New academic research analyzing Facebook’s adoption across 72 different countries is trying to challenge the common claim that social media is to blame for negative mental health outcomes. Researchers at the Oxford Internet Institute (OII) said they found “no evidence” that increased Facebook penetration worldwide…
There’s something so satisfying about when a game you love finally comes out on your console of choice. It’s as if everything falls into place, and the rhythm of each button pressed feels just right. The latest example: Cardboard Computer’s fan favorite Kentucky Route Zero: TV Version is getting released on the PS5 and Xbox Series X and S. Annapurna Interactive is publishing the game and put out a trailer ahead of its release.
Cardboard Computer first released Kentucky Route Zero in 2013, a “magical realist adventure game” that centers on a highway underneath a series of caves and the beings that move through it. Four more acts over the next seven years with Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition rounding out the series as its epic and quite moving conclusion. Critics and players alike have widely praised the series for its visuals and storytelling.
Engadget spoke with the games’ developers when Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition came out in 2020, and they reflected on the tragic but full-circle nature of the finale. “Tragedy is not pessimistic,” Jake Elliott, who handled the narrative, said. “A lot of literary tragedies or dramatic tragedies, at the end the character who has made all these terrible mistakes or who has these terrible flaws… they usually have this moment where they sort of take responsibility for it, or in some other way transcend it.” It’s a game that will make you feel something, to say the least.
Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition will be available on the PS5 and Xbox Series X and S on August 17th. Annapurna Interactive confirmed that there will be an upgrade option available if you’ve already purchased the game for the PS4 or Xbox One. Plus, there’s more to look forward to: Elliott and Co. confirmed last year that they’re working on another game with Annapurna Interactive that will be “fully animated.”
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/kentucky-route-zero-tv-edition-is-coming-to-the-ps5-and-xbox-series-x-and-s-095518378.html?src=rss
Swift showed fans what she’s been planning for a “ridiculously embarrassingly long time” as she wrapped up the first U.S. leg of The Eras Tour.
J. Michael Luttig, a retired federal judge, warns that American democracy itself is in peril because of Donald Trump and his enablers.
The classic track was given an unforgettable makeover.
NASA has regained contact with Voyager 2, only one of two human-made objects to leave the solar system. The agency lost touch with the probe on July 21st after a series of planned maneuvers pointed it two degrees away from Earth. It would have reset its orientation in October, but agency officials didn’t want to wait that long to get back in touch.
The Voyager 2 team used a network of ground-based transmitters to “shout” a command to the probe, telling it to turn back toward Earth. This bellowed order took 18.5 hours to reach the apparatus, and it would take just as long before NASA would learn it was successful. It’s a testament to human ingenuity, but also a vital reminder to not miss a second of data coming from Voyager 2 since NASA believes it may not function properly after 2025.
— Dan Cooper
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Marvel’s visual effects workers vote to unionize
GM will enable vehicle-to-home charging on all Ultium-based EVs
Valve sells refurbished Steam Decks for around 20 percent off
Surely computers, as powerful as they are these days, are smart enough to decode simple animal calls? That’s the question at the heart of Andrew Tarantola’s latest feature, which asks why we don’t yet have Google Translate for animal speech. Turns out, as simple as a bird call may sound to our ears, it’s one of the most complex vocal systems ever developed. Read on to learn why, in fact, we’re the plain-speaking simple folk, not our pets.
As night follows day, Apple releases new products with a name one integer higher than one it presently sells. It’s no surprise we’re hearing M3 chips are currently being tested in anticipation of a refresh later in the year. What might surprise, however, is the hint Apple may speed up its release schedule to refresh its computer offerings faster than it does now.
There are plenty of smart grills, but one that burns charcoal rather than pellets is a slightly taller task. Kamado Joe’s Konnected Joe has been in Billy Steele’s possession for the last few weeks as he tests out this versatile and, crucially, charcoal-burning smart grill. There’s still plenty of summer left, so find out if you wanna snag one of these by reading his review.
Stablecoins pegged to a real-world asset are meant to be a necessary counter to the volatile world of cryptocurrency. PayPal has introduced its own in the form of PayPal USD, a currency pegged to the US dollar, which you can use to buy stuff or pay your friends. It’s not clear, however, if regulators have given their blessing or if PayPal is about to get a few thousand sternly worded letters from the Federal Reserve and the SEC.
Amazon is once again planning a second Prime Day-style shopping event in October. This Amazon Prime Big Deal Day, aside from being a mouthful to say, will offer a bonanza of deals both on Amazon’s own hardware – and everything else. If you’ve got an eye on snagging some bargains ahead of the holiday shopping season, check out our guide to prepare for what’s to come.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-voyager-2-is-alive-111534452.html?src=rss
The network is currently facing a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit.
Humble has teamed up with Capcom for Resident Evil fans who may want to get extra copies of the games or people looking to finally give the survival horror series a try. The Resident Evil Humble Bundle comes with 11 titles for the PC, including one version for every major entry in the franchise. It also includes the latest game in the series, Resident Evil Village, which still costs at least $40 to purchase from Steam, along with a 25 percent off coupon for its Winters’ Expansion DLC. The extra content gives players access to Third-Person Mode, expands the Mercenaries Mode and shows what happened to the baby who played a pivotal role in the story 16 years later.
In addition to RE Village, the bundle contains the following games: Resident Evil 0, Resident Evil HD Remaster, Resident Evil 2 Remake, Resident Evil 3 Remake, Resident Evil 4, Resident Evil 5 Gold Edition, Resident Evil 6, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Resident Evil Revelations and Resident Evil Revelations 2. Buyers will have to pay at least $35 to get the whole bunch, but they can also get everything minus RE Village and the coupon for its expansion for only $20. For $10, they can get the seven oldest games in the list. All the titles from the bundle are redeemable from Steam and playable on Windows PCs.
Notably absent from the game list is Capcom’s remake of Resident Evil 4. That one is, perhaps, a bit too new to be included in the bundle, as it was only released in March for $60.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/this-resident-evil-humble-bundle-contains-11-games-for-35-055328479.html?src=rss
The vehicles may indicate the lake was a dumping ground for people committing crimes in the area years ago.
Sony has published its earnings report for the first quarter of the year (PDF) ending on June 30th and an adjusted forecast for the fiscal year, and they paint a picture of mixed results for the company. Its overall operating profit for the period was down 31 percent year-over-year, from 364.9 billion yen ($2.54 billion) to 253 billion ($1.76 billion). The company’s revenue was up 33 percent, however, thanks to significant increase in sales by its game and network services, music, imaging and financial services businesses.
Sony believes its game and music segments will continue to do well and has raised (PDF) its sales and revenue forecast for the fiscal year ending on March 31st, 2024 by 6.1 percent due to higher-than-expected sales for those businesses. It also expects its net income to be 2.4 percent higher than its previous forecast, from 840 billion yen ($5.86 billion) to 860 billion ($6 billion).
For its game division, in particular, Sony has tweaked its forecast, because it’s anticipating an increase in sales for non-first-party PlayStation titles, including add-on content. Several much-awaited games are coming out for PlayStation gamers this year, such as Spider-Man 2, Assassin’s Creed Mirage, Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty Expansion, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora and EA Sports FC.
This expected increase in sales for non-first-party titles will be aided by a decrease in costs and expenses. That said, they will also offset by a “deterioration in profitability of PlayStation 5 hardware.” Sony has dropped the PS5’s pricing in several regions around the world recently. While that translates to lower overall earnings from the console, it could also get people on the fence to finally purchase the PS5, which in turn could lead to more game purchases.
To note, Sony has shipped 3.3 million PS5 units in the first quarter of the year. That’s almost half of the previous quarter’s sales of 6.3 million units, though that figure was for the holiday season, when businesses typically do better than usual. This is Sony’s best-performing first quarter for PS5 sales so far, bringing the total number of units sold to 41.7 million.
Despite adjusting its outlook with better numbers for the year overall, Sony has lowered its expectations for the sales of mobile sensors due to the continuing downward trend in smartphone sales. Sony Pictures’ earnings was also down year-on-year despite the success of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. The company doesn’t foresee a recovery for the business, as well, and believes it will perform worse than what was predicted last April due to the impact of strikes by the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/sony-raises-its-annual-forecast-on-the-strength-of-its-playstation-sales-113514305.html?src=rss
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