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How to get Poipole in Pokémon Go, including all of the currently released World of Wonders quest steps and a look at Na…

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The World of Wonders special research quest offers you the chance to get Poipole in Pokémon Go. It's important to note, however, that World of Wonders is a season-long special research quest, which means its challenges will be released in sets across the current Pokémon Go season - also known as World of Wonders. Poipole is the only Ultra Beast which can evolve, becoming Naganadel after doing so. Yet, at the time of writing, you can't currently evolve Poipole in Pokémon Go. Hopefully we'll see Naganadel's arrival as more of World of Wonders is released. Below we walk you through all of the currently released World of Wonder quests steps, while also taking a look at Poipole and Naganadel in Pokémon Go. On this page: To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Watch as battle Guzzlord - one of the Ultra Beasts in Pokémon GoWatch on YouTube 'World of Wonders' quest steps: How to get Poipole in Pokémon Go World of Wonders was released in Pokémon Go on Friday 1st March and is a season-long special research quest running throughout, you guessed it, the World of Wonders Season. You must play Pokémon Go at least once before 9:59am (local time) on Saturday 1st June 2024 to unlock the World of Wonders quest. Once you've done so, you'll be able to complete it whenever you like since it lacks a deadline. It's also important to remember that, as a season-long quest, the quest steps for World of Wonders will be gradually released across its titular season. This means you can not fully complete this quest at the time of writing, but you will be able to do so by the end of this season. We'll update this page whenever a new set of quest steps are released, so keep an eye on this page. Below you'll find all of the World of Wonders quest steps which have been released so far in Pokémon Go. Just be wary of spoilers! 'World of Wonders' Step 1 of 5 Catch 20 Pokémon - 10 Poké Balls Spin 10 PokéStops - 7 Pinap Berries Transfer 10 Pokémon - 7 Razz Berries Rewards: 803 XP and Poipole 'World of Wonders' Step 2 of 5 Complete 7 Field Research tasks - Skorupi encounter Explore 10km - Qwilfish encounter Make 20 Nice Throws - 15 Great Balls Rewards: 803 XP and 25 Poipole Candy Thank you to redwineandbeer from reddit for the help with the above quest step. More to come... The World of Wonders season has come to Pokémon Go, giving you the chance to catch Poipole. Don't forget to try out Routes, Gift Exchange and Party Play while you're hunting down rare Pokémon, fighting in the Go Battle League or competing in PokéStop Showcases.

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Pokémon Go World of Wonders quest steps, including how to get Poipole and its evolution Naganadel

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A look at a few games that capture the thrill of twin-sticks without actually being twin-sticks.

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There's a certain kind of game that has you running in circles. This isn't because it's poorly designed or lacking waypoints. It's because it's frantic, endlessly generous, and loves to throw horrible things in your path. It's unfair in the very best way. It's an arcade game. Specifically, it's a twin-stick. All twin-stick shooters bow at the altar of running in circles, often the altar of running backwards in circles. Now I am a grown-up and know a little of the mysteries of baking, I often think of Robotron and its glorious ilk as being Churning Games. You're in the kitchen, spoon and bowl in hand, and you're getting the air into that egg mixture. Going in circles isn't just the optimal way to play something like Robotron, it's also the most beautiful way to play. When you're going in circles you get to see the emergent heart beating at the centre of everything. Different enemy types, obeying slightly different rules of engagement, break into separate patterns. Grunts flock together into a bait ball. Brains seek out family members. Enforcers work their way to the corners. Hulks just hulk about, the big idiots. This stuff is never far from my mind. When I close my eyes the phosphenes I see form the lurid shapes that scatter across a typical Robotron screen. That said, I've been thinking about all this a bit more recently, due to something a colleague said. They'd been playing Helldivers 2 - who hasn't - and they had a nagging thought that wouldn't go away. This third-person sci-fi shooter really felt like a twin-stick. To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Here's a bit of Helldivers 2.Watch on YouTube And here's the thing. It's not the only non-twin-stick I'd encountered recently that had that feeling. Caveat: lots of brilliant people are still making actual twin-sticks today, but what I'm talking about is something a little different - the vibe of twin-sticks captured in other adjacent genres. Let's dig in. Let's explore. Let's start running in circles. Helldivers 2 is a satirical multiplayer blaster in which you play as one of a foolish bunch of Space Nazis who fire themselves out of orbit, diving down from ships like mine with callsigns like the SES Claw of Individual Merit (Halo, take note of the names you can make in this thing) and crashlanding on various hideous alien worlds where there are fights to be had with giant bugs or glinting robots. This is all very Robotron from the off, and that's worth reflecting on very briefly. Robotron and the early twin-sticks were all a bit satirical, it feels, not just because Eugene Jarvis, the godfather of the genre, was and is video games' very own John Carpenter. I think there's just something about how cruel and gleefully unreasonable these games are that makes a designer want to have a bit of fun with the scenario. The robots massively outnumber you in Robotron, so why not have you playing as the last human family on earth? The stakes are bloody and hopeless in Smash TV, so why not have you starring in a game show and killing in the name of winning toasters? As soon as I was into Helldivers 2 and through the tutorial, my scuttling space fascist was gifted the most ridiculous cape. The gap between how they saw themselves and what they actually were suddenly revealed itself. I laughed out loud. Jarvis would love that cape. Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor - Release Date Announcement Trailer A Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor trailer. There's more to the DNA I think. The first Helldivers was legit a form of twin-stick, a top-down arcade blaster that gave you freedom of movement and aiming to make up for the fact that it was very easy to run out of ammo. Much of that arcade thrill has seeped into the sequel, even if it's a third-person behind-the-character affair. Why does it feel so twin-sticky exactly? I'd say there's a couple of reasons. For one thing, the landscape of each planet is the sort of procedurally-generated formlessness that is given shape purely by whatever enemy objectives are placed on the surface. It has the space and open potential of a twin-stick arena, even if it's huge and you see it from a more limited perspective. More: enemies spawn in bunches, and can come at you from all angles, meaning that running in circles now and then is really not a bad strategy here - although granted it may not make you many friends online. Anyway: take one group down and it's not unusual to start taking damage from another part of the map entirely. Helldivers 2 has the panoramic intensity of a twin-stick. It also has the right kind of enemies, and this is something I should really have noticed earlier. A twin-stick doesn't just give you movement on one stick and aiming on another. It gives you the kind of foes who make sense of this. That is, glass cannons. Everything in Robotron is deadly enough to kill you in one hit, but will also expire in one hit too. (Okay, not the Hulks, but they really are their own thing.) Knee-deep in Helldivers 2, there are lots of terrifying big baddies who need a whole clip or more, certainly. But the game never forgets the joys of letting you swat away one-hit tinfoil robots or hideous paper-thin bugs who can still do you an injury if you give them an opening. This is the kind of combat that keeps you moving. You're always in danger, but you're always being reminded of how deadly you are too. Returnal's another non-twin-stick that captures the thrill of the genre, not surprisingly given the lineage. | Image credit: Housemarque That's Helldivers 2, then, but I've also been playing - just need to check the name - Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor, the spin-off from the massively successful Deep Rock Galactic. Survivor's an auto-shooter, which is what I gather we're now calling Vampire Survivors-alikes. You move around an open space, firing automatically every few seconds. Kill grunts. Gain XP. Use XP to become more deadly and unlock more weapons that also auto-fire. Onwards and upwards. A few years back, twin-sticks were everywhere. (A few years back it was wonderful.) Again, brilliant people are still making them, but these days it's auto-shooters that are truly everywhere, and they do feel like a mutation of the basic twin-stick idea. Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor offers many of the same pleasures of a twin-stick. You have to find space for yourself amongst hordes of enemies. You need to keep moving, you need to keep ahead of the mass of horrors on your tail. You don't have to aim, as such, but you do need to pick a path through the upgrades that come your way. Positioning still counts. Running in circles still counts. Deep into it and Survivor brings back many Robotron memories, in fact. It has mining and different classes and mini-missions, all of which are great, but it's linked to the glory days of the arcades because it's so incredibly unfair and so relentless and it loves it all so much. You are so utterly outnumbered, so mobbed and harassed. You can't help but cheer. And like Helldivers 2, like Robotron and Smash TV, there's a kind of glamour to this, a screen-filling bedazzlement that emerges from the fact that there is one of you, hundreds of them, and no respite to be had. So what do you do in any of these games? Well, you could do worse than start running in circles.

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In Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor and Helldivers 2, the vital spirit of twin-stick shooters lives on

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How to increase your Party Level in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, including the best methods for getting Party XP.

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Figuring out how to raise your Party Level quickly in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth means you can unlock some of your team's best skills fast and make some of Rebirth's tougher challenges a bit easier to handle. You earn Party Level XP from several sources, though not every method of raising your party level is efficient or even advisable in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. We've outlined how to raise your Party Level in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth below and explained what the benefits are of doing it. On this page: To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings What is Party Level in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth? Your Party Level is separate from every character level in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and only increases when you gain party experience. Unlike with regular experience points, you can only earn Party XP by completing certain tasks in the open world - not from battles and boss fights. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix Increasing your party level unlocks new Folios for each character. Folios are where you can spend SP to learn new skills, including Synergy Skills, Synergy Abilities, and handy magic attacks that don't cost MP. The latter abilities quickly become important as you face down bosses with specific elemental weaknesses, including Midgardsormr, and limited access to magic and MP restoratives. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix Character folios unlock simultaneously as you reach new Party Levels. You can reset anyone's skills at any point without cost, so there's no harm in experimenting with different abilities to see what suits your needs the most.

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How to raise Party Level in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

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Our game of the week is Star Wars: Dark Forces Remastered.

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There's a lovely line in Rick Lane's review of Star Wars: Dark Forces. Actually, the piece has no shortage of lovely lines, but one stood out for me in particular. "The result is a game that looks sharp and fresh, but crucially, not new." Dark Forces is our Game of the Week, of course, and I think this line gets at why. It's an old game - 1995, so it's as old as Elastica's first album, for those of us who use that metric. A remaster has to bring it up to date without losing that thrilling sense of oldness. The right kind of oldness, though. Complicated. Remasters are on the rise. They have been on the rise for a number of years, as games have more and more history worth revisiting. But questions like this - of how to make a game look sharp and fresh, but not new, are going to get more important. Dark Forces hits the sweet spot perfectly, I think: look at the screens and it's clearly an old shooter, but your eyes don't reject it as being an interesting relic that's probably unplayable. Subtle tweaks have been made to ensure it looks modern-old rather than relic-old.

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Game of the Week: Star Wars: Dark Forces and the challenge of remasters

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Cloud game streaming doesn't always offer the best in terms of image quality and latency, but how does the PS Plus Clou…

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Sony's PlayStation Plus Cloud Streaming service was introduced last October for PlayStation Plus Premium subscribers, offering 4K streaming of PS5 titles in addition to the old PlayStation Now 720p PS3 and 1080p PS4 experiences. We've been critical of cloud streaming in the past, as what you gain in convenience you often lose in image quality and latency - so how does the Sony offering compare to the native experience on PS5 on that front? And what about Xbox's cloud gaming offering, dubbed Project xCloud? The latter point threw up an interesting curveball during testing: Microsoft's servers are based on Xbox Series X silicon, but the games being streamed are definitely the Series S versions. We've looked at xCloud before (though admittedly, it has changed dramatically since then) but it's worth having a quick primer on how the PlayStation Plus Premium streaming system works on PS5. In short, you'll see a yellow cloud icon next to any game that supports the tech in the PS Plus catalogue, whether you have it installed locally or not. By comparison, Xbox only offers its cloud option for games that are not yet installed. The range of games supported on Sony's service is certainly impressive, from first-party heavy hitters to popular third-party options and indie darlings. And the biggest perk is that titles sporting hefty 200GB+ installs are playable this way in under a minute. In terms of video quality, the service supports 60fps at resolutions up to 4K with HDR, though a true 4K is only possible on PS5 titles. This sadly means that PS4 games played over the cloud still only run at 1080p while PS3 titles are limited to a 720p video stream. The resolution cap for older consoles is a huge shame I think, as some PS3 games had the ability to run at native 1080p on original hardware while PS4 games were often playable at 1440p or higher via a PS4 Pro. That said, the audio options are at least respectable, with 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound offered, alongside PS5's Tempest 3D Audio where possible. PlayStation Plus Game Streaming vs Xbox xCloud: Image Quality/Lag Face-Off Here's the full video presentation of our PS Plus Cloud streaming tests, including Xbox Cloud comparisons. The final point before we kick off with testing is that there are a selection of games outside of the PS Plus catalogue that work with cloud streaming. The catchis that these must be bought digitally via the PlayStation Store first to allow cloud support, like Cyberpunk 2077, for example. Supposing you've just made your purchase and want to dive in without waiting to download the entire game, it's a neat option to have. Therefore, it makes sense to have a quick scan through your own collection to spot that extra cloud symbol. So how does image quality over the the PS Plus cloud stack up to the real thing? Truth be told, the Sony's service has a wide range of results on this front, based on your internet connection and the game content itself. In my case, I'm using a BT FTTC (fibre to the cabinet) connection with 70Mbps download and 20Mbps upload - more than enough bandwidth for a 4K stream. It's worth stressing that any contention on the line - like others on the network watching Netflix or YouTube - may decrease image quality or introduce hitching to the stream. Your choice of game also has an impact: simpler 2D games with flat-shaded shapes and lots of primary colours like Monster Boy are less challenging to stream without image degradation - and in practise are indicernible from playing a true PS5 install. By comparison, more realistic 3D games with areas of high contrast and movement like Cyberpunk 2077 show more issues: fine detail is clearly degraded, while darkened areas smudge over with compression. Looking at a more moderate case like Fortnite - running at 60fps in a matched test - the cloud version almost passes as the real thing but there are clear limits imposed by the video encoder. In the worst case, areas of dense green foliage again cause video breakup, smudging over the definition of grass blades. Pushing things to a further extreme, Assetto Corsa Competizione is something of a worst-case scenario for cloud streaming tech. Typically, racing sims of this nature demand high levels of video bandwidth when presented in video. And so it goes here: in comparing a saved race replay running natively on PS5 versus the cloud solution, the grey overcast sky, rainfall and rapid 60fps movement cause heavy macro-blocking across each frame. In this specific case, it's very hard to recommend PS Plus streaming as an alternative to the real thing. A range of fortunes - Wonder Boy's 2D gameplay and simple graphics (left) make for a much easier video stream than Cyberpunk 2077 during a gunfight/rainstorm, with the result that the former looks near-identical to running the game locally but the latter does not. | Image credit: Digital Foundry That's the range for image clarity then: from Wonder Boy - or anything with limited movement - right up to the more visually busy titles like Assetto Corsa. Meanwhile the likes of Horizon: Forbidden West tend to fall in between these extreme cases in the end result. Playing on either its 4K 30fps mode or 1800p 60fps mode, the cloud version looks surprisingly respectable, though networking hitches are still present and flashes of compression evident on grassy elements. As a way to quickly sample a game with a hefty download, it will easily pass muster. As a stop-gap ahead of playing it natively on a PS5 it's very serviceable, though more discerning fans of the game will easily spot the difference. That brings us to the next crucial point: how PS Plus Cloud compares to Microsoft's Xbox Cloud Gaming. The service is still technically in beta, but it's been this way for years and is offered as an Xbox Game Pass perk on the Ultimate subscription. It's a fair point of comparison in this respect but, to be blunt, the Xbox cloud offering simply does not compete with the PS+ Premium service from a technological perspective, for a multitude of reasons. In image quality, for example, it's significantly worse, with a maximum 1080p resolution video stream against 4K on PlayStation. The bitrate is also visibly lower in step with that resolution target, something that's evident in just about every game we tested. A Plague Tale Requiem, compared running in its 60fps mode across PS5, PS+ Cloud and Xbox Cloud Gaming (image comparison further down this page), shows just how far Microsoft is behind here. The PS5 native version comes out best, inevitably, while the PS Plus Cloud version succumbs to compression artefacts but still adequately represents the game. Unfortunately, the Xbox solution is not even close to Sony's, with a hugely compressed image that simply can't handle elements like swaying grass, fire or even the shaded detail of a house. This isn't a single trouble spot either, as all of A Plague Tale's rich forest areas from the start of the game suffer a similar fate. More PS5 local vs cloud streaming comparisons: Fortnite (left) and Assetto Corsa Competizione. Cloud streaming is at times perceptually similar to the local install, but in rapid motion each incurs the wrath of video compression. | Image credit: Digital Foundry There's an extra twist to this too. Not only is the video stream lower quality on Xbox's cloud gaming service, but users are being served the Xbox Series S versions of each game I tested - despite confirmation from Microsoft that xCloud datacentres are built on Series X silicon. To be clear, this is not a consumer Series S console as we know it. Indeed, based on our interview with Microsoft back in 2020, Series X silicon is used on the server-end for Xbox Cloud Gaming, but that processing power can be sub-divided to virtualise multiple less powerful Xbox machines. (One example Microsoft gave in 2020 is that a single Series X console could be virtualised into four Xbox One S systems to minimise queue times.) Based on our testing, it stands to reason that today's implementation of the Xbox cloud uses a virtualised Series S running on Series X silicon. All of this would, in theory, service more than one player from a single slice of Series X silicon, for an end result comparable to an actual Series S machine - a remarkable technological achievement from Microsoft. It's easy to imagine that this change was made to facilitate shorter queue times and as the service tops out at 1080p streams right now, using the Series S versions of the games won't be that impactful in a range of titles. However, other games will have issues. In the case of A Plague Tale Requiem, it's easy to prove we're targeting Series S spec hardware over the Xbox cloud. The first giveaway is the fact there's no performance/quality mode toggle in its graphics menus, much like a bona-fide Series S. Also telling is the fact it runs the game at a similar 900p resolution, with pruned back foliage LOD settings compared to a full-featured Series X version. Focusing on the frame-rate as well, the Series S version has a bug right now that unlocks the frame-rate from its intended 30fps cap - and this applies both on a consumer Series S and in Xbox Cloud Gaming. Each is seriously GPU-bound of course, but the point is that we get a precisely matched 40fps to 45fps reading between them - Xbox cloud and native Series S install - while playing its first chapter. The PS Plus streaming video encoder has its issues with compression but still holds up reasonably well against a local PS5. Xbox Cloud gaming meanwhile adds macro-block artefacts to the image that, in worst case scenarios like this, distract from the experience. In visual settings, frame-rate, and functionality then, the Xbox Cloud Gaming version of Requiem is a fingerprint match for an Xbox Series S. In truth the setup here is little disappointing if you're playing on a Series X machine. The Xbox cloud experience not only suffers fram additional compression, but the content itself is not representative of the visuals or performance you'd expect from a local Series X install. As a way to sample the game ahead of installing it, it's we're not getting the 'full-fat experience' in the way you will with PlayStation Plus streaming. Just to make sure that A Plague Tale Requiem isn't an unfortunate one-off, I had to try one more multi-platform game: Resident Evil 2 Remake. Helpfully the game's ray tracing mode toggle is included on all versions of the game - even Series S - and so by extension it's available on the Xbox cloud version. No current-gen machine delivers a perfect 60fps in this mode, with frequent sub-60fps performance across Raccoon City's streets, but it's perfect for our benchmarking. Again, there is the same result: the frame-rate-reading is identical between a native Series S install and Xbox cloud here. Likewise, its visual settings for shadows, textures, and alpha effects are a match. By contrast, if we swap over to an equivalent test of PS Plus cloud streaming, there are identical results on a local PS5 install versus the Sony cloud - which translates to 20fps lead on PlayStaiton Cloud versus xCloud, alongside a higher resolution and improved visual settings. Again, it's no contest. Frame-rate performance is a huge advantage for the PlayStation Plus service. Right now the Xbox cloud uses Series S-equivalent hardware on its servers on the titles we tested, which inevitably is no match for the PS5-grade hardware used on the PS Plus cloud. | Image credit: Digital Foundry So, Xbox Cloud Gaming has an issue then - and it doesn't just afflict third-party titles, as Halo Infinite and Gears 5 also run at lower internal resolutions (1080p and 900p respectively) when streamed via the cloud. In both cases, these are lower figures than what we'd expect from true Series X hardware. Added to that, there appears to be a bug with the Xbox service on occasion, causing a 30fps cap with uneven frame pacing to appear regardless of game. In the case of A Plague Tale Requiem and Back 4 Blood, the first times we launched each game over cloud triggered erratic, choppy performance - thankfully fixed with a reboot of the game. PS Plus cloud streaming had no such issue: in every case we were met with a PS5-equivalent experience, at least before video compression and latency are taken into account. Input latency is the final hurdle that any cloud streaming offering has to pass, and I put this to the test too. In terms of display settings, I used 60Hz as the output on PS5 - no additional VRR modes selected - to keep things simple. To test latency, I used Nvidia's LDAT sensor here as usual, which helps calculate the time between an on-screen action (like a muzzle flash in Cyberpunk 2077) and a trigger input on controller. After averaging 100 results between native PS5 gaming and the cloud version, the Cyberpunk 2077 results are fascinating. We get 88ms with the native test, versus 143ms on the cloud - which means it adds an extra 54ms overall. Control inputs are noticeably delayed here, and especially so for a game like Cyberpunk where input lag is high to begin with in native gameplay. I did try the game's 30fps RT mode as well, which I recorded as 147ms natively versus 205ms over the cloud, which gives us a similar 57ms of additional lag. CP2077 Latency (ms) 60fps - Wired 60fps - Bluetooth 30fps - Wired 30fps - Bluetooth PS5 Native Gaming 87.5 88.3 146.9 147.9 PS+ Cloud Streaming 135.1 143.2 201.4 205.3 Latency Added 47.5 54.9 54.5 57.4 12.1ms input lag is subtracted from each result to factor in the Asus ROG Swift PG259QN monitor - running at 60Hz - used in our tests. To compare PS+ streaming against Xbox Cloud Streaming next, I had to dig deep to find a common game on both cloud services - a 60fps FPS with a distinct muzzle flash for use with LDAT. In the end I landed on Back 4 Blood, the spiritual successor to Left 4 Dead. After 100 samples for each, curiously the native install results read out at 84ms on PS5 versus just 54ms on Xbox - a clear advantage on Xbox systems with no cloud involvement. It's a strange discovery that, in first-hand experience, bears out with snappier controls on Xbox. The crucial bit though is the relative difference to the same game running over the cloud. Using the same methodology, we get 137ms on PS+ Cloud against 99ms on the Xbox cloud - or an extra 53ms of latency on PlayStation versus an extra 45ms on Xbox. In terms of added latency then, it's a win for Xbox's cloud service here. Potentially this latency difference is due to my proximity to the nearest server for each service, but it is a consistent latency advantage for Xbox in my testing. On the flip side though, the shortfalls there in image quality, and frame-rate performance are a major factor to consider. That's state of cloud gaming on console right now. For the cost of the PlayStation Plus Premium tier, overall, Sony's approach does have fewer issues. It gives us a more authentic experience, with a 4K presentation and a version of the game that's more comparable to an actual PS5. The higher latency compared to Xbox is a disappointment, but then, Xbox Cloud Gaming's issues are perhaps more impactful: a lower bitrate and resolution, heavier compression, and most importantly, the lack of parity with Series X features and performance. The Xbox Cloud Gaming service is simply not on the same level as PS Plus cloud streaming in terms of quality, as it stands today. Back 4 Blood Latency (ms) PS5 - Wired PS5 - Bluetooth XSX - Wired XSX - Bluetooth Native Gaming 84.2 86.2 54.6 58.3 Cloud Streaming 137.8 137.9 99.6 102.0 Latency Added 53.6 51.7 45.0 43.7 12.1ms input lag is subtracted from each result to factor in the Asus ROG Swift PG259QN monitor - running at 60Hz - used in our tests. It's a shame, because there's a genuine argument for cloud streaming when done correctly - the immediacy of booting any game sans downloads makes it a great way to try out new titles or access them on a new machine. Slower-paced RPGs (Sea of Stars) and puzzle games (Unpacking) are a great fit here. Of course, cloud streaming has its compromises, but as a stop-gap until you download the real thing it's a useful option - at least as long as the game you play over the cloud is representative of local performance. That's certainly more the case on PS+ than on Xbox Cloud Gaming right now. Speaking of value, the cost of each has to be mentioned too. The PlayStaion Plus Premium tier costs £13.50/$18 per month or at a slight discount for £120/$160 a year. For that you currently get 851 games available to stream right away, 201 of which are PS5 titles. The catalogue varies by region too, but it's an impressive number. And as a bonus, specific additional PS5 titles are available for cloud streaming if you happen to have bought them through the PlayStation store already, such as Cyberpunk 2077. By comparison Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, the tier that includes streaming, costs a similar £13/$17 a month. In exchange, you get access to 402 cloud-ready games overall, including 225 for Series X/S. Each of these services have huge benefits in terms of access to game downloads and other features, but if we're focusing on cloud streaming alone, there's a clear winner. Between the use of PS5-grade hardware server-side, the higher bitrate and resolution, PlayStation Plus presents its catalogue at a quality level that's much closer to justifying that Premium label - even if it's behind Xbox in terms of latency.

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PlayStation cloud streaming vs Microsoft xCloud: image quality, performance and latency tested

https://www.eurogamer.net/digitalfoundry-2024-cloud-streaming-face-off-playstation-plus-cloud-versus-xcloud-beta

Hello! Welcome back to our regular feature where we write a little bit about some of the games we've been playing over …

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1st March 2024 Hello! Welcome back to our regular feature where we write a little bit about some of the games we've been playing over the past few days. This week: faewilds, tins, and liars. If you fancy catching up on some of the older editions of What We've Been Playing, here's our archive. Nightingale, PC I've been playing Nightingale for a couple of days fairly intensely now, and I'm not entirely sure what to make of it. It starts off really brightly, really full of, apparently, interesting new ideas. A Victorian setting, a faerie realm story idea, where everyone is scattered across these pocket realms, trying to find their way home. There's a semblance of story here, a whiff of RPG to go with the survival crafting core, and a clever card-based mechanic for generating your own realms and then messing with them. And yet, two days later, I'm still waiting for the game to hit its stride. I'm under the impression it gets better, and that when you get into the mid-game and beyond, it comes into its own. But it's - as Matt wrote in his preview - getting to the mid-game that's the issue. It's a real trudge up to that point. It's the endless 'go craft something else' treadmill of survival that keeps slowing everything down. NIGHTINGALE Preview & Early Access Impressions: What To Know Before Playing Zoe gives a great overview of what Nightingale is like in this video. For instance: at one point you'll have to up your gear score, as in a game like Destiny, and to do so, you'll need to collect essences from killing enemies. They don't always drop, though. It's 40 essences to upgrade one item, so you begin to see the laboriousness involved. There's a lot more I'll talk about in a fuller piece, but like I say: many bright ideas. I'm just not sure if I'm actually having fun. -Bertie Tinderblox, tabletop Tinderblox is a little game that comes in a tin. The tin's stuffed with pieces and cards and a pair of plastic tweezers. I've been after a game I can just carry around with me for a while, and Tinderblox is almost that game. I just think the tin is slightly too big. The closest comparison to the game itself is probably Jenga. Tinderblox is about building a campfire. You and a few other players take turns drawing cards that tell you which blocks to add to the growing fire. There are logs and flame blocks, and often you'll need to pair a log with a flame and add it as a single piece. You do this with the tweezers, finding a spot on the existing fire and then trying to get your new pieces balanced. If you drop a piece when you're placing it or if you knock something else off the fire, you're out. What elevates this, though, is a little icon that's sometimes in the corner of the card you turn over. This tells you whether you have to shift to using your non-dominant hand to place the blocks on the fire. I don't know what it is, but as soon as I have to use my left hand rather than my right, my adrenalin spikes, and I can't stop laughing. So I often laugh myself to disaster in Tinderblox. All good. I just wish the tin was a bit smaller. -Chris Donlan Avalon, tabletop Avalon is basically Traitors, right? It's built on the same concept: social deduction, the same thing powering Werewolf and Wink Murder and whatever else you want to pull into that vortex. The first time I played Avalon was at Tom Phillips' stag do, funnily enough - he'll love that I'm writing about that here - and I was amazed at how immediate and powerful the experience was. You don't expect it; the default Avalon box, with a generic fantasy lady on it, is about as boring as it comes, and yet! Inside lurks a game of lies and betrayal, just like in Traitors. To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings The idea, broadly, in Avalon, is that you are King Arthur's merry band of knights and you have to successfully complete missions, but if there's a villain, a traitor, in your midst, they can fail the missions so you need to weed them out. You need to be sure who you're sending on the mission before it begins, otherwise you're in danger. There are all kinds of permutations to this, the core idea complicated over time for those who want more of a challenge, but that's it in essence. What amazes me about it - just like it did the first time - is how quickly it ensnares people. There's something so fundamental to us about defending an accusation of lying, that we can't help it. Case in point: we roped my Dad in over Christmas, and board games aren't really his thing, but within an instant, he was pointing fingers and levelling accusations just like people do in Traitors. And it's that core concept I think we all relate so strongly to in the TV show. Traitors didn't originate any of this, then, but it's opened up a whole new audience to it. I can't wait for the Avalon game we've scheduled to play next week. -Bertie

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What we've been playing

https://www.eurogamer.net/what-weve-been-playing-149

Balatro, the poker-themed rogue-like from solo developer LocalThunk that's been a huge critical and commercial hit sinc…

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Balatro, the poker-themed rogue-like from solo developer LocalThunk that's been a huge critical and commercial hit since releasing last week, has been unexpectedly yanked from sale in some countries, with publisher Playstack blaming the issue on a surprise ratings change. Playstack addressed the issue in a lengthy statement shared on social media, explaining Balatro's temporary removal from console stores had so far only happened "some countries". It admitted it could not "estimate with complete confidence which stores" had been impacted, adding, "Our hope is that only a minority of stores will be affected". It says it remains "highly confident" Balatro will remain available on PC, including Steam. The cause of all this frustration is an unexpected "overnight change" to Balatro's age rating, which has been bumped from 3+ to 18+. According to Playstack, this change stems from an unspecified ratings board's "mistaken belief that the game 'contains prominent gambling imagery and materials that instructs about gambling'". While Playstack doesn't call out the ratings board by name in its statement, the publisher is almost certainly referring to Europe's PEGI. Balatro currently has an PEGI 18 rating on the Xbox and PlayStation digital stores - alongside a warning the game contains "prominent gambling imagery" - and it no longer appears at all on Nintendo's UK eShop. "Balatro does not allow or encourage gambling," the publisher continues, "and we fundamentally believe the ratings decision is unfounded. Balatro was developed by someone who is staunchly anti-gambling, and painstaking care has been taken to ensure that the game does not feature gambling mechanics of any kind". Playstack adds it's "especially disappointed" given that it has already "specifically address this topic" with the ratings board, which agreed to classify the game as 3+ following an appeal over its initial 18+ rating. When the appeal was successful, the ratings board is said to have told the publisher, "We have reviewed your product and determined that the disclosure of gambling themes was unwarranted". Playstack stresses that no content has changed since then. "We are deeply sorry that some fans will not be able to access [Balatro] this weekend", the publisher continues, before assuring players the game will eventually "be back on sale, possibly with a temporary 18+ rating, while we resolve the issue. We thank you for your patience and support - we are utterly blown away by your passion and belief in Balatro." Eurogamer's Christian Donlan had good things to say about Balatro's rogue-like spin on poker in his four-star review, calling it, "So striking and so brilliantly constructed, and something that has given me such pleasure for the last week".

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Rogue-like poker hit Balatro pulled from sale in some countries due to unexpected ratings change

https://www.eurogamer.net/rogue-like-poker-hit-balatro-pulled-from-sale-in-some-countries-due-to-unexpected-ratings-change

Here's where to pre-order Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth before its release date of 29th February 2024.

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Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is the highly anticipated sequel to Final Fantasy 7 Remake/ Intergrade. The remade version of the iconic 1997 PlayStation title continues the story of the Buster Sword-wielding Cloud Strife and his party as they venture out of Midgar on the search for Sephiroth. Rebirth released exclusively for PlayStation 5 on 29th February 2024. You'll find the cheapest places to buy the standard and deluxe versions from UK and US retailers below. Where to buy Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Standard Edition Image credit: Square Enix The Standard Edition includes the base game only and has an RRP of £69.99/$69.99. BuyFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirth Standard edition UK Buy Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Standard edition US Where to buy Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Deluxe edition Image credit: Square Enix The Deluxe Edition includes the base game, plus a Midgar Bangle Accessory, exclusive Steelbook case, mini-soundtrack CD and a hardback artbook. It has an RRP of £99.99/$99.99 Buy Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Deluxe edition UK Buy Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Deluxe edition US

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Best Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth deals

https://www.eurogamer.net/best-final-fantasy-7-rebirth-deals

If you, like me, fell rather in love with Visai Games' narrative cooking game Venba last year, I have good news.

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If you, like me, fell rather in love with Visai Games' narrative cooking game Venba last year, I have good news. Its Cookbook DLC is on the way, with a release date set just two weeks away. Venba's Cookbook DLC will arrive on 13th March and - even better - when it does arrive, it will be free for all owners of the base game. Venba - Launch Trailer | PS5 Games Here's Venba's release trailer, to give you a little taster. Venba's upcoming DLC will offer players a way to look through detailed recipes for the dishes made in the game. This is something, let's be honest, we all wanted while playing along. Everything just looked (and sounded) so delicious. I had a quick look at the Venba team's TikTok account, and one post gave a little teaser for the upcoming DLC's biryani recipe. This is absolutely going to be on my menu as soon as I get my hands on the DLC. I am actually getting quite hungry just thinking about it... is 11.30am too early for supper? Venba cookbook DLC is coming March 13th! But we haven't shared the best news 👀👀 The DLC is completely free if you own the base game! 🙌🙌🙌 pic.twitter.com/IMbfR8vfdo — Venba | Available now!! (@venbaGame) February 29, 2024 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings We awarded Venba four out of five stars on its release last year. "Venba's simple gameplay allows you to enjoy its story more, and though its presence is as temporary as a 90-minute movie, the rarity of such experiences always leave you feeling good once the credits start to roll," Emad Ahmed wrote in Eurogamer's Venba review. "The day prior to playing Venba, my sister and I made biryani together. But after this experience, I wanted to do it all over again."

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Venba's mouthwatering DLC arrives free this month

https://www.eurogamer.net/venbas-mouthwatering-dlc-arrives-free-this-month

Genshin Impact 4.5 Banner and event schedule and 4.5 release date and time, including new characters, and limited event…

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The Genshin Impact 4.5 Banner and event details have been officially announced for the latest patch, titled Blades Weaving Betwixt Brocad. As always, there are two Banner phases and new time-limited events in the latest update, with Genshin Impact version 4.5 featuring one new 5-Star character, and three 5-Star Banner reruns. We also got details of a new type of Banner: Chronicled Wish. Below, you can find out the 4.5 release date and time, who the returning characters are, and what the 4.5 Banners and events schedule is for the upcoming patch. Be sure to also check out our Genshin Impact codes page to get free Primogems that can be used towards unlocking new characters and weapons. On this page: To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Version 4.4 "Vibrant Harriers Aloft in Spring Breeze" Trailer | Genshin Impact.Watch on YouTube Genshin Impact 4.5 release date and time Genshin Impact 4.5 will release on Wednesday 13th March. It should follow the usual maintenance schedule for new updates, with 4.5 releasing at 3am (GMT). Due to time zone differences, 4.5 releases in the United States on Tuesday 12th March at 7pm (PT). For other time zones, the Genshin Impact 4.5 release date and time is: East Coast US : Tuesday 12th March, 10pm (ET) : Tuesday 12th March, 10pm (ET) Central US : Tuesday 12th March, 9pm (CT) : Tuesday 12th March, 9pm (CT) West Coast US : Tuesday 12th March, 7pm (PT) : Tuesday 12th March, 7pm (PT) Australia : Wednesday 13th March, 2pm (AET) : Wednesday 13th March, 2pm (AET) Japan : Wednesday 13th March, 12pm (JST) : Wednesday 13th March, 12pm (JST) Europe : Wednesday 13th March, 4am (CET) : Wednesday 13th March, 4am (CET) UK: Wednesday 13th March, 3am (GMT) As this is only an approximate time for how long the servers are down, you might be able to play the 4.5 patch a little before or after the times above - although previous update estimates have been fairly accurate. Image credit: HoYoverse Genshin Impact 4.5 Banners The version 4.5 Banners debut new 5-Star character Chiori. There are no new 4-Star characters in version 4.5, but there is a new type of Banner being introduced: Chronicled Wish. For more details, check our our Chronicled Wish Banner explainer. Sticking to the regular event Banners, Phase 1 of the 4.5 Banner schedule begins with new Geo 5-Star Chiori, featured in her Of Silken Clouds Woven Banner, and returning Geo 5-Star Itto featured in his Oni's Royale Banner. As usual, the 4.5 Phase 1 Banners run alongside each other, and should be available from Wednesday 13th March until Wednesday 3rd April. Image credit: HoYoverse In Phase 2 of the 4.5 Banner schedule we have returning Anemo 5-Star Kazuha's Leaves in the Wind Banner and returning Hydro 5-Star Neuvillette's Decree of the Deeps Banner. These Phase 2 Banners should run from Wednesday 3rd April until Tuesday 23rd April - the day before the expected release date of the 4.6 update. Image credit: HoYoverse In summary, all of the new characters and returning 5-Star characters you can Wish on during 4.5 in Genshin Impact are: Chiori (Of Silken Clouds Woven Banner - Phase 1) : New 5-Star Geo character who uses a sword. : New 5-Star Geo character who uses a sword. Itto (Oni's Royale Banner - Phase 1) : Returning 5-Star Geo character who uses a claymore. : Returning 5-Star Geo character who uses a claymore. Kazuha (Leaves in the Wind Banner - Phase 2) : Returning 5-Star Anemo character who uses a sword. : Returning 5-Star Anemo character who uses a sword. Neuvillette (Decree of the Deeps Banner - Phase 2): Returning 5-Star Hydro character who uses a catalyst. There will also be a new weapon in Phase 1 of the version 4.5 weapon Banner: the 5-Star Uraku Misugiri sword, Chiori's signature. Image credit: HoYoverse To keep up to date with who the boosted 4-Star characters and weapons will be, and all other Banner changes (including the new Chronicled Wish Banner), check out our regularly updated Banner schedule page. Version 4.5 with Chiori is nearly here, but in the mean time duringVersion 4.4, you can unlock the Rainjade Oblation for rewards. If you're still exploring the Hydro nation, our Fontaine guide can help with Fontaine's Reputation and the Fountain of Lucine, and you can also redeem new codes for Primogems, and check out our regularly updated tier list. You need luck from the Pity and 50/50 systems to Wish with Fate for characters on Banners, and you always need the right Adventure Rank for events. Elsewhere, we have tips and tricks for beginners, and Dendroculus locations. Genshin Impact 4.5 events The Genshin Impact 4.5 update includes: New Chronicled Wish Banner. Chiori's first Story Quest. Lynette Hangout Quest (Fateometer reward). Training Guide feature. Genius Invokation TCG Update (new cards, events, and challenges). Leyline Overflow event. More system optimisations (like viewing talent upgrade materials from the character menu). Image credit: HoYoverse In addition to this content, we're getting the usual four events during 4.5 Here's everything we know about every time-limited event in Genshin Impact 4.5: Alchemical Ascension We return to Mondstadt for the main event in version 4.5, as Lisa opens a potion shop that you get to run. This is similar to other management sim minigames that Genshin has had. This time, you can also complete requests from familiar characters to make the event easier and earn more rewards, like a new 4-Star polearm weapon, The Dialogues of the Desert Sages. Image credit: HoYoverse Feline Fortress Furrdyssey Cyno would be a big fan of the event name, but ignoring the questionable spelling for now, Feline Fortress Furrdyssey actually looks like another manage sim-type minigame. Wanting a break from all their adventuring, the Traveler and Paimon return to Mondstadt to set up homes for cats and feed them in order to eventually play with the cats. If all of the cats are befriended, a "special friend" will show up. Image credit: HoYoverse Rolling Crossfire Rolling Crossfire takes place in Fontaine, and is started by speaking with two guards, one of which is a genius, naturally. This guard gives you a remote canon, and you have to use this canon in Rolling Crossfire to hold off an endless barrage of Slime enemies. It looks like a fun take on Space Invaders, but with a Genshin twist, as you can use Elemental Reactions to get more points, and pick up power-ups from the field. Image credit: HoYoverse The Great Fayz Reaction Debate Fayz returns for another combat event in The Great Fayz Reaction Debate. This time you can manipulate time after using a Skill, as if you don't move after using a Skill, everything freezes, and you can take pictures while in this state. As for the rest of the combat, you'll accumulate Phase Force while fighting that can help you complete the challenges for more rewards. Image credit: HoYoverse Hope you have fun during version 4.5!

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Genshin Impact 4.5 release date, 4.5 Banner and event details

https://www.eurogamer.net/genshin-impact-4-5-release-date-time-banner-schedule-events-9426

Ori and the Blind Forest developer Moon Studios has announced its dark action-RPG No Rest for the Wicked will launch in…

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Ori and the Blind Forest developer Moon Studios has announced its dark action-RPG No Rest for the Wicked will launch into Steam early access on 18th April. No Rest for the Wicked, which was unveiled during last year's The Game Awards, is described by Moon Studios as an "expansive" and "visceral" action-RPG that's "set to reinvent the genre". It casts players as a Cerim - a holy warrior "imbued with remarkable powers" - who embarks on a journey across the harsh Isola Sacra to defeat an unholy plague. Its campaign promises a "mature, dark" narrative, as well as "brutal, precision-based" combat, and a hand-crafted world, with players can take on No Rest for the Wicked's challenges, quests, and bosses either solo or with up to three friends by their side. Wicked Inside Teaser No Rest for the Wicked teaser. When No Rest for the Wicked launches into Steam early access on 18th April, it'll include the first chapter of its campaign, additional quests that "reveal more about the world and its inhabitants", plus a "large variety" of weapons, armour, skills, and crafting options. This initial version will also include a modifiable home to purchase and furnish, daily and weekly bounties and challenges, plus a replayable dungeon. Moon Studios doesn't reveal how long it expects No Rest for the Wicked to be in early access, but says its 1.0 release will be "significantly expanded", with the likes of four-player co-op, PvP, new regions, and farming being added as development continues. PS5 and Xbox Series X/S releases were also confirmed in December, but there's no word on when those might arrive. No Rest for the Wicked marks the studio's first release since 2020's Ori sequel Will of the Wisps. Following that game's arrival, a report from VentureBeat, based on conversations with Moon Studios employees, called the developer "oppressive", alleging its founders Thomas Mahler and Gennadiy Korol had fostered a "harsh online culture" where they could indulge in "inappropriate behaviour", including "casual racism, sexism, and bullying". Mahler and Korol responded by rejecting VentureBeat's claims, saying they did not believe "the experiences suggested [were] representative" of current and former employees. They did, however, admit there may have been times their conversations "made others feel uncomfortable", adding, "We regret that and we will always strive to do better."

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Ori studio's No Rest for the Wicked enters Steam early access in April

https://www.eurogamer.net/ori-studios-no-rest-for-the-wicked-enters-steam-early-access-in-april

A number of developers at Rockstar Games have criticised the company for telling employees they must return to the offi…

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Developers at GTA 6 studio Rockstar Games have criticised the company for telling employees they must return to the office full-time next month, calling leadership's decision "reckless". As reported yesterday, employees at Rockstar have been told to return to the office five days a week, now that GTA 6 is entering the final stretch of development. Studio management cited security and productivity reasons for this upcoming change, which will come into effect in April. Since this announcement, the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain (IWGB) has blasted Rockstar for its plans to withdraw remote working provisions for the "majority" of its staff, noting the studio said any exceptions to the new rules will be "rare". To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings The first trailer for Grand Theft Auto 6.Watch on YouTube Referencing a petition signed by 170 Rockstar Games workers last year opposing mandatory three-day office work, the union said the studio's latest decision "marks a U-turn from previous statements in which the company insisted flexible work options would remain available". In addition, several members of the development team have spoken to the IWGB, voicing concerns about a return to full-time office work. An anonymous Rockstar employee told the union that working from home had been "a lifeline" for many members of staff. "Now, Rockstar is snatching away that lifeline without a second thought for the workers who'll be impacted most," they said. "After so many broken promises we now fear management may even be paving the way for a return to toxic 'crunch' practices. Senior leadership need to rethink their reckless decision making and engage with their staff to find an arrangement that works for everyone." Another employee said there had been no consultation from management prior to the change. Again, they cited concerns that staff will soon be expected to "work late hours in the office to maintain contact with global teams". Previously, staff had been able to log in to meetings held outside normal working hours remotely if required. "This will mean missing out on spending time with our families," they said, adding concerns for "colleagues who have health issues preventing full time office work who are now left in limbo". Rockstar's developers all "care greatly" about the games they make, one worker said, adding the team's "passion, skill, and talent should never be taken for granted by studio management". "It is together, through collaboration and a healthy work life balance and workplace culture that we continue making some of the most beloved and spectacular games in our industry," they said. The union itself also released a statement, which said it was "unacceptable" that leadership had decided to go "back on their word time and time again". "The workers in the IWGB Game Workers Union at Rockstar are pushing for transparency over pay and promotions, a healthy and inclusive workplace culture, and work life balance centred around what each worker needs," IWGB Game Workers chair Austin Kelmore wrote. "Workers across the industry are done with letting executives make reckless and harmful decisions and the Rockstar workers are showing us the start of what's to come if they're continually ignored. There's no better time than now to join our union and push for this to be the healthy and sustainable games industry we know it can be." Eurogamer has asked Rockstar for further comment. GTA 6 is scheduled to launch in 2025 on both Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5. Rockstar is yet to give a timeframe for a PC release. For more on the game, here's everything we know about GTA 6 so far.

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GTA 6 developers blast Rockstar's "reckless" decision to return to office full-time

https://www.eurogamer.net/gta-6-developers-blast-rockstars-reckless-decision-to-return-to-office-full-time

Vampire Survivors might continue to be suspiciously devoid of vampires, but it does now have a bunch of new cosmic sci-…

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Vampire Survivors might continue to be suspiciously devoid of vampires, but it does now have a bunch of new cosmic sci-fi bits (clearly last year's Among Us collaboration just wasn't space-y enough), courtesy of its latest free update on Steam, Xbox, PlayStation, and mobile. Space 54, as the update is known, introduces a new bonus stage going by the same name - officially described as a "cosmic border-realm between this plane of existence and a sinister, third dimension" - as well as two new characters to deploy. One of those characters, Space Dude, is the star of developer Poncle's energetic Space 54 trailer (or Space-54, or Space54 - the studio doesn't seem to have entirely made its mind up), and there's also four new weapons, a new relic, and seven new EXTRA achievements. These latest achievements, as explained over in Poncle's update notes, are all inspired by open-source game framework Phaser, which was originally used to create Vampire Survivors. "If I hadn't loved working with [Phaser] to begin with," the notes explain, "I would have probably never made VS, so I thought it deserved a bit more than just a line in the credits." Elsewhere in Poncle's notes, it teases some of the future content coming as part of Vampire Survivors' Chaos Roadmap, saying the next three updates have now been decided. "A lot of players have been asking for more dark/serious settings," it explains, "so I can at least tell you that one of those three steps has been cherry picked because it's probably the darkest one we have on the roadmap. It won't be the next one, but should arrive soon enough!". Additionally, development continues on Vampire Survivors' online co-op mode - "Technical work is going well," Poncle says, "still too early for more details!" - and the studio's Vampire Survivors-adjacent experiments with other indie developers are also "going well". Vampire Survivors - 1997 Teaser Trailer | PS1 Vampire Survivors - 1997 Teaser Trailer. Today's Space 54 update is - as promised back in January - accompanied by the Steam and Android public beta launch for Vampire Survivors' cross-save feature. "Please send us any feedback about the feature," Poncle adds. "It's very delicate since we're talking about save-data, so we'll take all the help we can get to make sure it's solid." And that's still not quite everything! To celebrate today's launch of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth (the team are apparently massive Final Fantasy fans, and Rebirth is supposedly quite good), Poncle has released a special Vampire Survivors trailer mimicking the Final Fantasy 7 PlayStation 1 teaser from back in 1997. "How much of what you see in the trailer is actually real content for Vampire Survivors," it notes, "will be left to speculation."

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Vampire Survivors adds Space Dude and more in today's cosmic Space 54 update

https://www.eurogamer.net/vampire-survivors-adds-space-dude-and-more-in-todays-cosmic-space-54-update

Four new cast members have been announced for The Last of Us' second season.

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Four new cast members have been announced for The Last of Us' second season. As reported by Variety, Danny Ramirez, Tati Gabrielle, Ariela Barer and Spencer Lord have all joined HBO's adaptation. Those who have played The Last of Us Part 2 will recognise their characters as members of the Washington Liberation Front (WLF). Ramirez, whose previous acting credits include Top Gun: Maverick and Marvel's The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, will play Manny. The show's description states Manny is "a loyal soldier whose sunny outlook belies the pain of old wounds and a fear that he will fail his friends when they need him most". Barer, meanwhile, will play Mel, described as "a young doctor whose commitment to saving lives is challenged by the realities of war and tribalism". To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered's Roguelike No Return Mode Explained.Watch on YouTube Rounding out these cast announcements, Lord - who has also starred in Riverdale and Family Law - will play Owen. Owen is described as "a gentle soul trapped in a warrior's body, condemned to fight an enemy he refuses to hate". Last but not least, Gabrielle will portray Nora, "a military medic struggling to come to terms with the sins of her past". This won't be Gabrielle's first foray into video game adaptations, with the actress previously starring as Braddock in the Uncharted film. She is also playing Jade in New Line's upcoming film, Mortal Kombat 2. Tati Gabrielle as Braddock in Uncharted. | Image credit: PlayStation Productions The actors join Bella Ramsey's Ellie, Pedro Pascal's Joel, Kaitlyn Dever's Abby, Young Mazino's Jesse, and Isabela Merced's Dina for the second season of The Last of Us. Earlier this year, it was also announced that Schitt's Creek star Catherine O'Hara had joined the cast, although her role remains a mystery for now. The second season of The Last of Us is due to air in 2025. It will not cover the entirety of the second game, but will have "a lot more infected" than in the first season. As for season one, The Last of Us recently won eight Emmy awards, including for best picture editing, main title design, prosthetic makeup, sound editing, sound mixing, and visual effects.

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The Last of Us season two cast adds Danny Ramirez, Tati Gabrielle

https://www.eurogamer.net/the-last-of-us-season-two-cast-adds-danny-ramirez-tati-gabrielle

Destiny 2 is adding a new kind of vehicle - the hoverboard-esque Skimmer - in its next update due on Tuesday, 5th March…

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Destiny 2 is adding a new kind of vehicle - the hoverboard-esque Skimmer - in its next update due on Tuesday, 5th March. Skimmers will let players zoom around looking cool, pull off tricks and even grind on rails. They'll live alongside Sparrows - the game's traditional Star Wars speeder bikes - in your inventory. As with anything fun or cool, the first hit is free - all players will get a Skimmer as part of the upcoming Guardian Games All-Stars event. A second Skimmer "inspired by a beloved Destiny weapon" will be available to buy via Destiny 2's Eververse microtransaction shop. Newscast: Will Pokémon Legends: ZA be a Switch 2 launch title? Newscast: Will Pokémon Legends: ZA be a Switch 2 launch title? This is the second month in a row where Bungie has added something sure to appeal to lapsed players or Destiny 2's ongoing faithful - after January's addition of a character editor, something fans have been waiting - and asking for - for a full decade. 2024 will, of course, see Destiny 2's delayed The Final Shape expansion finally arrive and cap off the franchise's 10-year story arc involving the Pyramid Ships, the Traveller space golf ball and various other plot threads that have been slowly intertwined since the beginning of Destiny 1. It follows a tough time for Destiny 2 developer Bungie after layoffs and decreasing revenues for the game, prompting The Final Shape's delay from February to June this year in order to give it a further polish. Bungie's Marathon reimagining has also reportedly been delayed, and is now set to arrive in 2025.

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Destiny 2 gets hoverboards next week

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Two fake Helldivers 2 games popped up on Steam last night.

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Two fake Helldivers 2 games popped up on Steam last night, both masquerading as Arrowhead's hit shooter in a bid to scam people into buying their product. Each title listed Arrowhead as its developer, and PlayStation as its publisher. A message sent around the official Arrowhead Discord this morning warned the community of these fake games, stating that the only legitimate releases were Helldivers 2 and Helldivers 2: Super Citizen Edition with the correct release date of 8th February. "People posting as us trying to scam people is obviously very sad and frustrating, and for that as well as for security reasons we urge you to stay clear of them," Arrowhead's community manager wrote. "Again, the only two Helldivers 2 products we market are Helldivers 2 and Helldivers 2 Super Citizen Edition." To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Helldivers 2 - Report for Duty Trailer | PS5 & PC Games.Watch on YouTube The fake Helldivers 2 games have now been removed from Steam, with Arrowhead stating Valve acted "very swiftly" when contacted. However, evidence remains thanks to screenshots shared by Wario64 on X. These images show just how convincing the fake games were. Aside from the wrong release date and the small handful of user reviews, the rest of the sale page looks incredibly similar to Arrowhead's actual Helldivers 2 sales page. Image credit: Valve via Wario64 SteamDB history shows one of the fake games was initially titled Figurality, and developed by Bside studio. The owner edited the game's Steam page in the early hours of this morning, changing the title, description, publisher and developer to match those of Arrowhead's Helldivers 2. The fact it was possible for a developer to change their product to such an extent has raised concerns about the precautions Valve has in place to prevent this sort of scam from happening. Eurogamer has reached out to Valve for further comment on its policies and what it will do to prevent this sort of thing from happening again. Image credit: Valve via Wario64 Image credit: Valve via Wario64 Helldivers 2 (the real deal) has been a monumental success for Arrowhead and PlayStation. It quickly became PlayStation's biggest Steam launch ever and currently has an all-time concurrent peak of over 458,000 players. "With its high-chaos, high-comedy firefights, it's a riot to play with friends," Emma Kent wrote in Eurogamer's Helldivers 2 review, awarding it four stars.

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Helldivers 2 developer responds as fake games appear on Steam

https://www.eurogamer.net/helldivers-2-developer-responds-as-fake-games-appear-on-steam

Here are all of the Corel Cache locations in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and how to find all the chests at each one.

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There are plenty of Corel Cache locations in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth for you to seek out. Each one has valuable loot hidden in chests that can boost your inventory with anything from Moogle Medals to new gear. Unlike other points of interest in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Caches don't show up once you activate a Remnawave Tower, so it's your job to explore every inch of the landscape to find them - or you can use our guide instead! Without further ado, we're here to show you all the Corel Cache locations in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and how to get the chests at each location. On this page: To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings All Corel Cache locations in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Unlike earlier regions, you'll need to complete a large chunk of the story to gain access to the entire region of Corel. This is why we've split all of the Corel Cache locations in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth into two halves: Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix Cape del Amor Cache Twilight Hill Cache Sunrise Plateau Cache Seabreeze Storehouse Cache All of these Cache locations can be located and completed during the first half of your time in Corel after leaving Costa del Sol and before climbing Mt. Corel to complete the story section here. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix Rustladen Reservoir Cache Desert Watermain Cache Drainwater Drift Cache For these three Cache locations you will need to complete Chapter 7: All that Glitters to gain access to the desert portion of the region. How to get all Cape del Amor chests in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth There are three chests in Cape del Amor. The first chest can be found at the bottoom of the zipline that leads into a hut. If you stand facing the ocean at Cape del Amor, it will be on your right. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix The second chest can be found at the end of the pier that goes out the furthest into the ocean. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix To find the third chest, jump into the water from the point you found the second chest. There's a ladder here if you want to use it. Then, swim around to the very end of the pier structure to the side that's facing the open ocean and you'll find an opening here. Swim through the opening and underneath the walkway. The chest is on the shore at the far end of this section. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix How to get all Twilight Hill chests in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth There are two chests at Twilight Hill. To find the first chest, go down the zipwire that leads to the rock formation the cache area is on. Then, from the end of this zipline, head slowly up the stairs on your left while looking to your right. You should eventually see an opening in some rocks here that conveniently look like a doorway. Head through this opening and look left to find the chest. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix To find the second chest, continue following the stair pathway upwards. You'll eventually reach the top of another zipwire, don't go down it. When you see this point, continue to follow the path to the right and you'll find the next chest. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix How to get all Sunrise Plateau chests in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth There are three chests at Sunrise Plataeu. When you get to the location, look for the area that's only accessible by climbing down some climb holds. There should be more climb holds leading upwards on the other side of this small section. In this area, face the water of Costa Falls. One chest will be on the left side of the section you're standing on and the second chest will be to the right side of this area. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix To find the third chest, climb up the climb holds that will lead you closer to the waterfall. The chest is on the edge of the section up here that's near the waterfall. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix How to get all Seabreeze Storehouse chests in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth There are three chests at Seabreeze Storehouse. To find the first chest, head in through the main entrance to this area and go to your left. Keep walking past the tanker trucks here and look left, the chest is on the ground beside the last truck. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix To find the second chest, turn around from where you found the first one and look for the forklift. Stand at the forklift and look north east, you should be able to see that the next chest is tucked beside the main building. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix Head back to the main entrance and look straight ahead of you, you should see a small red crane opposite you. The final chest can be found on top of the grey shelter behind this crane. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix How to get all Rustladen Reservoir chests in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth There are, again, three chests at Rustladen Reservoir. The first chest can be found beside the boarded up hut with the small antennae tower on top of it. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix The second chest can be found beside the boarded up hut with the satellite dish on top of it, opposite a tall cylindrical container. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix The third chest can be found on top of a blue shipping container on the stack of shipping containers. There are two red ones stacked on top of eachother that can hide the third blue one from certain angles. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix How to get all Desert Watermain chests in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth There are three chests at Desert Watermain. The first chest can be found beside the control unit on the main mechanism of the Watermain. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix To find the second and third chests, follow the large pipes leading away from the control unit and look for either a gap to walk through or simply find a point where you can climb over them. If you're looking for a gap, like we did, there's one against the control unit where the pipes enter it. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix For the second chest, head through the gap mentioned above and look left. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix Then, from the second chest, follow the pipe on the right until it leads you to the next chest that rests against that pipe. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix How to get all Drainwater Drift chests in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth There are two chests to find at Drainwater Drift. When you get to the area, head straight through the metal gate facing the water and then look to the right to find the first chest. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix Then, go back through the metal gate so you're facing the desert landscape again and look to your right. The next chest should be near the cliff wall by some Shinra boxes. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix That's it for now! If you're looking to find more hidden goodies, check out our guides listing all of the Grassland Cache locations and all of the Junon Cache locations. Also, if it's upgrades you're in the mood for, take a look at our Folios explainer.

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All Corel Cache locations in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

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Crash Team Rumble will have no further content updates after 4th March, less than nine months after its launch.The stra…

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Crash Team Rumble will have no further content updates after 4th March, less than nine months after its launch. The strategic platformer MOBA launched on 20th June 2023 on PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Since then it's had three seasons of new content, the latest being a crossover with Spyro the Dragon. There will be no further seasons, however, per an in-game news update spotted by players of Crash Team Rumble. As of yet, there's been no official announcement from publisher Activision itself. Crash Team Rumble™ - Gameplay Launch Trailer Crash Team Rumble - Gameplay Launch Trailer This final update to Crash Team Rumble will be a free 500-tier battle pass which includes all content from each season and event rewards. The servers will remain live indefinitely, it seems, though microtransactions will be turned off meaning Crash Coins will no longer be purchasable. Well, it's official. Just booted up the game and checked. Crash Team Rumble is done. Last update comes March 4th 2024. Servers staying open indefinitely, battle pass going free, microtransactions getting turned off. No season 4. pic.twitter.com/9NyCjLc1Cg — Liam (@liamrobertson.bsky) (@Doctor_Cupcakes) February 29, 2024 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings It's believed Activision will no longer be dedicating support to Crash Team Rumble following the decision by developer Toys for Bob to cut ties with the publisher and return to its roots as an independent studio. It's unclear what Toys for Bob will be working on next, but fans had been hoping for another Crash Bandicoot or Spyro game following Crash Bandicoot 4 and the Spyro remasters. Toys for Bob was affected by Microsoft's decision to lay off 1900 people across Xbox and Activision Blizzard a month ago, which saw 86 employees lose their jobs. The studio's physical office was also reported to be closing down. Microsoft's layoffs have contributed to the number of developers affected in 2024 so far, with the estimated total at over 7500 in the space of two months. This figure is nearly reaching the total number of layoffs in 2023, which is estimated to be 10,500.

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Crash Team Rumble support ends after nine months, as developer splits with Activision

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Pokémon, Warcraft and Sea of Thieves have joined in with this week's Glasgow Willy Wonka Experience memes.The £35 ticke…

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Pokémon, Warcraft and Sea of Thieves have joined in with this week's Glasgow Willy Wonka Experience memes. The £35 ticketed knock-off event went viral this week, and now it's not just players commemorating the occaison with memes. Video game makers and publishers are now using their official social media accounts to join in with the fun. Newscast: Will Pokémon Legends: ZA be a Switch 2 launch title? Newscast: Will Pokémon Legends: ZA be a Switch 2 launch title? Both World of Warcraft and Sea of Thieves have given us their renditions of the sad Oompa Loompa: pic.twitter.com/e0Q3GSwXn8 — World of Warcraft (@Warcraft) February 29, 2024 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings We'd like to give a shout out to whoever runs Sea of Thieves' social media accounts for letting us know the Unknown is actually just a friendly photographer and not an otherworldy villain. They were taking the photo. pic.twitter.com/ZeKlW2qCD6 — Sea of Thieves (@SeaOfThieves) February 29, 2024 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Pokémon went for the low-hanging fruit, all 28 of them, with the Pokémon Unown. Simple but effective, because it brought to light this edit where the Unown respond to the poor child's protests as they appear from behind the mirror. pic.twitter.com/mSA7JRxjiF — 𝑆𝐼𝐴𝑁 𝑇𝐻𝑌𝑀𝐸𝑆 🫧 (@SianThymes) March 1, 2024 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings It only makes sense The Unown would have a party full of Unown, ready to dish out Psychic damage to any children who happen to lay eyes on them. And of course, the memes have continued from video game fans - including someone granting our wish that the Willy Wonka Experience would be recreated in Animal Crossing. "How long will it be before someone recreates the warehouse in Animal Crossing: New Horizons and subjects their villagers to the same torture?" I wrote in yesterday's article on the event's recreation in The Sims 4, and the answer is less than 24 hours. Animal Crossing fan Haztecamarera recreated photos taken of the Glasgow the event in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. (I heard Redd was selling tickets to villagers for the event at 35,000 bells a pop.) I particularly enjoy their version of The Unknown trying its hardest to be scary. Glasgow Willy Wonka Experience in Animal Crossing: New Horizons a thread pic.twitter.com/Yzj18pKVjT — Haztecamarera (@Haztecamarera) February 29, 2024 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Lastly, here's The Unknown making its debut as a Persona boss. I'm worried/impressed at how naturally the actor's movements match to the beat of the music.

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Pokémon, Warcraft join in the Glasgow Willy Wonka Experience memes

https://www.eurogamer.net/pokemon-warcraft-join-in-the-glasgow-willy-wonka-experience-memes

Stuck on today's Wordle? Here's the answer for 986 on 1st March, 2024.

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It's a new month and you know what that means? A brand new chance to solve the Wordle answer for today, 1st March. For the uninitiated, the aim of Wordle is to work out a daily five-letter word within six guesses. The fewer the guesses, the better - and if you fail to guess it at all, you'll break your streak. The latter is why working out today's Wordle answer is such a priority, as players pride themselves on keeping their streak going. So why gamble on a risky final guess when you can learn a few clues and, failing that, get the definitive answer? This page can help with that. Once you have today's word, learn more about Wordle and how the New York Times became interested in games in this interview with Jonathan Knight, Head of Games for the NYTimes. In keeping with the word theme, we've also discussed why The NYTimes Mini Crossword is a reliable joy. Clues for today's Wordle answer Instead of going straight to the answer, you might only need a few hints to get you over the line: There is one vowel in today's word. This word has no repeating letters. Today's word begins with 'F'. This word is the written version of a double-digit number. Still not sure? Read on for the answer. To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Wordle answer for word 986 on 1st March 2024 Even with the above clues, still not sure and want to keep that streak going? The Wordle answer today is FORTY. Well, there goes that streak - it was nice while it lasted. Honestly, I think the 'Y' tripped me up today as I knew exactly where it went but so many words end with 'Y' it was my undoing. Don't forget to share your Wordle answer once you're done. | Image credit: MichaelJBerlin - stock.adobe.com Now you have the answer, do not spoil it for others! Remember, you can share your results spoiler-free in the form of a grid. Of course, no one has to know you came to this page to work it out. Maybe put in two or three fake guesses first to throw them off the scent, perhaps? Today's Wordle etymology Today's word 'FORTY' is said to derive from the Old English 'FEOWERTIG' which had exactly the same meaning. What's interesting is that the phrase 'FORTY WINKS', which means having a nap or short sleep, is said to have been used at the earliest in the 1820's. Also, this year (2024) an old game that I could spend hours playing (and often do beside family members) turns 'FORTY'. Amusingly, the game itself is called 1942 so there's something satisfying about it turning 'FORTY'. It's a somewhat rage inducing and challenging game, but that's where the fun is! Wordle past answers for this week And now for our 'Previously on Wordle' segement! (I know 'in' works better, but let me have this...) This week has seen the following words make appearance in Wordle so far: Thursday 29th February (985) - IMAGE - IMAGE Wednesday 28th February (984) - DEVIL - DEVIL Tuesday 27th February (983) - SENSE - SENSE Monday 26th February (982) - OFTEN If you'd like to know all of the words which has graced Wordle in times gone by, check out our past Wordle answers archive. What to play after Wordle With your daily Wordle completed, the question is - what shall you play now? You can, of course, try out the other word-based games offered by the New York Times, like Spelling Bee, the Mini Crossword and Letter Boxed. You can also take a crack at Connections, the daily Sudokus and Tiles - a rather additive motif matching game. There’s also a range of games which have put a twist on the Wordle formula. Squaredle challenges you to find a series of words by connecting letters in a four by four grid. Meanwhile Dordle, Quorodly, Octordly and Sedecordle all keep to the standard Wordle, while increasing the number of words you have to find. The challenge comes in how your guesses count for all of the words, so you need to decide whether you’re going to focus on a specific word or try to solve multiple words at the same time. Thankfully, the number of guesses you’re given increases alongside the amount of words you’re expected to solve. If you want a break from spelling though, try GeoGuessr. Here you’ll be given a picture of somewhere, anywhere, in the world and have to place a marker on where you think that location is. There’s even an Old School RuneScape version. Hope you enjoyed playing Wordle today!

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Today's Wordle hint and answer on Friday 1st March for 986

https://www.eurogamer.net/wordle-answer-today-1-march-986-9433

Here's the Tonberry King's location in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, how to get the Tonberry King's Crown, and how to beat t…

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You have to get the Tonberry King's Crown for Johnny as part of the 'The Saga of the Seaside Inn' side quest in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. You can't do this until Chapter 9, however, even though the quest is picked up in Chapter 7. To help you out with this last part of Johnny's quest when you get to Chapter 9, we've detailed the Tonberry King's location in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, and how to get the Tonberry King's Pristine Crown below. We also explain how to beat the Tonberry King in the last section. For more help on your travels across Gaia, check out our pages on all weapon locations, the best Materia, and all Corel Cache locations. On this page: To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH Release Date Announce Trailer.Watch on YouTube Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Tonberry King location The Tonberry King is located in the southern area of Corel, which is only accessible from Chapter 9 onwards. However, you need to visit and complete four Lifespring locations in this southern part of Corel before you can summon the Tonberry King. The Tonberry King will then be marked on your map as 'Classified Intel: Heavy Lies the Crown'. If this doesn't mark its location, try visiting the two Lifespring locations in northern Corel as well. Specifically, the Tonberry King is near the eastern coast of the southern section of Corel, north of a Mogstool, and directly south from the Johnny who gives you the subquest to get a Tonberry Crown. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix To find Lifesprings quickly, we recommend activating the southern Corel Remnawave Towers, as these show more World Intel locations when you activate their red switches. You'll need to make use of the Grapple Hook to access some of these Corel towers. How to get Tonberry King Crown in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Similar to Quetzalcoatl in the Grasslands, the Tonberry King's Crown can only be obtained after unlocking its location on your map by visiting Lifesprings, then summoning the King to battle. However, this time there's a few extra steps that involve the Steal Materia if you want the Pristine Tonberry King Crown. Here's step-by-step instructions for how to get the Tonberry King's Crown in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth: Reach south Corel in Chapter 9. Find and scan four south Corel Lifesprings (if this doesn't work, scan the other two in northern Corel). Go to 'Classified Intel: Heavy Lies the Crown' location. Equip Steal Materia on a party member (Yuffie has this by default). Summon the Tonberry King and Pressure it to get it to drop its Pristine Crown. Use the Steal ability on the Pristine Crown to pick it up. Defeat the Tonberry King to successfully claim the Crown. Select Steal, then target the Pristine Crown. | Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix If you kill the Tonberry King without stealing the Pristine Crown, you get the Marred Crown instead. It doesn't make a huge difference which crown you give him, but that Pristine Crown does look pretty on Johnny's desk, and he's very happy about getting it. Tonberry enemies are notoriously deadly one-shotters in Final Fantasy games, so we've got tips on how to beat the Tonberry King below: How to beat Tonberry King in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth The Tonberry King has 14,220 HP on normal difficulty and has no elemental weaknesses. Instead, you have to inflict enough damage after its attacks miss to Pressure it. Save your ATB charges for right after the moment it attacks (or during a projectile attack) to make the most of this weakness. Once Pressured, the Tonberry King's Pristine Crown will fall, allowing you to use the Steal ability on it if you have the Steal Materia equipped. Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix Preparing for the fight We recommend adding at least one ranged character to your party before taking on the Tonberry King, as you'll want to be as far away as possible from it to avoid its Chef's Knife instant-death move. We used Barret, as his Overcharge and Maximum Fury moves are enough to Pressure the Tonberry King if used right after the Tonberry King misses an attack. You can also link the Auto-Cast Materia with healing spells, and equip the Auto-Unique Ability Materia on everyone you can. The Auto-Unique Ability Materia enables a character to use their special abilities without you having to manually command them to do so. This means your other party members can get lucky and Pressure the Tonberry King without you having to time it perfectly yourself. You'll also want to equip the Steal Materia if you plan on nabbing the King's Pristine Crown when it falls (Yuffie has this Materia by default). Tonberry King boss strategy First thing's first: stay away from the front of the Tonberry King. The King's very speedy and devastating Chef's Knife attack instantly kills you if you get too close. If you're good at dodging you can attack from the front, but this is very risky. Generally, we recommend controlling Barret for the majority of the fight, as you can keep your distance while unleashing strong attacks. Then, you can switch to characters with powerful attacks like Cloud, Tifa, or Red XIII when the Tonberry King is Staggered to drain its health quickly. Using Synergy Abilities that partition the ATB bar, raise limit levels, or extend Pressure and Stagger are recommended too. It's not a guaranteed win to attack from long range though, as the Tonberry King's Rancor and Doom and Gloom moves send out projectiles at the party member you're controlling. Make sure to dodge to the left or right away from them, or you'll get stunned in place with Rancor, or die instantly after Doom and Gloom hits. We used Barret's Overcharge while the Tonberry's projectiles were targeting other characters to Pressure it easily. | Image credit: Eurogamer/Square Enix Being Stunned is a dangerous position to be in too, as the Tonberry can then kill you instantly if it gets too close, or Doom and Gloom hits from afar. However, you can aggro the Tonberry King away from a stunned character by inflicting enough damage before it reaches them. Another annoying move is the Call for Friends attack that summons regular sized Tonberry enemies. These Tonberries can also instantly kill you with Chef's Knife, so be sure not to get too close! The Tonberry King's final attack of note is Hopping Mad, which rains down debris from above. This is a good opportunity to hit the Tonberry King with powerful abilities to Pressure it, after dodging the debris. Lastly, take your time! Fighting the Tonberry King can be annoying if you can't time the powerful abilities to Pressure it, but you will eventually beat it, even without Pressuring it, just as long as you can avoid its Chef's Knife and Doom and Gloom projectiles. Good luck taking on the Tonberry King!

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How to get Tonberry King's Crown in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

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Another Thursday, another Epic Games Store freebie to add to your ever-growing backlog, this time in the form of stylis…

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Another Thursday, another Epic Games Store freebie to add to your ever-growing backlog, this time in the form of stylish 3D side-scroller Never Yield. Never Yield - also known as Aerial_Knight's Never Yield to ensure you don't forget who developed it - released back in 2021, offering up an experience something like a classic endless runner. It sees players stampeding across a strikingly designed future Tokyo, all to a winning soundtrack created by Detroit artist Danime-Sama. "Take the role of Wally," explains Never Yield's official description. "A mysterious character that has recovered what was taken from him. Hopefully, you're fast enough to outrun your enemies. Expose the truth and try to uncover the mystery of what happened to them." Eurogamer never got around to reviewing Never Yield - - which is about to get a similarly styled follow-up in the form of Aerial_Knight's We Never Yield - but Christian Donlan did have time to share some early thoughts back when it was a demo. "Drones buzz overhead, vans chase you and then collide, or flip through the air almost taking your head off," he wrote. "There's a fantastic colourful aesthetic to it, and with its speed and sense of thwarting injustices, I suspect the final game is going to give me Jet Set Radio flashbacks." And that's your lot for this week's Epic Games Store freebies. If Never Yield takes your fancy though, it'll be available to add to your library for free until next Thursday, 8th March. After which, Astro Duel 2 - a brand-new sci-fi action romp from developer Wild Rooster, which combines top-down dogfights and platforming - will wear the freebie crown.

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Stylish 3D runner Never Yield is free on the Epic Games Store this week

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If you're after a bigger OLED telly for a lot less with the fun of some discount codes, this LG G2 OLED deal from LG di…

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Only the other day, I found a clever discount on LG's 55-inch C2 OLED, with a stacking of a five percent member discount and a 10 percent refer a friend discount to offer quite a handy reduction on one of the best gaming TVs we've tested. Now, it appears that the code stacking bonanza has been extended to some other models in LG's lineup including this larger 65-inch G2 model. It works the same way as it did with the C2 deal from earlier on this week. If you become an LG member, you can get five percent off your first order, as well as two percent off the purchase price for being a member. Then, you can also get a refer a friend discount by signing up with another meail address you have access to as the 'friend' you're referring. With this, it emails you a link, which takes you to a valid discount code. Select both of them at checkout, and it'll bring the price of this G2 down from £1372 to £1166. However, it is possible to use a Student Beans student discount code or Perks At Work code here (providing you have access to such), unlike with the C2 from earlier which nets you a straight 20 percent off the purchase price to bring it down even further to £1098. That's a lot of telly for the money. The student discount code.... ....and the welcome and referee code combo. The G2 OLED TV comes from the same stock as the fav-favourite (and DF-recommended) C2, with a few additions. You get the uprated OLED Evo panel, providing the solid combo of inky blacks and vivid colours in a screen that's brighter than the panels on any pre-2022 model. You also get a full complement of HDR support with everything from Dolby Vision to HLG and HDR10 (there isn't any HDR10+ here, though) for increasing vividity and accentuating detail in darker areas of the screen. There's also a total of 4 HDMI 2.1 ports to allow for 4K/120Hz output, which means this G2 will be an excellent pairing for your current-gen games console, while VRR support with both AMD FreeSync and Nvidia G-Sync, as well as HDMI Forum VRR makes it a hardy performer for PC gaming as well. Of course, as a Gallery Edition TV, this LG G2 OLED is designed with wall-mounting in mind. If you've got the space for it, then putting it up on the wall looks great and clears up space below; you could even get a wall mount with a rotating frame to orient the TV in different directions as needed. Think of it also as a the equivalent of having a large framed picture on the wall - with LG's dynamic wallpapers, you can even make it look like one, and they are rather convincing, too. If you're after a bigger OLED telly for a lot less with the fun of some discount codes, this LG G2 OLED deal from LG directly is worth a look.

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This 65-inch LG G2 OLED can be yours for as low as £1166 with a discount code combo from LG

https://www.eurogamer.net/digitalfoundry-2024-this-65-inch-lg-g2-oled-can-be-yours-for-as-low-as-1166-with-a-discount-code-combo-from-lg

Frost Fatales, the winter version of Games Done Quick's Frame Fatales charity speedrunning initiative, is back this Sun…

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Frost Fatales, the winter version of Games Done Quick's Frame Fatales charity speedrunning initiative, is back this Sunday for a week of impressively fast gaming escapades. This year marks the fourth annual Frost Fatales event - which, like its summertime equivalent Flame Fatales, is specifically intended to showcase women and femmes in the speedrunning community - and proceedings get underway this Sunday, 3rd March, at 5.30pm UK time. Then, across the next seven days, Frost Fatales has scheduled over 60 speedruns - which, as always, cover a broad spectrum of games, including acclaimed indies, retro classics, and oddities, with a small selection of more modern blockbusters also putting in an appearance. Newscast: Will Pokémon Legends: ZA be a Switch 2 launch title? Newscast: Will Pokémon Legends: Z-A be a Switch 2 launch title? To kick things off on Sunday, there's an Any% Glitchless speedrun of Tomb Raider by Becksi, and things come to a close seven days later with an All Cards Paper Mario speedrun from JCog. In between, there's everything from underwater narrative adventure Abzû and the equally damp Ecco Jr. to the likes of Dark Souls, Luigi's Mansion, Silent Hill 2, and Hylics 2. There's even a speedrun to unlock all the Pride flags in sticker shop sim Sticky Business by SchalaKitty. This year's Frost Fatales is raising money for the National Women's Law Center, a US non-profit that fights for women's and LGBTQ rights through initiatives that change laws, policy, and culture. The full speedrunning schedule can be found on Games Done Quick's website - and if you're suitably intrigued the whole thing will be streamed on Twitch.

www.eurogamer.net

Games Done Quick's Frost Fatales charity speedrunning event returns this weekend

https://www.eurogamer.net/games-done-quicks-frost-fatales-charity-speedrunning-event-returns-this-weekend

Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley, the lovely looking musical adventure based on Tove Jansson's classic series of childre…

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Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley, the lovely looking musical adventure based on Tove Jansson's classic series of children's stories, finally has a released date and will be launching for Switch and PC via Steam on Tuesday, 7th March. Melody of Moominvalley sees players slipping into the oversized green hat of the wanderer Snufkin, as he harnesses the power of music - and his trusty harmonica - to restore nature after the Park Keeper and his minions build hideous parks all over Moominvalley. "As Snufkin you will distract police officers, pull out signs, and knock over misplaced statues," explains Norweigian developer Hyper Games, "as you vigorously try to restore nature and the inhabitants' home while putting an end to the industrious Park Keeper's plans." All that plays out in the form of a "wholesome" adventure in which players explore Melody of Moominvalley's beautifully drawn open-world locales, chatting to its charming cast of characters - each with stories to tell and quests to complete - and doing a spot of musical and environmental puzzling (with a bit of stealth thrown in) along the way. It's gentle stuff, then, and Eurogamer's Robert Purchese rather liked what he saw of Melody of Mooinvalley last year. "We watch Snufkin lazing by a tent in the snow," he wrote, "and fishing in a frozen lake, as if nothing else matters in the world. Then we watch him walk slowly back in the spring to see his moomin friend... All while the band Sigur Rós strums gently in accompaniment, and as soft panels of idyllic countryside scenery slide by. It's a bit like Snufkin's mission, I suppose, the opposite of what life has become for many of us now - cluttered, smoggy, heavy. It's light and airy and simple. It's a nice place to be." And if that appeals, Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley will cost around £18 (with 10 percent off until release day) when it launches for Steam and Switch on 7th March.

www.eurogamer.net

Musical moomin adventure Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley out next week

https://www.eurogamer.net/musical-moomin-adventure-snufkin-melody-of-moominvalley-is-out-next-week

Two families are battling for bragging rights as the inventor of the wildly popular dish. Will the truth come out? Or it could be there's another origin story involving ... British tastebuds?

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NEW DELHI, India – India's butter chicken lives among that rarefied pantheon of dishes that is well-loved at home and well-traveled: a smoky, cooked chicken smothered in a bright sauce of tomato, cream, butter and spices. It's been eaten by truck drivers at road-side stalls in rural India and by international glamourati like Jackie Kennedy. Now butter chicken is at the center of a lawsuit over a burning question: Who gets to say they concocted this dish? The fight is between the grandsons of the two men who founded Moti Mahal, the restaurant where butter chicken was likely first served in India. "The suit has been filed to protect my family legacy," says Monish Gujral, the grandson of one of the founders. He wants the other grandson to stop claiming that his grandfather invented the dish. It's a weighty suit, with the family filing a 2,752-page long document to back their claims. So where did this dish come from? Let's go back in time. 'Creamy, melty and delicious' The two men who founded Moti Mahal shared a great deal, starting from the same first name: One was Kundan Lal Jaggi, the other, Kundal Lal Gujral. They were both cooks from the same hometown: Peshawar, in what is now northwest Pakistan. The two men left Peshawar during the cataclysmic 1947 event known as Partition, when departing British rulers cleaved South Asia into a Muslim-majority Pakistan and Hindu-majority India. Millions poured in both directions across that newly drawn border, Muslims to Pakistan, Hindus and Sikhs to India, all fleeing communal violence. After Jaggi and Gujral arrived in New Delhi, they started up a restaurant called Moti Mahal, Hindi for "Pearl Palace," serving dishes in a style new to locals. One of the big draws: butter chicken. The patrons included the celebrated chef and actress Madhur Jaffrey, who ate there as a young teen. "We loved it because it was like nothing we had before," she says. That sauce – Jaffrey says she'd tasted nothing like it before: "Creamy, melty and delicious. You'd break your naan, you'd break a piece of this butter chicken, and then you'd bite into a piece of that pickled onion. It was really heaven." (Her recipe for butter chicken is at the end of this post.) She says the place grew in popularity and expanded. It became fashionable to order their food to take on picnics. The restaurant, it seems, was boosted by some serious star power: "Jawaharlal Nehru, who was the first prime minister of India," says Amit Bagga, who founded an Indian butter chicken franchise, Daryaganj, with Jaggi's grandson, and is familiar with Moti Mahal's origin story. Bagga says Nehru sometimes invited state guests to the restaurant, from "Richard Nixon to Jacqueline Kennedy – top people used to come there," he says. "All of them used to try the same food: Butter chicken, tandoori chicken." / Diaa Hadid/NPR / Diaa Hadid/NPR The two founders, Gujral and Jaggi, sold the restaurant in the '90s. They never wrote down the recipe for butter chicken. Soon after, the Gujral family created their own spin-off franchise. Outside one of their outlets in New Delhi on a recent day, a sign claimed Gujral invented butter chicken. Inside, the butter chicken is as heavy as the red-velvet decor – the way many here like it. A mirror image claim is made byDaryaganj, the rival butter chicken franchise that was founded in 2019. It's there, on a sign outside one of the Daryaganj outlets, which boasts that Jaggi invented butter chicken. The motto underneath the restaurant name includes: "By The Inventors Of Butter Chicken." This only became a fight after Jaggi's grandson repeated that claim in July last year on Indian Shark Tank, where he pitched an expansion of the Daryaganj franchise to wealthy investors. He said his grandfather whipped up a sauce of butter and tomato to stretch out some tandoori chicken to serve a flurry of guests who came into the restaurant one night. A few months later in January, the Gujrals filed a lawsuit. There was a hearing on January 16, and local media reports another hearing is expected on March 18. The next hearing is on May 29. One version of the origin story Monish Gujral says his grandfather invented butter chicken while experimenting with ways to freshen up unsold tandoori chicken, which could quickly dry out. "So he wanted to put it in a gravy so it could be served later." He says his grandfather Kundan Lal Gujral created the dish way before he ever came to India. He says he created butter chicken before Partition, in a restaurant he ran in what is now the northwest Pakistani city of Peshawar in 1920. The restaurant was also called Moti Mehal. Some Peshawar residents still remember where the restaurant once was. Iqbal Arif points to the building where it once operated. "Elders from nearby villages still come to this place and say: This was the Moti Mahal, owned by Kundan Lal, they talk about the butter chicken, saying they used to eat it here." Arif says he met Kundal Lal once, in the '80s when he came to Peshawar for a visit. Arif says Kundal Lal sobbed when he saw his old restaurant and hugged a surviving wild fig tree nearby. "It was the only tree that survived on this road, the rest were chopped down by people," Arif recalls. Peshawar residents identified the inventor of butter chicken as Kundan Lal — the first name of both of the cooks. But only one Kundan Lal returned to Pakistan to visit the old restaurant: Gurjal, whose grandson says he invented butter chicken in Peshawar. The problem is, residents largely identified the inventor of butter chicken as Kundan Lal – the first name of both the cooks. That doesn't quite settle who invented the dish, though, because there's another twist: According to the warring butter chicken franchises, Kundan Lal Gujral and Kundan Lal Jaggi had earlier worked for another man in Peshawar. His name was Mukhi Singh. Some residents identified the man who made butter chicken in Peshawar as Kundan Lal Singh – a mishmash of the names. But maybe it was a dish made for Brits?! If we couldn't solve the mystery of who invented butter chicken, I wanted to find out why it was invented. There was something about this story that didn't sit right, because I used to live in Pakistan — and Peshawar is famous for juicy grilled meat, not creamy sauces. Butter chicken isn't even a thing in Pakistan. "It is not enjoyed so widely in what is Pakistan today," saysNilofer Afridi Qazi, who documents Pakistani food traditions. She says butter chicken could have been invented in Peshawar before Partition, when it was a northwest border town of the British Empire. The British kept a large garrison there. The restaurant Moti Mehal was located in that garrison, in an area called the Gora Bazaar. So that iconic Indian dish, butter chicken, could have been created to play to British tastes. "It is essentially a non-Indian dish," says Pant, the Indian food writer. "Satin-smooth, butter-laden gravy, boneless chicken," he says. "This is the lowest common denominator for a non-Indian palate." Mohammad Taqi, a Pakistani-American writer who grew up around the old British garrison area of Peshawar, says the ingredients point to foreign influences – like copious amounts of fresh butter, rather than ghee, or clarified butter, which is more typically used in South Asia. In Peshawar, he says, the only people who produced butter on scale were the British, in the garrison itself, "to support the troops." The other ingredient that suggests butter chicken was created with the British in mind is the chicken itself. For Peshawar residents, Taqi says, "chicken was cooked on special occasions and it would usually be a curry. On the other hand, it was pretty much a staple for the British," he says. "So Gora Bazaar – if they were running a restaurant there – then yes, it was catering to the cantonment," Taqi says, referring to the British garrison. And then there's chicken tikka masala And then there's butter chicken's near mirror-image resemblance to one of Britain's national dishes: Chicken tikka masala, basically a hot-roasted bird in a tomato-butter sauce. The origins of that dish are hotly debated. Legend has it that one night in the '70s, a Pakistani-Scottish man, Ali Ahmed Aslam, made a sauce out of a can of tomato soup and cream and poured it over a tandoori chicken, or chicken tikka, after a customer in his Glasgcow restaurant complained it was too dry. "It's exactly the same story, and it's invented for picky British people who don't want to eat dry chicken," says Lizzie Collingham, author of Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors, a history of how the British influenced food in India, and how they were influenced by it. (Collingham tells NPR that the theory that butter chicken was made for British tastes is plausible, but she can't rule on it either way.) But if the dish was forged in Peshawar, it didn't leave a trace. Perhaps butter chicken didn't have enough time to seep into the city's food culture. Perhaps it's because of partition – when Hindus and Sikhs emptied out of Peshawar, they took their food traditions with them. Or perhaps the dish was simply the creation of a hurried cook faced with a flurry of guests and a tandoori chicken he needed to stretch out. Madhur Jaffrey says she suspects the dish originated in India – because it wasn't served when Moti Mahal first opened. She recalls the butter chicken was only served once the restaurant expanded. "If my memory serves me right, we did not have it in the beginning.," she says. But she agrees: Butter chicken did not taste like any Indian dish she knew. "We had many spicy sauces and we loved them. We absolutely loved them. But they weren't mellow and this was mellow," she says. "It didn't have an Indian taste that I knew," she says. "And that's why we loved it." Everything's coming up butter chicken Regardless of where, or who invented butter chicken, what it has become in India, is spectacular. The dish can function like a saucy wink, like in the song, "Butter Chicken," from the 1999 Bollywood movie, The Vow of Love. "Your mouth will water," croons Jaspinder Narula in Bengali. "When you feast on me with your eyes and I'm presented before you, you'll know: I'm Butter Chicken." It's shorthand for a culinary hug. "It's mother's love. It's a comfort food," says Ishan, a 35-year-old man who was tucking into a plate of butter chicken at an upmarket restaurant in New Delhi on a recent evening. And food historian and writerPushpesh Pant argues, it's "the gateway to a non-vegetarian paradise." He says it's often the first meaty dish eaten by Hindus who were raised vegetarian, because the chicken is "invisible." he says. The dish is tangy, smokey, tandoori-roasted chicken doused in buttery tomato sauce, and more recently, cream, scooped with crusty naan bread. Outside of India, the dish is the star of takeout. And it has experienced the greatest of culinary compliments: it has been endlessly altered – or mangled – to local tastes. There's butter chicken pizza, butter chicken pasta, butter chicken tacos and vegan butter chicken. And on and on. Pant, the Indian food historian says the history of butter chicken will always be elusive. "Who invented the butter chicken? None of them did," says Pant, the Indian food historian. "It's like asking: Who discovered fire?" he snorts. "Butter chicken was probably made at several places at the same time where the roadside eateries had the same problem: a little leftover chicken which would not sell." With additional reporting by Arshad Mohmand in Peshawar. Madhur Jaffrey's recipe for chicken with tomato sauce and butter From An Invitation to Indian Cooking: 50th Anniversary Edition by Madhur Jaffrey © 1973, 2023 by Madhur Jaffrey. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher. The original version of this dish is to be had at the Moti Mahal restaurant in Delhi. There, the Tandoori Chicken is cut into small serving sections and put into a rich sauce of creamed tomatoes, butter and spices. My very inventive sister, Kamal, has worked out her own version, slightly different, but equally good. The Indian chicken being as tough as it is, what she does is to combine all ingredients — tomatoes, onions, ginger, garlic, butter, whole spices and chicken sections — in a covered pot and cook them "until the chicken is three-quarters done. By this time the meat has absorbed all the necessary flavors. Then she lifts off the cover and over a high flame stirs and fries the chicken and sauce until almost all the water evaporates and the chicken and paste-like sauce are a dark reddish brown. This is very hard to do in America, because, as I mentioned earlier, the chicken is very tender and cooks too fast to allow all the flavors to be absorbed and the final frying to be accomplished without disintegration. So I have worked out a third version! Here it is. Serves 6. Ingredients 4 chicken legs 2 chicken breasts 2 medium-sized onions, peeled and coarsely chopped 5 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped A piece of fresh ginger, about 2 inches long and 1 inch wide, peeled and coarsely chopped 1 stick of cinnamon, 2½– 3 inches, broken up Seeds from 6 whole cardamom pods 8 whole cloves 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns 2 bay leaves, crumbled 1 hot dried red pepper (or more, as and if desired), crumbled 6 tablespoons vegetable oil 16 ounces (2 cups) canned tomato sauce 1 teaspoon salt 4 tablespoons lightly salted butter Preparation Remove skin from all chicken pieces. Divide legs into drumstick and thigh, and quarter the breasts. Pat dry and put aside. In the container of an electric blender, combine the onions, garlic, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom seeds, cloves, peppercorns, bay leaves, red pepper and 3 tablespoons water. Blend until you have a smooth paste. Heat the oil in a 10 to 12-inch casserole-type pot over a high flame. When hot, put in the chicken pieces, 4 or 5 at a time, and brown them quickly (about a minute on each side). Remove with a slotted spoon. You will need to brown the chicken in several batches. Turn heat to medium and pour in the paste from the blender.(Keep face averted.) Stir and fry the paste for 5 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot well as you do so. Now add the tomato sauce, ¾ cup water and the salt. Bring to a boil. Cover. Turn heat to very low and simmer gently for 30 minutes, stirring every 6 or 7 minutes. Add the chicken pieces to the pot as well as any juices that may have collected. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer over low heat for 25 to 30 minutes. Stir gently every 5 or 6 minutes to avoid sticking and burning. Be careful not to break the chicken pieces as you stir. (This much of the recipe can be made up to a day in advance and refrigerated.) Cut the butter into 4 pats. Take the chicken off the heat. Drop in the pats of butter and stir them in gently. Serve immediately. To serve: Place contents of pot in a warm dish and serve with rice with frozen black-eyed peas or naan. For vegetables, you could have eggplant bharta or fresh peas with ginger and cilantro. You could, if you like, also serve onions pickled in vinegar as they do at the Moti Mahal Restaurant in Delhi. Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Who cooked up butter chicken? A court seeks the answer. Plus: Madhur Jaffrey's recipe

https://news.wgcu.org/2024-03-01/who-cooked-up-butter-chicken-a-court-seeks-the-answer-plus-madhur-jaffreys-recipe

Lee BIA Builders Care, Stevens Construction partner to rebuild a home for a Fort Myers family in need.Demolition marks launch of 60-day project to rebuild home at no cost to the family

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A Fort Myers family watched as their home of 33 years was torn asunder on Friday. The demolition, however, was a good thing as the home's razing was a life-changing gift courtesy of a partnership between nonprofit Lee BIA Builders Care, local construction company Stevens Construction and a variety of community partners. Myrtle Dillard is a longtime Fort Myers resident who has lived in her home for 33 years. Originally built in 1927, the 958-square-foot, two-bedroom, one-bathroom dwelling had fallen into a state of disrepair. As time passed, the family faced significant challenges in maintaining the home. Caring for her daughter and twin granddaughters, Dillard’s health concerns and the recent passing of her husband, Joseph, have made Dillard’s need for support more critical than ever. The home not only requires extensive repairs, but also lacks necessary accessibility features, posing serious safety risks for Dillard, who relies on wheelchair access. Recognizing the urgency of the situation, Stevens Construction committed to rebuilding the Dillard family’s home from the ground up at no cost. Rather than opting for minor renovations, the decision to rebuild the entire structure ensures that the family can live safely and comfortably for years to come. 1 of 5 — 7-Group Photo1.JPG A Fort Myers family watched as their home of 33 years was torn asunder on Friday. The demolition, however, was a good thing as the home's razing was a life-changing gift courtesy of a partnership between nonprofit Lee BIA Builders Care, local construction company Stevens Construction and a variety of community partners. Myrtle Dillard is a longtime Fort Myers resident who has lived in her home for 33 years. Originally built in 1927, the 958-square-foot, two-bedroom, one-bathroom dwelling had fallen into a state of disrepair. As time passed, the family faced significant challenges in maintaining the home. Caring for her daughter and twin granddaughters, Dillard’s health concerns and the recent passing of her husband, Joseph, have made Dillard’s need for support more critical than ever. Lee BIA Builders Care / WGCU 2 of 5 — 4-Demolition1.JPG A Fort Myers family watched as their home of 33 years was torn asunder on Friday. The demolition, however, was a good thing as the home's razing was a life-changing gift courtesy of a partnership between nonprofit Lee BIA Builders Care, local construction company Stevens Construction and a variety of community partners. Myrtle Dillard is a longtime Fort Myers resident who has lived in her home for 33 years. Originally built in 1927, the 958-square-foot, two-bedroom, one-bathroom dwelling had fallen into a state of disrepair. As time passed, the family faced significant challenges in maintaining the home. Caring for her daughter and twin granddaughters, Dillard’s health concerns and the recent passing of her husband, Joseph, have made Dillard’s need for support more critical than ever. Lee BIA Builders Care / WGCU 3 of 5 — Myrtle Dillard with daughter and grandchildren.jpg A Fort Myers family watched as their home of 33 years was torn asunder on Friday. The demolition, however, was a good thing as the home's razing was a life-changing gift courtesy of a partnership between nonprofit Lee BIA Builders Care, local construction company Stevens Construction and a variety of community partners. Myrtle Dillard is a longtime Fort Myers resident who has lived in her home for 33 years. Originally built in 1927, the 958-square-foot, two-bedroom, one-bathroom dwelling had fallen into a state of disrepair. As time passed, the family faced significant challenges in maintaining the home. Caring for her daughter and twin granddaughters, Dillard’s health concerns and the recent passing of her husband, Joseph, have made Dillard’s need for support more critical than ever. Lee BIA Builders Care / WGCU 4 of 5 — BEFORE Photo - Dillard Family Home Aerial-2.jpg A Fort Myers family watched as their home of 33 years was torn asunder on Friday. The demolition, however, was a good thing as the home's razing was a life-changing gift courtesy of a partnership between nonprofit Lee BIA Builders Care, local construction company Stevens Construction and a variety of community partners. Myrtle Dillard is a longtime Fort Myers resident who has lived in her home for 33 years. Originally built in 1927, the 958-square-foot, two-bedroom, one-bathroom dwelling had fallen into a state of disrepair. As time passed, the family faced significant challenges in maintaining the home. Caring for her daughter and twin granddaughters, Dillard’s health concerns and the recent passing of her husband, Joseph, have made Dillard’s need for support more critical than ever. Lee BIA Builders Care / WGCU 5 of 5 — BEFORE Photo - Dillard Family Home Aerial-1.jpg A Fort Myers family watched as their home of 33 years was torn asunder on Friday. The demolition, however, was a good thing as the home's razing was a life-changing gift courtesy of a partnership between nonprofit Lee BIA Builders Care, local construction company Stevens Construction and a variety of community partners. Myrtle Dillard is a longtime Fort Myers resident who has lived in her home for 33 years. Originally built in 1927, the 958-square-foot, two-bedroom, one-bathroom dwelling had fallen into a state of disrepair. As time passed, the family faced significant challenges in maintaining the home. Caring for her daughter and twin granddaughters, Dillard’s health concerns and the recent passing of her husband, Joseph, have made Dillard’s need for support more critical than ever. Lee BIA Builders Care / WGCU Builders Care and Stevens Construction celebrated the start of construction with a kickoff demolition event Friday, where project partners, donors and community leaders surrounded the Dillard family with support as construction crews began the process of demolishing the home. The demo marked the start of a 60-day project to deliver a new home for the Dillard family. “We’re excited to mark the beginning of this transformative project with a demolition event, symbolizing the start of a new chapter for the Dillard family,” said Dan Adams, executive vice president of Stevens Construction. “The demolition will pave the way for the construction of a brand-new home, tailored to meet the unique needs of Myrtle and her family. This is a life-changing project for the Dillard family, and we’re honored to be a part of it.” As construction progresses, Builders Care and Stevens Construction invite the community to follow the journey of the Dillard family and witness the transformation of their new home. Anyone looking to help with essential supplies and comfort items, an Amazon Wish List has been created at https://www.amazon.com/registries/gl/guest-view/1TUCTR3NSKYSL. “We are honored to help provide the Dillard family with a fresh start and a home that prioritizes safety and accessibility,” said Randy Thibaut, board member and co-founder of Lee BIA Builders Care and CEO and founder of Retland Holdings. “Builders Care looks for homeowners who are really in need – not just want. The Dillard family was not asking for a thing but had a great need for emergency construction services. This project exemplifies the spirit of community and compassion, as we come together to make a meaningful difference in the lives of this special family.” Since 2005, Lee BIA Builders Care has helped nearly 500 individuals and families by providing A/C repairs, wheelchair ramps, roof replacements, remodeling projects and other critical repairs that allow deserving elderly and/or disabled homeowners, and their families, to live safely and comfortably in their own homes. Projects are made possible through generous donors and community partners who provide labor and materials to bring a project into reality. Dozens of industry partners are contributing to the Dillard project through donation of labor and materials, including: American Builders Supply; Barraco & Associates; BH Flooring Studio; Bolaños Truxton, P.A.; The City of Fort Myers; Clive Daniel Home; Cougar Companies; Crowther Roofing; Ferguson; Floorcrafters; Ford Drywall; Hanlon; Honc Destruction; John’s To Go; Juniper Landscaping; Lee Designs; Liberty Aluminum; Mo Better Garage; Montgomery Cabinetry; MSI; Plumbing Solutions; Preferred Materials; Priority Marketing; Raymond Building Supply; Service Contractors; Sherwin Williams; Southern Door; SunCoast Contractors Supply; SunMAC Stone Specialists; Southwest Waste Management; Taulman Pest Control; United Mechanical; Universal Engineering; Valtex; Wilson Lighting; and York Electric. For more information about Lee BIA Builders Care and its mission, visit LeeBuildersCare.org.

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Home demolished, will be rebuilt for Fort Myers family in need

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A ransomware attack targeting a UnitedHealth Group subsidiary is disrupting pharmacies and hospitals nationwide, leaving patients with problems filling prescriptions or seeking medical treatment.

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A ransomware attack is disrupting pharmacies and hospitals nationwide, leaving patients with problems filling prescriptions or seeking medical treatment. On Thursday, UnitedHealth Group accused a notorious ransomware gang known as Black Cat, or AlphV, of hacking health care payment systems across the country. Last week, the top health insurance company disclosed that its subsidiary, Optum, was impacted by a "cybersecurity issue," leading to its digital health care payment platform, known as Change Healthcare, being knocked offline. As a result, hospitals, pharmacies and other health care providers have either been unable to access the popular payment platform, or have purposefully shut off connections to its network to prevent the hackers from gaining further access. UnitedHealth says that as of Monday it estimated that more than 90% of 70,000 pharmacies in the U.S. have had to change how they process electronic claims as a result of the outage. While the company has set up a website to track the ongoing outage, reassuring customers that there are "workarounds" to ensure access to medications, the outage could last "weeks," according to a UnitedHealth executive who spoke on a conference call with cybersecurity officers, a recording of which was obtained by STAT News. After hiring multiple outside firms, including top cybersecurity companies Mandiant and Palo Alto Networks, UnitedHealth released its conclusion that BlackCat, or AlphV, is behind the breach, a conclusion bolstered by the group itself originally claiming credit on its dark web leak site. The post has since been taken down. "Hacked the hackers" However, the fact that the ransomware gang may be responsible is also something of a twist. Just a few months ago, the FBI broke into the groups' internal servers, stealing information about decryption tools for victims and seizing control of several of its websites. The U.S. government celebrated the disruption, a major operation with multiple foreign governments involved. "In disrupting the Black Cat ransomware group, the Justice Department has once again hacked the hackers," said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco in a news release. Black Cat's seeming ability to regroup and breach one of the largest health care entities in the U.S. demonstrates how challenging it is to hamper these groups long-term. Cybercriminals frequently reassemble after experiencing setbacks, particularly when their operators are located in countries whose law enforcement agencies are lax about prosecuting their crimes. That's especially true in Russia. While researchers have not definitively tied BlackCat to Russia or its government, they've concluded it is a Russian-speaking group. U.S. intelligence officials have spoken frequently about the Russian government's willingness to turn a blind eye to cybercrime, in exchange for the hackers' service in intelligence operations. That has been especially true during the war in Ukraine. In addition to the health care breach, Black Cat also recently claimed to have stolen classified documents and sensitive personal data about Department of Defense employees from U.S. federal contractors. Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Health care company ties Russian-linked cybercriminals to prescriptions breach

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The layoffs represent about an 8% reduction in PlayStation's global workforce.

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Sony Interactive Entertainment is laying off about 900 PlayStation employees worldwide, a reduction of about 8%, the company announced this week. The decision will affect all employees across several PlayStation studios in the company's regions, which include North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Asia-Pacific region. U.S. employees were notified Tuesday of the layoffs, the company said. Sony Interactive Entertainment's London studio will close for good, and in Japan, the company will "implement a next career support program," it said. Laid off employees will receive severance packages. "These are incredibly talented people who have been part of our success, and we are very grateful for their contributions," Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan said. "However, the industry has changed immensely, and we need to future ready ourselves to set the business up for what lies ahead." While Ryan did not elaborate on what those changes are, video game journalist Rebekah Valentine told NPR that many video game companies grew during the COVID-19 pandemic while people were in their homes more often, and are shrinking now that many normal activities have resumed. There have been at least 6,000 layoffs announced in the video game industry so far this year, and nearly 10,000 jobs were axed in 2023. "While these are challenging times, it is not indicative of a lack of strength of our company, our brand, or our industry," Ryan said. "Our goal is to remain agile and adaptable and to continue to focus on delivering the best gaming experiences possible now and in the future." Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Sony is laying off about 900 PlayStation employees

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The announcement comes amid falling profits for the company. WeightWatchers has been facing declining stock prices since November as weight loss drugs, known as GLP1s, have soared in popularity.

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Oprah Winfrey plans on leaving WeightWatchers' board of directors after nearly a decade, amid the diet company's waning profits and public support. WW International, Inc., announced on Wednesday that the billionaire decided not to stand for reelection at its next shareholder meeting in May. Winfrey, who joined the board in 2015, owns 1.13 million shares in the weight loss company, according to Reuters. "I look forward to continuing to advise and collaborate with WeightWatchers and CEO Sima Sistani in elevating the conversation around recognizing obesity as a chronic condition, working to reduce stigma, and advocating for health equity," Winfrey said in a statement. The entertainment mogul added that she intends "to participate in a number of public forums and events where I will be a vocal advocate in advancing this conversation." WeightWatchers shares fell precipitously after the announcement, dropping around 25% in early trading on Thursday. The company has been facing steadily declining stock prices so far this yearas medications like Ozempic and Wegovy, which help manage blood sugar and boost weight loss, have soared in popularity. Board chairman Thilo Semmelbauer thanked Winfrey for her role in shaping the company over the last eight years, saying that she has been "an inspiring presence and passionate advocate" for members. Winfrey said she will donate her stake in WeightWatchers and proceeds from any future stock options to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The remaining nine board members said they support Winfrey's charitable decision and that it serves "to eliminate any perceived conflict of interest around her taking weight loss medications." Winfrey came under scrutiny after revealing in December that she has been using medication to lose and maintain her weight. Winfrey said the drug "feels like relief, like redemption, like a gift." "I'm absolutely done with the shaming from other people and particularly myself," Winfrey told People magazine. Reflecting on her very public weight loss journey — and the cruel ridicule it sometimes drew — the 70-year-old said that it "occupied five decades of space in my brain, yo-yoing and feeling like why can't I just conquer this thing, believing willpower was my failing," Around the same time as Winfrey's exclusive interview with People, WeightWatchers unveiledthe rollout of WeightWatchers Clinic, which gives members access to doctors who can prescribe weight loss medications, including Wegovy and Zepbound. The services were made possible after WW's acquisition of a telehealth company called Sequence last spring. The move to embrace the drugs as part of its weight management program is a massive shift for the company's behavior-based program. For 60 years, WeightWatchers coaches have told members that the path to a thinner, healthier version of themselves consisted of exercise, counting calories, points — and, perhaps most of all, willpower. That reversal has left many current and former members struggling with their own weight feeling betrayed. When asked if that advice was wrong, the company's CEO Sistani told NPR, "Yes, that advice was wrong." Telling people that it was a "choice, not chance" was detrimental to people, she added. "And ultimately, for every one person that we helped, there was one person who our program did not work for because they were dealing with a chronic relapsing condition, with biology and genetics and environmental underpinnings. So, in order for us to reintroduce ourselves, we need to acknowledge the part that we had in the past," Sistani said. Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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After nearly a decade, Oprah Winfrey is set to depart the board of WeightWatchers

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In a conversation with a few reporters Friday, Haley highlighted her background in accounting, saying, "The accountant in me stretches and stretches and stretches those dollars."

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Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley says her campaign raised $12 million last month, and she continues to pour funds into campaigning ahead of Super Tuesday next week. The former South Carolina governor has yet to win a single nominating contest. But Haley says she has stayed in the primary race, in part, because large and small donors have encouraged her to. "They don't ask me 'What's your strategy?' "They don't ask me 'What's your plan?'" Haley said in a conversation with reporters Friday morning. "All they say is 'Thank you for giving me hope.'" "We've had fundraisers in every place I've been. No one has said what y'all ask, which is 'How long are you staying in?' No one," she emphasized. Haley also provided more insight into how the campaign is spending those dollars. "The accountant in me stretches and stretches and stretches those dollars," she said, explaining that the key to her strategy is to treat each dollar like it's her own. Plus: "We're a lean mean operation. We don't have a ton of staff." The $12 million Haley brought in last month is a dip from $16 million in January, which was her largest fundraising month so far. Haley told reporters she is continuing to raise money. Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Nikki Haley raises $12 million in February as she marches toward Super Tuesday

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The most powerful Pacific storm of the season began barreling into the region Thursday. It is expected to close major highways and trigger power outages Friday afternoon into Saturday.

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RENO, Nev. — The most powerful Pacific storm of the season is forecast to bring up to 10 feet (3 meters) of snow into the Sierra Nevada by the weekend, forcing residents to take shelter and prompting at least one Lake Tahoe ski resort to close Friday. The storm began barreling into the region on Thursday, with the biggest effects expected to close major highways and trigger power outages Friday afternoon into Saturday. A blizzard warning through Sunday morning covers a 300-mile (482-kilometer) stretch from north of Lake Tahoe to south of Yosemite National Park. "Your safe travel window is over in the Sierra," the National Weather Service in Reno posted Thursday morning on social media. "Best to hunker down where you are." Meteorologists predict as much as 10 feet (3 meters) of snow is possible in the mountains around Lake Tahoe by the weekend, with 3 to 6 feet (0.9 to 1.8 meters) in the communities on the lake's shores and more than a foot (30 centimeters) possible in the valleys on the Sierra's eastern front, including Reno. Winds are expected to gust in excess of 115 mph (185 kph) over Sierra ridgetops, and 70 mph (113 kph) at lower elevations. "This will be a legitimate blizzard," UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain said during an online briefing Thursday. "Really true blizzard conditions with multiple feet of snow and very strong winds, the potential for power outages and the fact that roads probably aren't going to be cleared as quickly or as effectively as they normally would be even during a significant winter storm." Backcountry avalanche warnings were in place around Lake Tahoe, as well as areas around Yosemite National Park stretching down to Mammoth Lakes. Alpine Meadows, an affiliate of neighboring Palisades Tahoe, will be closed Friday. Palisades planned to open only its lowest elevation runs, and could end up closing those. Andrew Schwartz, the lead scientist at UC-Berkeley's Central Sierra Snow Lab, said it is possible they could break their modern-day record of about 3.5 feet (1 meter) of snow in a single day from back in 1989. The lab was founded atop the Sierra in 1946 in Soda Springs, California, northwest of Lake Tahoe. Andy Barron / AP / AP A long line of trucks are parked off the west bound I-80 as drivers put chains on the truck wheels in preparation for the snow storm over the Sierra Nevada on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024, in Lake Tahoe, Calif. The California Highway Patrol imposed travel restrictions on a long stretch of Interstate 80 between Reno and Sacramento, requiring drivers to put chains on their tires. A stretch of the highway was closed for hours at midday Thursday while crews cleared the wreckage of a semi-trailer truck that overturned near Truckee, California. On the bright side, California water officials said the storm should provide a much-needed shot in the arm to the Sierra snowpack, which is vital to the state's water supplies and sits well below normal so far this season. Palisades Tahoe ski resort wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the big dump expected over the weekend on top of 8 feet (2.4 meters) of snow in February should allow them to keep the slopes open through Memorial Day. But it warned blizzard conditions are likely to force temporary closures off and on through the weekend. Todd Cummings decided to drive from Santa Cruz to the Lake Tahoe area ahead of the storm with plans to lay low during the blizzard and then hit the slopes. "When a storm comes in, people have a tough time getting there, so there's sometimes less crowds on the mountains and there is untracked, fresh snow that it's super light and you float on it. It's fantastic!" he said. Some remained skeptical it will be as bad as predicted. Richard Cunningham said he has heard before about forecasts for the storm of the century that didn't materialize since he moved from Las Vegas to Reno in 1997. "Same story, different day," he said. "Sometimes it doesn't even snow." That was before blue skies gave way to clouds and gusty winds that blew the roof off a shed east of Reno Thursday afternoon. Howie Nave, a radio DJ and stand-up comedian in South Lake Tahoe, said some people may not have been taking the storm seriously earlier in the week because dire forecasts of potentially heavy storms have not materialized several times this winter. "There were times when I was expecting a Saint Bernard, but you gave me a Chihuahua," Nave said about the weather forecasters. But "everybody's talking about the storm up here," he said. "This is the first time we've had a blizzard warning." The Sierra Nevada snowpack stood at 80% of average to date but only 70% of the typical April 1 peak, California Department of Water resources officials said Thursday. "The results today show just how critical this upcoming month is going to be in terms of our water supply outlook for the upcoming year," hydrometeorologist Angelique Fabbiani-Leon said during a briefing at Phillips Station, a snowpack-measuring location south of Lake Tahoe. Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Parts of the Sierra Nevada are likely to get 10 feet of snow by the weekend

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Does climate change exist? And does a character know it? Barbie, Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One and Nyad met the criteria for a new challenge inspired by the famous Bechdel Test.

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Though it undoubtedly sends a strong feminist message, no one would describe Barbie as a movie about the impacts of human-caused climate change. Yet the topic sneaks in. "You are killing the planet with your glorification of rampant consumerism!" says Sasha, the teenage character played by Ariana Greenblatt, in her rant about the many ways in which Barbie is bad. It's because of this line that the pinkest and perkiest of summer blockbusters passed the new Climate Reality Check. It's a new test, directed at writers, producers and other entertainment industry creatives, that aims to measure the presence of climate change on screen by evaluating all 31 feature filmsnominated for any Academy Award this year. Documentaries and shorts weren't considered. This simple new test was inspired by the famous Bechdel Test invented by cartoonist Alison Bechdel in the mid-1980s to measure the presence of women in movies and other forms of fiction. It was created by climate change storytelling consultancy Good Energy in collaboration with the Buck Lab for Climate and Environment at Colby College in Maine. "The test is, does climate change exist in the world of your story? And if so, does a character know it?" said Good Energy CEO and founder Anna Jane Joyner. A movie must also meet two additional criteria to be eligible for the Climate Reality Check: "That it's set on this Earth," Joyner said. "And that it takes place now or in the future." Many Oscar-nominated features disqualified The Climate Reality Check's rules actually disqualify many of this year's nominated feature films, including stories set in the past like Killers of the Flower Moon — even though one of that film's major themes is the dangers of fossil fuels. Matthew Schneider-Mayerson, associate professor of English and environmental studies at Colby College and Good Energy's main collaborator on the Climate Reality Check, admitted the new test has some blind spots, such as excluding films that might not mention climate change directly, but instead point to it through allegory — as is sometimes the case with sci-fi, fantasy and historical films — or by modeling sustainable behaviors. "It's possible for some films to include positive climate actions, for example, people installing renewable energy in their homes or deciding to go vegetarian," Schneider-Mayerson said. "This test doesn't necessarily catch those actions unless they're sort of more or less explicitly related to climate change." Schneider-Mayerson said the new test isn't meant to be comprehensive, though his team has been at work on a much larger study, due out in April, applying the Climate Reality Check to 250 of the most popular feature films of the past decade. "It's not going to be able to catch all of the different nuances of representing an issue as complicated as climate change," Schneider-Mayerson said. "But we're hoping that it's a good start and that it's something that people can apply." The films that passed Of the 13 Oscar-nominated movies that were set on Earth in the present or the future, only two besides Barbie passed the Climate Reality Check: the latest Tom Cruise action epic Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One("It's going to be a ballistic war over a rapidly shrinking ecosystem. It's going to be a war for the last of our dwindling energy, drinkable water, breathable air," warns CIA director Eugene Kittridge, played by Henry Czerny); and the biopicNyad, about extreme athlete Diane Nyad's attempts to swim from Cuba to Florida in dangerous conditions caused by rising sea temperatures ("So the UMiami folks think that the box jellyfish came up off the shallow reef when we left Cuba. Global warming," says Nyad's coach Bonnie Stoll, played by Jodi Foster.) / Good Energy / Good Energy Three feature films nominated for Oscars in 2024 passed the Climate Reality Check. Nyad, Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One and Barbie aced the test because of lines of dialogue. But the Climate Reality Check also considers visual representations of the topic; for example a character can be seen silently reacting to an article in the media with a climate change-related headline. The fact that only three movies passed the test doesn't seem like many. Yet Good Energy's Joyner noted this amounts to almost a quarter of the 13 films eligible to be tested, and said she is pleased with the Climate Reality Check's baseline results. "It just gives us another example of how these stories can be very commercially successful," Joyner said, adding she hopes to see 50% of contemporary movies and TV shows acknowledging climate change by 2027. The full Climate Check Reality report can be downloaded here. This story was produced for air by Isabella Gomez Sarmiento, and edited by Jennifer Vanasco for digital and air. Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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There's a new 'Climate Reality Check' test - these 3 Oscar-nominated features passed

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A team of researchers tried something that's never been done as a conflict rages. Instead of trying to calculate the toll of war in the moment, they looked forward. What's the reaction to their study?

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In the middle of an ongoing conflict, it's difficult — if not impossible —- to understand the true human cost of war. Casualties go uncounted and injuries untreated as fighting rages on, leaving an imperfect tally of lives lost or damaged. Indirect effects of conflict, from missed cancer treatments due to hospital bombings or disease outbreaks caused by poor sanitation and overcrowding in refugee camps, can take months or years to become apparent. The chaos of war usually means that researchers wait until a conflict is over to pore over the data and reconstruct as complete a picture as they can of how many lives were lost and what took them. But soon after Israel began its military response to the October 7 Hamas-led attack that killed more than 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped about 250, a team of researchers from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Humanitarian Health and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine tried something that's never been done before as a conflict rages. Instead of trying to calculate the toll of war in the moment, they looked forward. By combining on-the-ground data from Gaza with knowledge from past wars, the researchers projected how many additional lives would be lost over the next six months under three conflict scenarios: immediate and permanent ceasefire, status quo and escalation. Their results, which the researchers caveat with a hefty dose of uncertainty, are sobering. Here are their projections Even if ongoing ceasefire talks are successful, the humanitarian crisis could claim an additional 6,550 to 11,580 lives by August 6, on top of the 29,000 deaths documented by the Gaza Ministry of Health when the study was published last week. Now, the death toll exceeds 30,000. If a ceasefire isn't reached and fighting continues apace over the same timeframe, the researchers project between 58,260 and 66,720 excess deaths — fatalities caused directly by Israel's military or indirectly by factors like disease and restricted access to medical care or sanitation. If the war escalates, excess deaths could climb to between 74,290 and 85,750. (The higher number in each range includes deaths from possible outbreaks of infectious disease). The researchers caution that they're not trying to predict the future. "These are projections, not predictions," says Paul Spiegel, the director of the Center of Humanitarian Health at Johns Hopkins University and study co-author. Rather, they're projecting what would happen given a slew of assumptions about the human costs of war, he says, similar to how climate scientists project future warming under different carbon emissions scenarios. "There's no perfect, pre-established methodology for this kind of projecting," says Yara Asi, a public health expert who studies the health impacts of war at the University of Central Florida and wasn't involved in the analysis. But she says it's an innovative and valuable effort. "It shows that even if the bombing stops tomorrow, people will continue to die, not simply from the destruction of the health-care system but [loss of] access to food, water, vaccinations and shelter," she says. "Even if the numbers aren't perfect, putting this all together forces us to confront the true toll of what this means for the population there. We cannot say that we did not anticipate this." Other experts agree. "It's a rigorous way of talking about the human cost of human decisions," says Patrick Ball, director of research for the Human Rights Data Analysis Group, a nonprofit organization. While he stresses that the projections are speculative, that kind of speculation can be "immensely useful" in clarifying the potential costs of military action, which could both hold actors to account and help guide humanitarian action, he said. "I've spent my career looking backward and trying to calculate the cost of war that's wrapped up," says Ball. "I'm never projecting tomorrow's deaths, but I can imagine a whole new field coming from this [analysis]. We're always going to be doing this from here forward." How they came up with their numbers The researchers decided to scope out three scenarios for how the Israel-Gaza war might unfold over the next six months, from best- to worst-case. Given those scenarios, they projected how many people would die directly from trauma or indirectly from infectious disease, maternal and neonatal causes and non-communicable diseases, like cancer or diabetes. "We wanted to define scenarios that were realistic and then based on those scenarios project what might happen, giving us some [upper and lower] bounds to work with," says Tak Igusa, a civil engineer at Johns Hopkins University. Constructing those two extreme scenarios — ceasefire and escalation — as well as a status quo middle ground, required making a lot of assumptions. To inform these assumptions, the researchers gathered up all the data they could from the conflict so far, filling in the gaps with information from past conflicts, as well as consultation with trauma doctors in Gaza. That data is messy and imperfect but better than data from other conflicts, says Spiegel. "It's rare in these situations to have such strong baseline data," he says, ranging from immunization levels that can inform estimates of how deadly a disease outbreak might be, to how many people died from landmines in past Gaza conflicts. Still, the researchers include a range of possible values for each number they project to reflect uncertainty in their estimates. In the ceasefire scenario, the researchers assume fighting stops immediately. While no more people would die from traumatic injuries due to active warfare in that scenario, injuries sustained before the ceasefire would continue to kill some. And civilians would continue to inadvertently set off unexploded ordnance as they try to rebuild Gaza. Estimating those deaths alone is quite complicated. The researchers analyzed data from Israel's 7-week-long 2014 war on Gaza to project deaths from unexploded munitions and used existing injury data from Gaza to estimate the number and severity of wounds across the population at the time of ceasefire. Whether a wounded person dies depends in part on their access to health care. "We have to think about how the health-care system is changing over time," says Spiegel. The situation right now is dire, according to many of the trauma doctors the researchers consulted for the study. "If hospitals are functioning, a person with a head or chest wound might survive. But in the current situation, it's likely that he or she will not." Given those assumptions, the researchers project that an additional 3,250 people will die from traumatic injuries after fighting stops. The rest of the 6,550 to 11,580 deaths post-ceasefire come from nonviolent causes. Israel's military operations have destroyed many hospitals, interrupting crucial medical care for cancer patients, those with diabetes and other noncommunicable diseases. The researchers combined pre-war estimates of the burdens of those diseases with their estimates of health system capacity to project that 1,680 people would die from lack of medical care. Bombing also cuts off pregnant people from necessary care, which the researchers project would cause 100 to 330 maternal and neonatal deaths, depending on the scale of conflict. Infectious disease outbreaks, like cholera or COVID, are common in conflict zones, as overcrowding in shelters and poor sanitation can stoke the spread of pathogens. But "it's very difficult to estimate when such outbreaks might occur," says Spiegel, which is why the team included projections with and without epidemics. To estimate the possible toll of an outbreak, the team combined existing data on baseline health status, malnutrition, sanitation and vaccination rates with models of infectious disease spread. Such outbreaks would be especially hard on children, the researchers say, who are more vulnerable to infections, especially when they're malnourished. More than half a million people are "facing catastrophic levels of deprivation and starvation," according to the United Nations. Altogether, several conflict data experts who weren't involved in the research applauded the authors. "This is a very serious effort, they're trying their best to get it as right as they possibly can," says Michael Spagat, an economist at Royal Holloway, University of London and chair of Every Casualty Counts, a nongovernment group that quantifies the human cost of war. "But it's extremely complicated, and rests on assumption after assumption after assumption," he says. "Though it can't be otherwise, given what they're trying to accomplish." Caveats aside, Spagat says the analysis "focuses attention on the fact that deaths will continue even under the most optimistic scenarios." The projection does not take into account Israel's concern that a ceasefire would allow Hamas to regroup and launch more bloody attacks against Israel — resulting in additional Israeli deaths beyond the October 7 toll and the potential killing of those still held hostage. Projecting what might happen if fighting continues, or gets worse, proved somewhat tricker. The status quo and escalation scenarios The ultimate toll of the other two scenarios — status quo and escalation — depends heavily on the number of new traumatic injuries. "We had to be very careful in defining these scenarios," says Igusa. The team decided to base the scenarios on existing casualty data. But the current death toll, largely documented by the Gaza Ministry of Health, is likely an underestimate, as not all deaths are reported. For six months of war comparable to the early stages, they took the average casualties from October 15 through January 15 and spun them forward over the next six months. For escalation, they assumed fighting from now through August would be as intense as October 11 through November 10, the worst month of the conflict so far that claimed more than 11,000 lives. To Ball, those are plausible assumptions, but he stresses there's a lot of uncertainty. "Escalation might involve a whole lot of indiscriminate bombing in densely populated areas, or Israeli forces could decide to flood the tunnels with seawater," he says. "We don't actually know what any of those scenarios will mean in terms of the armed groups' actions." There's also uncertainty in the underlying numbers. As Israel's military assault has gone on, collecting good numbers has been harder, says Spagat. "I've got less trust in what the [Ministry of Health] is releasing now, not that I think they're making stuff up, just that it's worse quality," says Spagat. In fact, he suspects that more deaths are likely going uncounted now, compared with the beginning of the war. Still, he says these numbers "are reasonable to use. Honestly there's no other alternative." The researchers tried to account for those missing deaths with an independent data source. The U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East closely tracks deaths among their staff of over 13,000 people in Gaza. By comparing death rates from the agency and the Ministry of Health, the team arrived at a better estimate to make their projections, says Igusa. Non-violent deaths increase in the status quo and escalation scenarios too, as there's greater chance for interrupted medical care and epidemics. But given the authors' assumptions, ongoing violence would account for the bulk of those excess deaths, which could reach 66,720 under the status quo scenario and 85,750 under escalation. While those specific numbers come with lots of caveats, says Spagat, "the broad brush picture that they're painted should be taken seriously." The scope of these projections can be seen by looking at estimated trauma deaths from two of history's most devastating bombing campaigns during World War II, with Allied bombs killing some 25,000 over two days in Dresden and Nazi attacks taking approximately 40,000 lives in London over eight months. Will these numbers make a difference? This initial report is very much a first draft. Spiegel, Igusa and colleagues plan to release updated projections over the next several months, refining their assumptions based on experience and incorporating new data, including measures of mental health. Until then, the authors hope these projections of the future might spur action to avoid the worst outcomes. "I hope we've made clear that there's still going to be a lot of death if there's a ceasefire," says Spiegel, underlining the importance of getting adequate food, water and medical attention to where it's needed as soon as possible. Right now, blockades, continued assaults and damaged roads are preventing that aid from reaching those who need it. "These very quantitative, evidence-based efforts are valuable," in forcing politicians and humanitarian agencies to confront the human cost of continued fighting, says Asi. "But that's just the first step. They have to be coupled with advocacy and political action." Since the conflict began, wrenching images and videos of the suffering in Gaza have made the conflict real to many around the world, spurring some advocacy and political action. But the fighting continues. Whether these numbers push political actors towards a lasting ceasefire "remains to be seen," says Asi. Jonathan Lambert is a Washington, D.C.-based freelance journalist who covers science, health and policy. He's been a staff writer at Grid and Science News and has contributed to NPR, Nature News, Quanta Magazine and the Dallas Morning News. He holds a Master's degree in evolutionary biology from Cornell University. Follow him on X @evolambert or on bluesky @jonlambert.bsky.social. Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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'Excess deaths' in Gaza for next 6 months projected in first-of-its-kind effort

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The agency is replacing its COVID-specific guidance with general guidance for respiratory viruses that says people should stay home when they are sick.

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is dropping its 5-day isolation guidance for people with COVID-19. The agency made the announcement on Friday, following reports last month that the policy change was in the works. Until now, people who tested positive were advised to stay home for at least five days to reduce the chances of spreading the coronavirus to others. Now, the CDC is replacing that with general guidance for anyone who's feverish, sneezing and coughing with a respiratory virus. The gist? "When you get sick, stay home and away from others," says CDC director Dr. Mandy Cohen. Instead of setting a strict 5-day isolation period, the new guidance says people can return to normal activities so long as their symptoms improve, and continue improving over 24 hours and they no longer have a fever, without having used fever-reducing medications. The guidance also recommends that people who are recovering from respiratory illness take additional precautions for five days, like wearing well-fitting masks, washing their hands, keeping a distance from others, and improving ventilation in their spaces. "We wanted to give folks simple, actionable things that they can remember and do in order to protect themselves," says Cohen, adding that the country is "in a different place related to COVID than we've been in the past." In its announcement, the agency said the decision reflects the "progress we have made in protecting against severe illness from COVID-19" — and that a unified approach makes recommendations easier to follow and more likely to be adopted by Americans. A CDC survey found that less than half of people were home testing for COVID-19, meaning many people wouldn't know if they had it. Data from other countries, as well as California and Oregon, which have already adopted this policy, show that the change in guidance probably won't make much of a difference in disease transmission. Research suggests that more than half of COVID cases are transmitted from people without symptoms at the time. And many people who got COVID-19 weren't isolating anyway. But the shift — while anticipated — faces criticism from some in public health who see this as the latest evidence that the CDC is no longer taking the threat of COVID-19 seriously enough. "This proposal is not based on new data [on COVID transmission]," said Dr. Kim Rhoads, an epidemiologist at the University of California, San Francisco, in an email from the advocacy group the People's CDC. "In fact, well-designed studies done in the post-Omicron and post-vaccination period show that COVID is often transmitted farbeyond the fifth day of infection," she said. Others see the updated guidance as a common-sense change that reflects present-day realities. "COVID is still a threat, but flu is also a threat and so is RSV," says Raynard Washington, health director for Mecklenburg County, based in Charlotte, North Carolina. "What this guidance does is it aligns the guidance to meet all of those challenges, not just one of them." Deaths and hospitalizations for COVID-19 went up this winter, but nowhere near as high as they did in previous years. In fact, hospitals were mostly OK— not overwhelmed — this virus season. Still there are almost 20,000 people getting hospitalized with COVID each week, says Katelyn Jetelina, an epidemiologist who advises the CDC. "I would really hate for us to just throw up our hands and be like, 'This is what it is, 20,000 hospitalizations per week,' because that is unacceptable," she says. Most of those hospitalizations and deaths are in people who are 65 and older, especially those that didn't get a booster shot last fall. Jetelina says what could really move the needle is to get more of this population vaccinated — once a year for flu, and twice a year for COVID — and linked up to antiviral drugs if they get sick. This week, the CDC recommended a spring COVID booster shot for those 65 and older. "We need to reach those people," she says, "This is the hard work." Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Got COVID? CDC says stay home while you're sick, but drops its 5-day isolation rule

https://news.wgcu.org/2024-03-01/got-covid-cdc-says-stay-home-while-youre-sick-but-drops-its-5-day-isolation-rule

Babies born this coming Saturday could get a birthday present featuring a guy who knows how to have fun — The Cat in the Hat.Dr. Seuss Enterprises is celebrating the iconic children’s author’s 120th birthday with a free giveaway of “The Cat in the Hat” to U.S. residents who have a baby born this March 2.

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NEW YORK — Babies born this coming Saturday could get a birthday present featuring a guy who knows how to have fun — The Cat in the Hat. Dr. Seuss Enterprises is celebrating the iconic children’s author’s 120th birthday with a free giveaway of “The Cat in the Hat” to U.S. residents who have a baby born this March 2. The offer is on a first-come, first-served basis, capping at 10,000 copies. Entrants must be at least 18, legal residents of the 50 states and Washington, D.C., and be parents or legal guardians of a child born March 2, 2024. “Helping ensure all children have easy access to books and literacy programs has always been one of Dr. Seuss’s core missions. This pledge is an opportunity for us to honor this storied legacy and call attention to this noble cause,” Susan Brandt, CEO & president of Dr. Seuss Enterprises, said in a statement. READ MORE: New parents have 90 days to claim their free book, starting Saturday and until May 31. Participants must submit their full name, email address, mailing address, phone number, baby’s name and upload proof of the child’s March 2, 2024, birthdate. Each book will have a personalized message that commemorates the child’s Seussian birthday. Books donated for the pledge will be supplied by Dr. Seuss’s long-time publishing partner Random House Children’s books. Dr. Seuss, born Theodor Geisel, was born on March 2, 1904. His books such as “Green Eggs and Ham” and “The Cat in the Hat” remain popular decades after Geisel’s death in 1991.

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Congratulations, today is your day: A free book giveaway to honor birthday of Dr. Seuss March 2

https://news.wgcu.org/arts-and-culture/2024-03-01/congratulations-today-is-your-day-a-free-book-giveaway-to-honor-birthday-of-dr-seuss-march-2