Kirkuk and its oil fields.

Iraq’s prime minister said that paves the way for talks.

HAIDER AL-ABADI, Prime Minister, Iraq (through interpreter): I call for dialogue on the basis of partnership in one country and under the Constitution. The referendum is finished and has become a thing from the past. We hoped that they would cancel it, but we have finished it on the ground.

JUDY WOODRUFF: Meanwhile, the president of Iraqi Kurdistan, Massoud Barzani, insisted that the referendum will not be in vain.

Another 10,000 to 15,000 Rohingya Muslims fled Buddhist Myanmar for Bangladesh over the weekend. Drone video showed snaking lines of refugees making the trek to already crowded camps. Many told of villages torched by mobs and soldiers. Others said they were starved out of their homes.

Back in this country, a new fire broke out in the San Francisco Bay Area, just as crews had made major progress against other fires in Northern California. Thick smoke billowed from the new site early today, as it burned through forests in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Weary fire crews said they’re calling in more help.

ROB SHERMAN, Division Chief, Cal Fire: So, the idea is to hit it pretty hard with aircraft and then go ahead and hit it with the ground resources at the same time. We have had north winds, a lot of drying, and everything’s really, really dry. So it’s challenging.

JUDY WOODRUFF: In Southern California, yet another fire spread on Mount Wilson, about 25 miles north of downtown Los Angeles. It threatened a historic observatory and communications towers.

President Trump’s overall wealth has taken a hit, as his New York real estate loses some of its luster. Forbes ranks him 248 this year on its list of the 400 wealthiest Americans. That’s down nearly 100 points from last year. His estimated worth is $3.1 billion.

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates again tops the list. He’s worth nearly $90 billion.

And on Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average traded above 23,000 for the first time. In the end, it gained 40 points to close at 22997. The Nasdaq fell a fraction, and the S&P 500 added one point.

The post News Wrap: Trump’s latest travel ban blocked by federal judge appeared first on PBS NewsHour.

On 19 and 20 August, the JUICE mission will make the first ever attempt to get a gravitational boost from both Earth and the moon on its way to Jupiter