Month: January 2021

Veteran actor Kenneth Branagh’s next role has been confirmed, and he’s set to portray UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson in a limited series chronicling the leader’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The show is called This Sceptred Isle, and it’s in production at the British studio Sky; there will be five episodes in total. The series will look into the early days of the COVID-19 virus and touch on how Johnson and his administration took on the pandemic.

Michael Winterbottom (24 Hour Party People) is directing the series from a script he co-wrote with Kieron Quirke (Defending the Guilty), according to EW.

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Max “RinHara5aki” Blumenthal with over 2300+ hours experience with Breath of the Wild combat, breaks down a battle sequence so the technicals can be shown and explain the complexities of what is happening. His combat glossary in progress explains a great deal about the vastness of advanced combat in Breath of the Wild.

The next Dragon Age game will take place in Tevinter, according to an official BioWare game development book. For fans of the series, the new setting suggests a lot about the story and conflicts that will be front-and-center in the anticipated sequel.

Eurogamer reports that the setting was confirmed in the book BioWare: Stories and Secrets from 24 Years of Game Development. This follows a hint that came at the end of Dragon Age Inquisition‘s Trespasser expansion, and will finally make good on a setting we’ve previously only heard about secondhand.

The Tevinter Imperium is a human nation ruled by a council of mages. The council of magisters is led by the Imperial Archon. Tevinter has also been described as a rich, decadent nation that kept a tight rule on its people, including by use of blood magic. Given that plenty of Dragon Age stories have revolved around tensions between magic-users and non-magic folk, it’s sure to be a rich vein for intrigue.

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Konami has announced an internal restructure in which three production divisions will be dissolved – but has denied that it is shutting down its gaming production after fans and media began speculating about the move.

The story began in an announcement to investors of, among other things, organizational restructuring. A post on the Konami Digital Entertainment website explained that it will dissolve Production Divisions 1, 2, and 3, “to respond to the rapid market that surrounds us.” With Production Divisions previously representing the company’s home of game development, some took this to mean that gaming production at the company was being shuttered as a whole.

However, in a statement to IGN, a Konami representative wrote: “The announcement made refers to an internal restructure, with Production Divisions being consolidated. We have not ‘shut down’ our video gaming division.”

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While Konami hasn’t commented further, the same announcement shows that several executives who previously led Production Divisions are now solely leading separate Production Departments. Per the statement’s mention of consolidation, it may be that the development work of the old Divisions is being folded into wider Departments.

Konami, once a huge part of the games development and publishing landscape, has become increasingly quiet in the field in recent years, which goes some way towards explaining why many jumped to the conclusion that Konami was moving away from games production. The company is currently actively developing PES 2022 for next-gen consoles, and set up a western game publishing division last year.

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Joe Skrebels is IGN’s Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Hitman 3 speedrunners are currently posting record completion times of IO Interactive’s latest assassination sandbox, with some players now able to complete the opening Dubai level in under ten seconds. The first level of Hitman 3 tasks players with eliminating two targets inside of a heavily-fortified skyscraper, with one of the potential victims routinely wandering around the upper floors and constantly flanked by security.

According to Speedrun.com, a website that tracks how quickly players can complete games, user Goron currently holds first place with a world record of eight seconds, followed closely by four other players who share second place with a nine-second run. The strategy for completing the mission ‘On Top Of The World’ is simple but requires pinpoint accuracy to pull off.

In the video provided in the link above, Goron attracts the attention of Marcus Stuyvesant on one of the upper floors with a well-placed shot from Agent 47’s silenced pistol, instantly executes him with a headshot, and quickly eliminates his second target, Carl Ingram, within less than a second. With the starting point of the Dubai level also being a convenient exit point, Goron was able to pull off the impressive feat with time to spare.

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NBC’s Peacock and WWE have announced a multi-year agreement that gives Peacock exclusive streaming rights to the WWE Network in the US.

WWE has revealed that NBCUniversal will officially launch the WWE Network on its Peacock streaming service in the US on March 18, beginning the roll-out of “more than 17,000 hours of new, original, and library WWE Network programming” both on-demand and on a 24/7 channel. Per Variety, any existing subscribers of the WWE Network in the US will be migrated over to Peacock Premium for $4.99 per month or, for an ad-free experience, Peacock Premium Plus will be available for $9.99 per month.

The Wall Street Journal reports that WWE is set to rake in more than $1 billion for the five-year deal, which will see Peacock become the sole streaming distributor in the US of the WWE Network. Consequently, WWE will shut down its WWE Network streaming service in the US in March but will continue to operate as a standalone streaming service outside of the US, meaning that nothing will change for WWE Network subscribers in other countries. The companies plan to share further details about the switch to Peacock and the management of customer accounts in the next few weeks.

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The new agreement will bolster Peacock’s sports programming selection, with all of WWE’s live pay-per-view events, including WrestleMania, SummerSlam, and Fastlane (available on Peacock on March 21). The catalog also includes original series like Steve Austin Broken Skull Sessions, Undertaker: The Last Ride, and the all-new WWE Icons, plus in-ring shows like NXT, NXT UK, and WWE 205 Live, as well as replays of Raw and SmackDown, together with WWE Network archives and documentaries.

“NBCUniversal has a long-standing relationship with WWE that began nearly 30 years ago with Monday Night Raw on USA. WWE has always tapped into the cultural zeitgeist with spectacular live events and larger-than-life characters, and we are thrilled to be the exclusive home for WWE Network and its millions of fans across the country,” said Rick Cordella, Peacock’s EVP and Chief Revenue Officer. “WWE Network is a transformative addition to the platform and complements Peacock’s massive catalog of iconic movies and shows, as well as the best live news and sports, from NBCUniversal and beyond.”

“We are thrilled to further the long-standing and trusted partnership WWE has with NBCUniversal,” Nick Khan, WWE’s President and Chief Revenue Officer, added in an adjoining statement alongside the announcement. “Peacock is an innovative platform that will enable us to showcase our most significant events, including WrestleMania, and provide the extraordinary entertainment our fans have come to expect with the combination of premium WWE content, live sports, news, films, and television programs.”

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WWE’s 24/7 streaming network launched in 2014, offering wrestling fans exclusive access to live and on-demand programming with some original series and special partnerships. For the first time ever, US subscribers will be invited to access this content on Peacock’s streaming platform, which is already populated with a diverse selection of noteworthy movies and shows to choose from.

For more about the service, read IGN’s official review of Peacock, then check out our rundown of 20 hidden gems worth watching on the platform.

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Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.