August, 2022 - Softonic English

Pokémon GO World Championship event for 2022 announced

Niantic has announced a Pokémon GO event that we haven’t seen in the last two years. That’s right, for the first time since 2019, the Pokémon GO World Championships 2022 have been announced, and we’re excited to learn more about the event.

Pokémon GO DOWNLOAD

We missed out on the 2020 and 2021 championships, which were canceled due to the pandemic. However, we’ve just received confirmation that the event will take place from August 19th until August 20th in London, England. If you can’t make it, don’t fret. A live stream will be available starting at 9 am (UCT) broadcasted on the Pokémon GO Twitch channel.

Players attending or participating in the event will receive unique in-game bonuses and a rare World Championship Pikachu. Other event bonuses include the battle sets limit that has been increased to 100 battles per day. Battle league win rewards will also be triple stardust. There will also be new timed tasks such as Elite Fast TM, Elite Charged TM, and encounters with the unique event Pikachu.

Players can also expect increased encounters with Nidoran, Mankey, Machop, Mudkip, Sableye, Meditite, Swablu, Spheal, Croagunk, and Dewpider. There will also be a slight chance to encounter Scraggy and Galarian Stunkfisk.

Players will battle against World Championships 2022 Pikachu, Galarian Farfetch’d, Marill, Barboach, Timburr, and Scraggy in one-star raids. In three-star raids, players will face Primeape, Lickitung, and Skarmory. Five-star raids will be against Zacian, Zamazenta, and mega raids will be faced against Mega Slowbro.

Pokémon GO World Championship event for 2022 announced

By completing field research, players will also encounter Bulbasaur, Rhyhorn, Gastly, Magikarp, Chikorita, Galarian Zigzagoon, Beldum, Galarian Zigzagoon, and Fletchling. Players also have the chance to gain the following special attacks when evolving the following Pokemon:

Evolve Rhydon and get Rhyperior with the Charged Attack Rock Wrecker
Evolve Haunter and get Gengar with the Charged Attack Shadow Punch
Evolve Magikarp and get Gyarados with the Charged Attack Aqua Tail
Evolve Metang and get Metagross with the Charged Attack Meteor Mash
Evolve Fletchinder and get Talonflame with the Fast Attack Incinerate

It’s exciting to have another World Championship, and after the opening of the Pokémon Fossil Museum in Japan, it’s just another item on our bucket list.

Fortnite X Dragon Ball: New crossover to drop soon

Fortnite has officially announced that it will host a Dragon Ball crossover on August 16th. This isn’t even a leak or some bootleg information from a mysterious inside source. The announcement comes directly from Fortnite’s official Twitter account.

Fortnite DOWNLOAD

On the 11th of August, Fortnite posted an image to Twitter with the caption ‘Speak. Name your wish…8.16.2022.’ The image sheds further light on what exactly Fortnite is referencing in the post as we can see Shenron, the Eternal Dragon, as clear as day – even though the photo is set in a night environment. The caption of the post, too, confirms that this is indeed the Eternal Dragon as it is the exact phrase that Shenron bellows once you’ve gathered all seven Dragon Balls and can thus make your one wish.

Speak. Name your wish…8.16.2022 pic.twitter.com/IloBVI07AY
— Fortnite (@FortniteGame) August 11, 2022

The official post isn’t the only proof that Dragon Ball is headed to Fortnite, though. More evidence comes from the prolific leaker Hypex. According to Hypex, the most recent update of the game left behind a clue in the form of content meant to serve as infrastructure for the new crossover.

In addition to adding Indiana Jones, the new update also dropped a prop into the creative mode that very clearly resembles a Capsule Corp capsule. More than some minor family resemblance, however, the prop is an exact copy. The prop even featured the same bold outlines as other iconic anime cosmetics, including the Orochimaru and Sasuke skins from Naruto.

Hypex also pointed out that there would be no better time to host a Dragon Ball crossover considering the arrival of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero on August 19th. This will be the 21st Dragon Ball feature film and centers around Gohan and Piccolo dismantling a revived Red Ribbon Army. The Army is, in turn, trying to garner support from the general public to create two superhero android creatures.

Spoiler Alert: The Red Ribbon Army is actually trying to make an improved version of the infamous Cell being. Remember him? The being so powerful that he almost caused the end of the world?

We’re excited to see how far Fortnite will take the Dragon Ball crossover, and we hope it results in some fan-favorite skins and cosmetics being ported to the battle royale title. In other Fortnite news, the EU has taken steps to curb big tech companies, thanks to Fortnite.

MultiVersus Review | Branded fighting fun

MultiVersus is a free-to-play fighting game by Warner Bros. Games that launched on July 19, 2022. Developed by Player First Games, it features many characters under the Warner Bros. license, including some popular D.C. superheroes and villains. It’s predominantly a multiplayer game, but there are options to play against bots instead of human players.

Multiversus DOWNLOAD

With cross-play functionality, I was able to play Multiversus on PC and PS4 to compare how it feels on both platforms. While it’s free to play, there are microtransactions and Battle Pass tiers teasing you to buy them. You can also purchase bundles for the game that will give you tons of rewards. Let’s take a look at all it has to offer.

Let the MultiVersus battles begin!

There’s almost nothing better than playing a new game with faces and characters you love in a new setting. MultiVersus paves the way for us to pit our favorite heroes and villains against each other while trying to swat each other off the screen. As a starter, let’s evaluate some background and story elements in the game.

Stolen from their universes

As the intro begins, you’ll have only a slight idea of how everyone ends up in the same place to battle each other. They’re snapped from their primary universes and then suddenly appear in–who knows where. If you want to enjoy MultiVersus to its fullest, don’t try to find any rhyme or reason for their presence in the game.

Also, there’s no actual motive for them to be fighting each other. As with most brawling games, it simply sets the scene for players to choose a character they love and bash online opponents. There’s no creativity in a storyline like Fortnite and Injustice 2 managed to pull off.

Battle Pass missions

The only semblance of a story is with the Battle Pass missions. As you complete them, you’ll earn experience to level up and move to the next tier. However, I wouldn’t really call them a campaign. MultiVersus merely treats you to quests like toasting your enemy five times or winning three matches. You won’t have anything interesting like Batman asking Harlequin out on a date just to upset the Joker.

Character collection

I love collections. It’s one of the reasons I enjoy Diablo III so much, especially for that bestiary. MultiVersus feeds my craving for collections with a character section where you can check everyone’s bio. I suspect the developer will add more to the roster when more characters become available in the future.

Of course, you need to unlock the characters to have them as part of the collection. As you play matches and win games, you’ll earn in-game coins that you can use to buy heroes or villains. There’s also an option to purchase them with Gleamium, which you need to spend real money on to obtain. You can start to see how MultiVersus favors those who don’t mind spending cash on game content.

Cross-platform mayhem

A few years ago, hearing that a game is cross-platform would have blown our minds. Today, it’s almost as commonplace as Batman in a Warner Bros game featuring D.C characters. Still, I love the idea that you can challenge players on any platform, as it had me on my PC facing my children on the PlayStation 4 in matches that had us laughing until our bellies hurt.

How long to play MultiVersus?

As I mentioned, there’s no story campaign. All we have at the moment is the pre-season Battle Pass. There’s no indication as yet as to how long a Battle Pass season will last, and you can keep playing MultiVersus until your fingers go numb. The more you play, the more you wrack up the levels and coins.

Defeating your enemies in MultiVersus

Alright, let’s move to the more exciting part of my MultiVersus review: the combat and gameplay. Here’s the real meat of the game that has everyone excited and battling each other out.

Creating your profile on MultiVersus

If it’s your first time on MultiVersus, you’ll be asked to either sign in to a Warner Bros. account or create a new one. The process is the same on PC and console, with one slight difference. On the Windows version, you need to indicate what your age is, while the console will detect it from your device settings when you created your Avatar and account.

Can you change your age on MultiVersus?

If you want to change your age on MultiVersus for some reason, you’ll need to reset your account on PC to make that possible or create a new one. On console, it means changing your age in the system settings.

Learning how to play MultiVersus

As soon as you’ve created your account and then a profile, you’ll head straight to the first tutorial. Here, you’ll face Wonder Woman while learning how to kick, hit, jump, and climb up the sides of the walls. Yes, even Shaggy is able to perform this move, even though he’s afraid of monsters most of the time in his universe.

When you’re done learning the ropes for MultiVersus, there are advanced tutorials for specialized moves that may just save your character’s life. I was so eager to jump into the action for this review that I skipped that entirely, and still won my first three matches. So I don’t deem them necessary.

Choosing your battle mode

Now that you’re in the thick of things, it’s time to get into the actual fights. MultiVersus has three modes at the time of this review:

1 versus 1
2 versus 2
Free for all

There are also practice modes with bots and custom matches. The names of the modes are self-explanatory, but there’s one extra thing I should mention. If you don’t enter a Ranked match, the chances are that you’ll end up fighting players with much higher levels than you. This might be where the advanced tutorials will come in handy, but I beat a level 18 with my level 2 character, anyway. So, maybe not.

Battle perks

One of the benefits of fighting and leveling up is that you unlock new battle perks. Each character can attach up to three perks before a fight, which gives you unique abilities and buffs to enhance your attacks. The issue is, that everyone can attach perks, even your opponents, and you won’t know which ones they selected until the pre-selection screen ends.

Your heroes and villains also level up as you use them, gaining experience with each fight. That means you’ll receive perks that are relevant to the specific character. For the most part, you won’t be able to use those abilities with anyone else, so playing with every character has its pros.

Setting the stage

You know how long it took you to get to this stage of the MultiVersus review to finally read about the fighting aspect of the game? That’s how it feels when you start it for the first time. Going through all the aforementioned elements had me thinking, “Am I going to get to fight at some stage?”

Personal thoughts aside, you’re finally in a match. What I love about the maps and arenas is that they take scenes from each character’s universe, which I’ll touch on more a bit later. The battle stage consists of platforms that you can jump on and off while fighting. The main aim is to keep damage to your character low, highly damage your opponents, and eventually hit them off the stage.

Combat mechanics

You’ll notice that each character has a number under them. In a reverse-health sort of way, the numbers go up every time the hero or villain is struck. The higher that number becomes, the less you’ll be able to dodge and the further you go flying when someone hits you. That means you’re more likely to go soaring through the sky and off the screen.

There are different ways to attack your enemy. There’s the basic hit, special hit, dodge, and jump. While you may think that a good strategy and combos will help you, they won’t. The screen becomes such chaos at times with players all over the place, you’ll spend a lot of your time hitting and hoping for the best. Powering up your strike is more of an invitation for your enemy to hit you at that time than actually delivering a powerful blow.

Making friends on MultiVersus

There’s one aspect of MultiVersus that I can’t deny: it’s good for making friends. Even if someone kicks your cartoon butt during every rematch, it’s still fun sending and receiving friend requests so you can team up next time. The social panel shows you which of your Steam or PlayStation friends are online, and you can also invite them to download and play the game.

Similar games to MultiVersus

Brawling games like MultiVersus aren’t a new concept. We’ve had quite a few of these appear over the years. All Warner Bros are really doing is cashing in on a popular game genre with brand names they own. At this point, I don’t get what all the fuss is about. It’s another brawling game, with WB faces and a Battle Pass system to take your money.

Now that I have that out of my system, other brawling games you can give a try if this is your thing includes Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl, Brawlhalla, and Gang Beasts.

What you’ll need on your PC

You won’t have to worry about heavy performance requirements for MultiVersus just yet. While we’re still in the infant phase, there aren’t too many characters or maps. However, you can expect these numbers to grow as the game upgrades.

OS: Windows 10 64-bit
Processor: Intel Core i5-2300 / AMD FX-8350
Graphics: GeForce GTX 550 Ti / Radeon HD 7770
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Storage: About 5 GB at the time of review

Familiar faces, places, and sounds

In this final part of my MultiVersus review, I’ll take a look at some of the more fun aspects, namely, the graphics and sounds. It should come as no surprise that seeing these familiar faces and sceneries is the main appeal behind the game.

Heroes and villains galore

What was it that got so many players excited about MultiVersus? The heroes and villains! Yes, sure, many gamers out there just love brawling games anyway, but I bet many are first-timers who’ve never experienced this genre of fighting game before.

To be honest, I’m one of those who picked specific characters just to see what moves they can pull off and how they fight. I had a good chuckle at Shaggy picking up a sandwich and throwing it in Batman’s face. As for the character designs, the developers did a great job with the visuals and effects.

Stunning environments

I also loved the various maps and arenas, especially with how they’re tied to the character’s universe. You can even fight in the Bat Cave or the manor, while there’s also a map for Bugs Bunny. Each environment has beautiful visuals, but you may be too busy fighting to notice them.

Classic sounds with brilliant voice acting

With the familiar faces are also the classic sounds and voices that accompany them. Batman’s voice is more from the animated shows, so don’t expect a gruff Christian Bale tone. During the battle, the punches and powers take the show as far as sound effects go, but there’s also battle music playing in the background.

Final Verdict of MultiVersus

You may have seen there’s a mixed opinion from me on Multiversus in this review. While I may have played brawling games before, it’s just not my cup of tea. Sure, I enjoyed seeing D.C. and other WB characters on the screen, but that’s about the height of the excitement for me. There’s nothing pulling me back to play more, like Elder Scrolls Online or Car Mechanic Simulator 2021.

That doesn’t mean it isn’t a good game, though. It has plenty of potentials, and I’m sure gamers that love this genre will go mad playing it all day long and leveling up. There’s definitely entertainment value in it, and I recommend you give it a go. When Harry Potter characters join the mix, I’ll be back to give it another try. I want to see Hermione whip out her wand and Wingardium Leviosa some players.

If you’d like to read articles on games I have enjoyed more, be sure to check out my Mirror Forge preview and Dune: Spice Wars preview.

Pros

Familiar heroes and villains
A collections library
Good at making friends
Cross-play
Several online modes
A tier reward system
Level up perks

Cons

No story mode
Microtransactions give an edge to buyers
Battles can become confusing

Developer: Player First Games

Publisher: Warner Bros. Games

Game Modes: Various multiplayer modes, such as 1v1, 2v2, Free for all, custom, practice

Platform reviewed: Windows 11 – Steam; PlayStation 4

Cult of the Lamb review: cult violence but make it cozy core

That’s right – Cult of the Lamb takes all the difficulty of a rogue-like and pairs it with cutesy characters, base-building, and sim-like mechanics. The art style and soundtrack give the game unique appeal, but there’s more behind the would-be sacrificial main character than meets the eye.

Cult of the Lamb DOWNLOAD

Let’s dive into the game to see why Cult of the Lamb might appeal to more than just fans of games like Binding of Isaac.

Story, setting, & tone

The setting of this game is very simple in that it’s established from the beginning moments of the game. You are a sacrifice to other-worldly gods for something called the “Old Faith.” Except, you aren’t quite sacrificed; instead, something calling itself “The One Who Waits” revives you at the cost of creating a cult in its name.

To that end, you roam around various areas controlled by Old Faith followers, recruiting people to your cult and slaying heretics. This may not have Warhammer levels of lore, but the game establishes its story much more by “showing” than “telling.”

Characters, though their existences seem bleak, have personality and a certain whimsy about them. The pairing of this levity with darkness keeps the narrative from feeling too overbearing or simplistic.

image of The One Who Waits in Cult of the Lamb

Cult of the Lamb performance

Massive Monster built this game on the Unity engine, so it runs very smoothly. The only hiccup I encountered was when I first loaded into the game. It did not natively detect my monitor’s aspect ratio and I had to set it manually. In the grand scheme of things, however, this is not a deal-breaker.

Most computers should be able to run it well along with the consoles on which it is available:

Nintendo Switch
Xbox One
Xbox Series X/S
PlayStation 4
PlayStation 5

Cult of the Lamb gameplay and functions

Since Cult of the Lamb is rogue-like, players do “runs” or attempt to beat the game until they run out of life. When that happens, they must start all over at the beginning of the game. However, as you progress through the game, you’ll get more powerful spells, weapons, and other perks. This can help you progress through the game.

But the other facet of Cult of the Lamb is the cult management simulator aspect. The player must take care of their “flock” so to speak, by feeding them and providing for them regularly. However, this works to your advantage as your followers can aid you in battle.

image of base building in Cult of the Lamb

UI and interface

The UI for this title is uncluttered and straightforward. As with most rogue-likes, it’s best played with a controller. This might make the building aspects a bit cumbersome for players used to the freedom of a mouse and keyboard, but Cult of the Lamb smartly approaches this challenge.

As you can see above, players can place their structures in set places. The red squares indicate occupied spaces (by resources in this case) while the green spaces indicate buildable land.

When it comes to combat and inventory, there is a simple radial menu players can access that displays whatever items they are using at the time. You can upgrade or swap out your weapons and spells/curses throughout the game as you discover them.

Control schema

Cult of the Lamb offers multiple control schemas for different playstyles. The default is a fairly standard setup, but you can customize it if desired. Again, this game is experienced best with a controller.

image of combat and Tarot Cards in Cult of the Lamb

Key mechanics & combat

Players have three core mechanics for combat:

attack
dodge roll
unleash curse

The enemies are very mobile from the very beginning of the game, so you’ll need to learn how to time your dodges. The penalty for missed attacks can also be pretty punishing if you don’t time things right. In that vein, the game rewards players who take the time to learn enemy movements and tactics.

Beyond that, there are the Tarot Cards players can unlock as seen above. These provide buffs such as additional hearts, damage modifiers, and more. If you played Hades, think of it as the buffs you get from the various gods in the game.

image of Old Faith gods in Cult of the Lamb

Cult of the Lamb world, sound, & character design

It isn’t often that you get a beautifully colorful world with such a dark mission in a game. After all, you are running around as an inter-dimensional god-powered prophet slaying non-believers and recruiting followers at any cost. But you’re such a darn cute little innocent lamb!

Therein lies the crux of the game’s core design intent.

Sound design: pivotal to the experience

Many early reviews have raved about the phenomenal soundtrack in Cult of the Lamb. It’s almost a requirement of any good rogue-like game at this point since players spend a great deal of time exploring the game world. Though the game is procedurally generated, it ultimately has players treading similar ground.

The soundtrack keeps things fresh and provides adrenaline boosts in key moments during big fights. It can also set the atmosphere while you are constructing your cult camp. See if you can identify musical motifs for different characters.

The characters speaking different languages is another detail that can’t be missed. It adds to the feeling that these are real people in a real-world dealing with…terrifying cult monsters.

Character design: behind those cute smiles are sharp fangs

Despite being an adorable farm animal, the protagonist is a murder machine. Every character exudes this juxtaposition in Cult of the Lamb. There is always just something a bit off about many of the characters that the player meets. Clauneck, for example, seems welcoming and helpful. But why is this dude chillin’ in a forest infested with zealous cultists handing out buffs?

The Old Faith gods are also quite the sight. They invoke classic themes of horror like spiders, eldritch creatures, and more. Again, there is a juxtaposition to the player character (a lamb) who will one day defeat them. And that requires followers.

Part of the fun of the game is playing with how you build your base and care for those followers. You can also customize them, give them unique names, and deal with various positive and negative traits.

World design: a lived-in, beautiful disaster

Though there isn’t a dedicated overworld, Cult of the Lamb still has a lot to offer in terms of world design. The individual encounters, while simple in their setups, keep things interesting with different set dressings, enemies, and obstacles.

The cult camp you can create is also highly customizable. Though a bit flat, the character that your followers bring to the space does a ton of work to make things feel more chaotic (in a good way).

This, in tandem with the four different areas of the Old Faith realm, offers the player lots of variety to experience. Overall, the whimsy, color, and richness of the world design help the characters feel all the more real.

image of the overworld in Cult of the Lamb

Verdict: Cult of the Lamb is great for any gamer

Cult of the Lamb really does have something for everyone. Fans of games such as Valheim or even The Sims will appreciate the base-building and follower monitoring mechanics.

The combat may prove a bit frustrating at times, but this game is meant to be played over and over again. Ideally, you will get farther each time you play it. And with a game so easy to pick up and put down, it’s simple to do just that.

PROS

Fantastic art style
Incredible soundtrack
Straight-forward control schemas
In-depth tutorial system
Great replayability thanks to procedurally generated maps and customizable builds in each run

CONS

Useful, but limited accessibility features
Rogue-likes aren’t for everyone
Fans of keyboard and mouse sim games may find the controller more cumbersome

Developer: Massive Monster

Publisher: Devolver Digital

Game Modes: single-player

Engine: Unity

Google is adding a new verification stage to Workspace in bid to protect business users

Recently we have seen several examples of enterprise and business users being targeted by cyber-attack. Security is a big issue these days and as more and more companies are operating online; it is becoming a key battleground in the battle between Google Workspace and Microsoft 365. In this regard, Google is introducing a new verification stage to certain actions on Google Workspace in an attempt to bolster business user security.

Google Workspace Download Now

In a Google Workspace blog post, the internet giant has announced stronger verification safeguards to protect certain sensitive events. The idea behind the plan is to prevent hijacking attempts that can have far-reaching consequences for both companies and individuals.

The update will see Google evaluating sessions that attempt certain sensitive actions and then inserting a new “Verify it’s You” stage into the process if the session and the action are deemed suspicious. This new verification stage can include 2-step verification, such as receiving a code or approving the action on a second device. For example, if a scammer is able to gain access to your account and attempt to change its name, Google will block the move until it receives verification that the change is intentional.

Google believes this should add increased security and peace of mind to Google Workspace users, saying it is important because:

“This added layer of security helps to intercept bad actors who have gained access to a user’s account, further protecting their data and your organization’s sensitive information. Additionally, these challenge attempts will be logged as an audit event allowing for further admin investigation.”

According to Google, the update is already rolling out and so there is a good chance that it is already active on your Business and Enterprise Google Workspace account.

For an example of just how serious these types of hacks can be, this fake job offer hack cost one company $620 million.

WhatsApp is trialling a group approval system for new Group Chat participants

We have seen WhatsApp moving forward with a lot of interesting new features and updates recently. These have included new privacy-focused features and attempts to make WhatsApp Groups much more useful tools including giving WhatsApp Group admins the ability to delete other people’s messages. If that last one sounds a bit authoritarian to you won’t be happy to learn about a new WhatsApp Group feature that will give admins even more power.

WhatsApp Download Now

The latest beta version 2.22.18.9 of WhatsApp for Android has served up a rather interesting new feature that will give all WhatsApp Group admins an even greater element of control over their groups. The new feature will give them the power to approve new group participants and conversely reject those that they don’t want to enter the group.

This might sound like a recipe for power-mad group admins to rule their groups with an iron fist but in reality, it is no more than is already seen on other messaging apps such as Telegram. In fact, it is highly likely that WhatsApp is copying Telegram as Telegram Groups are much better suited to manage much larger communities than WhatsApp Groups, precisely because of the added power the admins have.

The larger groups get the more that conversations will need to be guided and managed by rules and regulations as there will always be more friction points such as abuse, strong disagreements, and trolling the more participants there are. The admins need more power to be able to enforce the rules and regulations and for certain communities, they will need to prevent known bad actors from getting in in the first place.

If you add this news to recent reports on the increased group sizes that have recently landed on WhatsApp, it all fits together nicely.

To make sure you don’t miss out on any WhatsApp News Updates be sure to bookmark our page and subscribe to push notifications.

Image via: WABetaInfo

Jim Henson’s Creature Shop is involved in the new FNAF movie

At long last, we have some measure of progress on the long-awaited Five Nights at Freddy’s movie. Judging by recent social media posts, it’s looking like Jim Henson’s Creature Shop is taking the reigns and creating the animatronics for the new FNAF film by Blumhouse.

Five Nights at Freddy's DOWNLOAD

If the production of the storyline of the game had anything to do with the carnage of the movie’s development, we’d all have been stuck in the retro hellscape that is Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria for far longer than five nights. The movie has gone through more script changes than the plot of a soap opera and, in the time that it’s been in production, has cycled through too many directors to mention.

What seemed like the final straw to break the camel’s back came when series creator Scott Cawthon resigned from the project – and the gaming industry as a whole – when it came out that he had supported Trump. If we’ve learned anything in the last few years, it’s that there’s no tolerance in this hyper-tolerant society for conservative voters.

It seems now, though, that the long road to the silver screen is finally beginning to open up to the highly-anticipated film adaptation of everyone’s favorite indie thriller game. Even more good news came in the form of a recent tweet by the founder of Blumhouse Productions, Jason Blum. According to Blum, Jim Henson’s Creature Shop is going to be involved in the production of the new Five Nights at Freddy’s movie.

It's great to be working with Jim Henson's Creature Shop. Their experience and expertise with animatronics is absolutely killer! @blumhouse pic.twitter.com/T81BguWJ69
— Jason Blum (@jason_blum) August 9, 2022

‘It’s great to be working with Jim Henson’s Creature Shop. Their experience and expertise with animatronics is absolutely killer! @blumhouse.’

While we don’t know exactly what Jim Henson’s Creature Shop is going to be doing, given the scope of what the Creature Shop has done previously, we expect that it’ll be heavily involved in the design and production of the animatronics. There’s a lot more in the tweet than just the confirmation that Jim Henson’s Creature Shop is involved in the movie’s production, however.

We can also quite clearly see an unfinished model of Freddy Fazbear. The reason why we know this model to be Freddy Fazbear is because of the bowtie on the model’s neck and the microphone in the model’s hand.

Here’s hoping we start to see more hints at the movie’s production progression soon. While you’re waiting for more info on the movie, though, why not read our guide on how to download and install Five Nights at Freddy’s?

Scammers have moved on from Macros to find a new way of infecting your machine

Recently we’ve covered several stories about scammers using Office macros to infect user devices and Microsoft’s subsequent campaign to shut them down. Well, Microsoft’s campaign has certainly enjoyed a level of success, but it seems that the move has forced the scammers to look elsewhere. Scammers are now using shortcut .ink files in their attempts to infect your device. Let’s go through all you need to know.

Microsoft 365 Download Now

Analysts at HP Wolf Security have discovered an 11% rise in certain files, including .ink files, being used to push malware over the last quarter. This data comes from an analysis of millions of different endpoint devices. The analysts also discovered a variety of different ways that the scammers have been using to try and get the corrupted files onto your devices.

One of the main tricks used by these malicious actors is to compress the files, which makes then harder to detect. For example, if an infected file has been compressed into a .zip file and then sent as an email it is much harder for antivirus programs or your email provider’s attachment scanner to discover it.

The key element about shortcut files is that they are dynamic, meaning the scammers can alter the icon and the title in a way as to make it very difficult for users to identify them. For example, a scammer could give the file a PDF icon and then also include PDF in the file name, when in fact double-clicking it could run an executable file and load pretty much any type of malware.

Alex Holland who is the Senior Malware Analyst at HP Wolf Security had this to say about this new type of threat:

“As macros downloaded from the web become blocked by default in Office, we’re keeping a close eye on alternative execution methods being tested out by cybercriminals. Opening a shortcut or HTML file may seem harmless to an employee but can result in a major risk to the enterprise.”

This new type of threat requires enhanced levels of vigilance and HP Wolf Security recommends blocking any shortcut files sent as email attachments. If you or your team members are unsure about how to spot these types of scams you should check out our infographic, which will teach how to spot scam emails.

Half-Life 2 VR planned for public beta release in September

There’s no denying that Half-Life 2 is one of the best-loved games of all time. Despite its release in 2004 (a long time ago for any game), it completely changed the face of the FPS genre. Now, the game is taking another revolutionary turn as a VR mod is scheduled for release in September.

Half-Life 2 DOWNLOAD

The team at the Source VR Mod Team, which is the company responsible for making the VR mod, announced that the public beta test will launch this September. So far, they haven’t been able to provide an exact date. The mod is currently in a closed playtest to iron out any issues before the beta is made public.

The VR version is coming after many years! It was already greenlit on Steam in 2017. After numerous development nightmares, the project was almost abandoned. However, with a new influx of talented team members in 2021, the project was revitalized and made immense strides in a relatively short time – which is why the game is finally ready for beta testing.

Half-Life 2 VR planned for public beta release in September 2

The new VR game will run on SteamVR and can be used with any headset using the Steam platform. So far Half-Life 2 VR has been tested on Index, Quest, Vive, and Pimax systems. It appears that this VR mod will be free to download, but it will require a copy of Half-Life 2 to play.

At the moment it’s unclear whether or not the game will be released on Steam. The team explained that they’re still waiting for approval by Valve. At the moment there’s no indication as to how long the approval might take. As such the team decided that if approval comes through in time the game will be released on Steam as planned. If not, they will look at alternative launch options outside of Steam.

This is not the first new development for Half-Life 2 in the years since its release. In 2014, almost ten years after the release, Half-Life 2 came to Android as an NVIDIA Shield exclusive. More recently, the game received an official VR sequel in 2020 known as Half-Life: Alyx. As such, we look forward to the newest Half-Life VR coming in September.

Enjoy streaming your movie or game on PC with Bluestacks

Streaming has become a way of life for many gamers, and it’s even possible on Bluestacks. Traditionally, streaming is relatively easy to do unless you’re trying to stream mobile games. First, you’ll have to make sure that the game you’re trying to stream has built-in Twitch support. Then, you’ll need to rig an appropriate setup that takes care of your controllers and other input devices you want to use, the camera and recording equipment you’ll need, as well as the wiring that makes everything work

Only once you’ve done all that can you actually settle down to stream in peace.
Luckily, with innovations like BlueStacks, you no longer have to do any of this. All you need to do is fire up your BlueStacks utility and get ready to stream to your heart’s content.

How to stream movies or games with BlueStacks

Set up BlueStacks
Your first step is to head to the link in the introduction where you’ll find a direct download link to BlueStacks 5, the latest version of the software. Once you’ve ensured that your PC or laptop has sufficient processing power and memory to run BlueStacks, you can hit the install button and wait for the installation wizard to complete its task.
Connect your Google account
Your Google account is what gives you access to the incredible library of Android games that BlueStacks supports. Therefore, you’ll need to log into your Google account before we go any further. All you need to do is click on any of the apps under the Android tab in your BlueStacks interface. This will initiate an automatic One Time Setup. You won’t have to do this everytime you start BlueStacks. Once you’ve clicked on an appropriate app, all you need to do is follow the Google setup prompts to log into your Google account. If you don’t have a Google account, it’s at this point that you’ll need to set one up.
Select a game
For this step you’ll need to return to the Android interface. Here, you’ll be able to search for whichever game you want to play – and stream. Once you’ve found your desired game, click Install, and you’ll be taken to the Google Play Store.
BlueStacks TV
Once your game of choice is installed to BlueStacks, you’ll want to open your game up and get things ready. This essentially means logging in if needed, grinding a little if you don’t want to start streaming from scratch, or familiarizing yourself with the game beforehand.

BlueStacks TV is a utility that you’ll have noticed is open in its own window. All you need to do to start streaming is head to the BlueStacks TV window and click Start Streaming.
Twitch
Given that this is your first time using the app, you’ll need to sign into your Twitch account before you can start streaming. If you don’t have a Twitch account, it’s at this point that you’ll need to make one. Once you’ve logged in to your account, you’ll need to click Authorize, and then you’re good to go!

This is the point at which you choose whether or not to turn on your microphone and webcam. Depending on what you want your stream to look like, you may want only one of these devices active. You’ll also need to choose your location and name your broadcast so that other people can find it. Once you’re done tweaking settings, you can click Go Live and start your stream.

Twitch + BlueStacks = ❤️

I’m not much of a streamer myself, but it’s easy to see the appeal of either streaming or watching someone do it. As a gamer, it’s always fun to watch someone else game it out and enjoy something that I have gotten hours of enjoyment from. The pure pleasure that arises from seeing someone get as invested in The Sims 4 histories and mysteries as I do is something I’ll never be able to put into words in a manner truly representative of the experience. Watching someone else stream sometimes also sometimes breeds the same amount of enjoyment as you playing the game yourself.

Streamers also create a unique opportunity to bring a social aspect into games that otherwise don’t really have one. Streamers inadvertently create these massive communities of loyal fans and fellow gamers that give so many people a sense of belonging. Any way you slice it, streaming is an important part of the modern socio-economic climate and one that I’m so glad exists.

Thanks to the most recent update to BlueStacks, Twitch and BlueStacks are a match made in the clouds. Finally, streamers can broadcast their mobile game adventures without having to dedicate hours to rigging their setup. BlueStacks makes streaming mobile content easier and more convenient than ever before. If you’re having an issue with distorted graphics, be sure to check out our guide for fixing it.

How to fix distorted graphics in Bluestacks READ MORE