Category: games

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The promise of 4K has been realized over the last few years, with graphics cards growing more powerful while display prices fall. We’ve had 4K monitors, and the ability to drive them at 60fps, for a while now. But that’s as fast a refresh rate as you could get in 4K HDR. If you wanted something faster, you needed to drop the resolution. There are tons of 1440p monitors running at 144Hz, providing fast, smooth, responsive movement at a better-than-HD resolution. In the world of professional gaming, where ultra-fast reflexes require ultra-fast displays, 144Hz is the standard.

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Deadpool was a surprise hit, breaking box office records for an R-rated movie. But more importantly it salvaged the character of Wade Wilson after he was so badly fumbled in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Expectations might be higher this time, but Deadpool 2 comfortably satisfies them, delivering a sequel that’s, crasser, gorier, and funnier than the first. Occasionally it runs a little short in terms of plot, and doesn’t make the most of Cable butit’s a strong second outing for the Merc with a Mouth.

While it may sow the seeds for an X-Force film down the line, Deadpool 2 is unmistakably Wade Wilson’s movie. He dominates every scene, steamrollering everyone around him. Even returning characters from the last film – Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Weasel – are all firmly pushed to the sidelines. Deadpool is the star here, with Ryan Reynolds effortlessly bringing him to life once again. Credited as a co-writer this time, Reynolds blurs the line even further between himself and the character over whom he clearly feels a special ownership. He’s perfect in the role.

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Usually when Deadpool falls back on a tired trope, he turns to the camera and milks it for comedic effect. When he dives in front of a bullet, the next words out of his mouth are to make sure the cinematographers caught it in slow motion–that kind of thing. That lets Deadpool have his bloody cake and stuff it in his disgusting gob hole too; these movies can rely on silly superhero tropes, as long as Deadpool breaks the fourth wall and plays it up. “Woo! Superhero landing!”

But when that latter part doesn’t happen–when the punchline never comes–it becomes hard to tell the difference between Deadpool and any other cliché-laden superhero sequel. That’s the biggest problem with Deadpool 2. In its opening moments, Deadpool 2 resorts to a trope so tired and off-putting that it sets the rest of the movie on a clichéd, MacGuffin-laden path to blandness. It defines Deadpool’s motivation for the whole movie. Even worse, the exact same trope motivates Cable, which is just plain bad writing. It’s a double cliché of doom for Deadpool 2.

Luckily, Ryan Reynolds’ Merc with a Mouth is still hilarious, irreverent, and irritatingly irresistible. The character, tone, and humor haven’t changed from the original, so if you liked Deadpool the first time around, chances are you’ll like Deadpool 2 as well, despite its flaws.

To explain much of Deadpool 2‘s plot would spoil it, but suffice to say things don’t go well for Wade Wilson from the start. Like in an Iron Man sequel, the “hero” spends a lot of this movie wallowing and feeling sorry for himself, although Wade’s version of that involves a lot more dick jokes than Tony Stark’s. Eventually he recruits the other members of the X-Force, faces off with Cable (Josh Brolin), and meets up with Julian Dennison’s character Russell, who calls himself Fire Fist–a nickname Wade is quick to make fun of.

Deadpool 2 is full of bait-and-switches. Characters you think are going to be important wind up not mattering at all. The X-Force–Terry Crews’ Bedlam, Bill Skarsgard’s Zeitgeist, Rob Delaney’s Peter, and Lewis Tan’s Shatterstar–aren’t featured nearly as heavily as the trailers led us to believe (except, thankfully, Zazie Beetz’s Domino, the freshest part of the whole film). Brianna Hildebrand’s Negasonic Teenage Warhead and Stefan Kapicic’s Colossus get about as much time as they did in the first Deadpool, while the newcomer to their crew, Shioli Kutsuna’s Yukio, is onscreen for about 20 seconds total.

On the other hand, seemingly minor additions to the cast, like Dennison’s Fire Fist, are actually integral to the plot, and not necessarily to the movie’s benefit (Dennison is sometimes funny, but he’s playing against type here, and it doesn’t always work).

Deadpool 2‘s overarching plot doesn’t really work. It relies too heavily on those aforementioned tropes, and on top of that it forgets to give you a reason to care about much of what’s happening. Wade has his own goals in this movie, but they’re actually counter to what you’ll want to happen as the viewer, especially after a particularly conspicuous MacGuffin gets introduced partway through. Cable and Domino are undeniably cool, but like the other new characters, they have very little depth. At most, we get to know their basic motivations (if that).

All that said, Deadpool 2 is still hilarious. The character’s best jokes always come from breaking the fourth wall and making references to other superhero movies and characters. Deadpool 2 pokes fun at the DC movies universe, Infinity War, the other Marvel movies, the other X-Men movies, and even certain previous Ryan Reynolds superhero roles. There are some extremely fun cameos, and the introduction, through Cable, of time travel into Deadpool’s “continuity” (such as it is) makes for a collection of fantastically clever gags.

The action is still a stylish blast to watch, too, especially when the new characters get involved. Domino’s power of “really good luck” lets her practically glide through action scenes without a scratch, while Cable makes good use of his “Winter Soldier arm,” as Deadpool refers to it. The Merc himself uses his own regenerative body in horrifying new ways, including breaking his own arm in multiple places to put someone in an uncomfortable headlock. At one point he has to re-grow his entire bottom half, and he spends a whole scene “shirt-cocking it.” If you’re having trouble picturing that, think Winnie the Pooh.

Overall, Deadpool 2 mostly works for all the same reasons that the original did. Reynolds carries the movie on his back–although this time around he should have shared the load a little more evenly with some of his talented co-stars, particularly Beetz and Brolin. But Reynolds’ Wade Wilson is just as charming as ever, in his own twisted way, and Deadpool 2 delivers the laughs, action, and gruesome maimings that fans want.

The Good	The Bad
Meta jokes and fourth wall-breaking are hilarious	Relies heavily on boring, clichéd tropes
Deadpool is charming in his own twisted way	The overarching plot doesn’t really work
Cable and Domino are cool as heck	New characters aren’t explored enough
Action is a stylish blast

Microsoft, like Sony before it, is taking steps to be more transparent about the data it collects from Xbox users and in detailing what circumstances it is shared with other companies. The next time you boot up your Xbox One, you may be greeted with a page that reiterates Microsoft’s policies surrounding privacy and data-sharing. Multiple GameSpot staffers received the notification today, which you can read in full at the bottom of this post.

The statement explains that if you’re playing an Xbox Live-enabled game or app, Microsoft might share some information about you and your play habits with the publisher of said game or app. The information that can be shared with publishers includes your country and age range, Xbox profile data such as your Gamertag and avatar, and information about how many achievements you’ve unlocked and how much time you’ve spent in a game or app. Microsoft may also share details about enforcement against your profile.

Additionally, Microsoft’s statement says it may share social data information such as your “interactions and communications” with other players, though it’s unclear if this is for written and verbal messages. What’s more, Microsoft may give publishers your real name, if you’ve elected to share that information.

Microsoft went on to say that it does not control what publishers do with this information once it is shared with them. That is determined by a specific publisher’s own privacy policy practices, which you can find on the Xbox store pages.

If some or all of this information sounds spooky to you, there is something you can do. You can stop sharing game or app data with publishers by revoking access either on your console or through this website for some games and apps.

Microsoft’s privacy policy statement comes after a similarly worded message from Sony that was discovered following a recent update. It alerted players, at least those in Europe, about its data-collection methods. All of this comes in the wake of the massive data-sharing scandal at Facebook.

Earlier this month, Microsoft alerted fans that this data-sharing disclosure was coming. In a blog post detailing upcoming changes, the company said, “We’ll also let you know about scenarios where we need to share your data with game developers, publishers, and other third parties so that you can play online.” Microsoft’s full privacy policy statement is below.

Xbox Data Sharing With Games And Apps:

If you use an Xbox Live enabled game (or app through your Xbox console), Microsoft may share information with the publisher of that game or app in order to deliver your online experiences, improve the game or app, diagnose problems, provide support, and connect you with other users.

Information we share may include:

• limited Microsoft account data such as country and age range;
• Xbox profile data such as user id, gamertag, gamer profile, and avatars;
• data about your game play or app session, including achievements unlocked, time spent in the game or app, presence, game statistics and rankings, and enforcement activity about you in the game or app;
• social data, including club memberships; friends, other users you have played with, and information about your interactions and communications;
• data about the game or app’s performance on the console, including error reports;
• content you create, upload or share in the game, app, or within Xbox Live;
• other data, like gamerpics and real name, that you choose to share based on your settings or by providing additional consent.

Third party game and app publishers and developers are independent controllers of this data, and their data collection, use, and sharing practices are governed by their privacy policies. Please take time to review their policies; you may find these linked from the product pages of the games or apps in the Microsoft store. For games published by Microsoft, please visit privacy.microsoft.com.

If you want to stop sharing game or app data with a publisher, remove all its games or apps from all devices where you have installed them. Some publishers’ access to your data may also be revoked by visiting https://microsoft.com/consent

For more information about our privacy practices, visit privacy.microsoft.com.”

Publisher EA’s PC subscription service, Origin Access, is adding more free games to its “Vault” of freebies. Five more games are coming to the library on May 17, and interestingly, they are not all published by EA itself. That’s not entirely surprising, however, as Origin Access has already added many non-EA games.

As announced on EA’s website, the five games include Europa Universalis III Complete, Knights of Pen and Paper: +1 Edition, The Guest, Hearts of Iron III, and Victoria I Complete.

Origin Access has more than 80 games already in its library of freebies; you can see a full rundown of the titles here. In addition to free games, subscribers save 10 percent on Origin purchases and can play some of EA’s upcoming games multiple days ahead of launch.

A similar service, EA Access, is offered on Xbox One with its own library of free games. No version of the program is available on PlayStation 4, though the door isn’t completely shut.

The service costs $5/month or $30/year.

Origin Access Games Coming May 17:

• Europa Universalis III Complete
• Knights of Pen and Paper: +1 Edition
• The Guest
• Hearts of Iron III
• Victoria I Complete

Update: The new Fortnite patch has been delayed due to Epic’s discovery of an unspecified issues. Related to this, some quests might not work as expected, Epic said.

The original story follows below.

Fortnite continues to get new updates. Developer Epic Games announced today on Twitter that the battle royale game’s next update is coming on May 15.

Version 4.2 will arrive tomorrow starting at 1 AM PT / 4 AM ET, and there will be some downtime associated with it. However, Epic did not specify how long the downtime will last. The patch is expected for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, and we’ll circle back with the patch notes when they are made available.

In other Fortnite news, Epic has added yet another dance emote. This one is called the Chicken Emote, and it really looks like Gob’s wonderful dance from Arrested Development. You can see the dance in action in the video above.

As with other Fortnite emotes and skins, the Chicken Emote will only be available for a limited time.

Tomorrow’s Fortntie patch appears to be the one that will remove the Infinity Gauntlet mode from the game. This mode gives you a chance to play as Avengers: Infinity War bad guy Thanos. A recent patch made him easier to kill, though he remains extremely deadly.

We’ve got a theory about Westworld Season 2, episode 4, and it’s all about Bernard’s latest memory.

Here are this week’s challenges for Fortnite’s Battle Royale mode.

Cobra Kai loves paying tribute to The Karate Kid

Now that Cobra Kai is out and the world has had a chance to watch it on YouTube Red, it’s clear that the soul of The Karate Kid movie franchise is alive and well in this sequel series. Set over three decades after the first showdown between Daniel LaRusso and the villainous Cobra Kai dojo, the show pays tribute to the legacy of the films in smart ways that are sure to make any fan smile.

Throughout Season 1 of Cobra Kai, there are not just mentions of The Karate Kid in flashbacks, but the story is structured in a way that the film is on your mind constantly–and that’s a good thing. Given how seminal a movie The Karate Kid is, to not only fans but the stars who now reprise their roles on the show, it’s important to pay respects to what came before. Still, it’s a fine line to walk between properly paying tribute and flat-out copying without bringing anything new to the table. Thankfully, Cobra Kai relies on the former with nearly all of its homages helping to further expand the world its set in.

If you haven’t watched the show and don’t want to be spoiled, you should stop reading now. We’re diving into heavy spoiler territory for the entire first season of Cobra Kai to look at the ways it honors The Karate Kid and even expands on it. Besides, what are you waiting for? The first season is out now and waiting for you. If you have seen the show or don’t care about finding out what happens, buckle up because we have a lot to talk about. If anything, it should get you excited for Season 2.

1. Right where we left him

From: Episode 1

When fans last saw Johnny Lawrence, he was face down on the mat after being defeated by Daniel at the All-Valley Karate Tournament. Naturally, the first shot of him in Cobra Kai is face down on the mat after being defeated by life.

2. Back in the valley

From: Episode 1

California’s San Fernando Valley is as important a character in The Karate Kid as anyone or anything else, and Cobra Kai recognizes that right away. While the show was mostly filmed in Georgia, it’s nice to see it returned to the Valley for some establishing shots.

From: Episode 1

When Mr. Miyagi taught Daniel how to care for Bonsai trees in The Karate Kid, chances are he didn’t expect them to be used as gifts for anyone who bought a luxury car. That said, kudos to Daniel for keeping the hobby alive.

4. A glimpse at Karate Kid 2

From: Episode 1

While footage from the original Karate Kid is used throughout Cobra Kai, this blending of the movies and the show put Johnny right back in the moment his former sensei turned on him. Interesting that the reminder of his leaving Cobra Kai is what makes him restart it.

5. Three rules

From: Episode 1

And restart it he does. Taking the harsh lessons he learned from Sensei Kreese, Johnny brings back the yellow and black.

6. Cobra Kai is back

From: Episode 2

While the dojo may have a different location and design (though the original makes an appearance later) there’s no mistaking that logo and what it means to this franchise.

7. A glimpse of Mr. Miyagi

From: Episode 2

Though Pat Morita died in 2005 and is unable to reprise his role as Mr. Miyagi, his presence is felt throughout the show. Beyond that, though, his face appears a number of times–including this newspaper clipping that touts the victory of a “mystery dojo” at the All-Valley tournament.

8. Washing windows means nothing in Cobra Kai

From: Episode 2

While waxing cars, painting fences, and sanding floors helped to teach Daniel karate in the first movie, Johnny’s style is a bit different. For him, chores are chores and nothing else. It shows a stark contrast in Cobra Kai’s version of karate and Miyagi-Do’s. So get busy, Miguel.

9. Even after 35 years, a good Halloween costume doesn’t go out of style

From: Episode 3

Yes, it’s hard to believe that Johnny held onto a Halloween costume he wore in 1984–especially one that holds terrible memories like getting beaten up by an old man. Still, it’s a nice homage to the original movie to have him dust of the old skeleton costume and offer it to his student.

10. We missed you, Ali

From: Episode 3

Though Ali (Elisabeth Shue) only appeared in the first Karate Kid, her absence is very noticeable in Cobra Kai. Thankfully, her high school still keeps a photo of her in a trophy case for some reason. Good work finding that, Johnny.

11. Miguel’s new threads

From: Episode 5

You can only learn karate in your street clothes for so long. Johnny passing on his training gi from The Karate Kid to Miguel proves he’s the star pupil–well, the only pupil at this point–of the new Cobra Kai.

12. The student catches up with his teacher

From: Episode 5

Giving Daniel the chance to speak with Mr. Miyagi, even in this way, shows the importance of their relationship. Even though he’s grown now, with a wife and kids, he’s still that teenager from New Jersey looking for a father figure in his sensei.

13. The return of Miyagi-Do

From: Episode 5

Daniel wearing that familiar headband just feels right. It also shows him getting back to his own karate roots, the way Mr. Miyagi trained him.

From: Episode 5

It’s appropriate that this was the episode that paid tribute to Morita, who was the soul of the film franchise. Spending an episode largely on Daniel reconnecting with his mentor and the ideals he learned from him helps in bringing the character full-circle.

15. The Cobra Kai of old

From: Episode 6

While Johnny’s Cobra Kai dojo looks quite different from the one he first learned karate in, it was nice of the show to resurrect that old place for a flashback. It also smacks of the late 1970s/early 1980s with that huge mural.

16. Johnny leading the class once again

From: Episode 6

Inside the new Cobra Kai dojo, Johnny is once again head of the class. This time, though, it’s not because Kreese has him step in to teach the students–he’s the sensei now.

17. Wash the windows, wax the car. The classics never go out of style for Daniel

From: Episode 7

When Daniel said he loves this part, he wasn’t the only one. Using chores to teach karate, just like Mr. Miyagi did with him, serves Daniel well. It may not be Johnny’s thing, but it certainly is his.

18. One student is all he needs

From: Episode 7

As Miyagi did with him, Daniel only needs one student to go up against Cobra Kai’s army.

19. The All-Valley Karate Tournament

From: Episode 7

Let’s be honest, everyone knew the series was going to build up to this. Seeing the advertisement for the same tournament that led to Johnny’s downfall, though, was a special moment.

20. Shape the tree

From: Episode 7

The seventh episode of Cobra Kai is a treasure trove of throwbacks to the original film. It’s this quiet moment when Daniel teaches Robby how to trim a bonsai tree that he seems most like his former sensei.

21. Golf N’ Stuff lives

From: Episode 7

Miguel’s first date with Samantha was as cheesy and fun as Daniel’s outing with Ali back in The Karate Kid–and that’s thanks to the destination. Golf N’ Stuff makes its return to the Karate Kid world, packing just as much putt-putt excitement as ever. Kudos to the show for including the song from the movie, Young Hearts by Commuter, as well.

Fun fact: Golf N’ Stuff is a real place in the Valley that you can still visit, should you want to recreate these moments yourself.

22. A flashback to the tournament that started it all

From: Episode 7

As Johnny fights to get Cobra Kai’s ban from the All-Valley tournament lifted, the council that makes the decision–which includes Daniel–looks at photos of the dojo’s history in the competition. Naturally, that’s where we see images of Daniel fighting Johnny from the movie.

23. A cobra in red

From: Episode 8

While this obviously isn’t the same jacket Johnny wore in the movie, it’s clear that this Cobra’s sense of style has never really changed.

24. Ma’s back!

From: Episode 8

Mr. Miyagi, Daniel’s father-figure, may be unable to appear on the show. Thankfully, though, his mother did visit her boy during Season 1. Randee Heller reprised her role as Lucille LaRusso, the woman who first brought Daniel to the Valley, in this episode.

25. It’s not a boat, but this will do the trick

From: Episode 8

As Daniel continues his lessons with Robby, they resemble Miyagi’s teachings more and more. While he notes that the lake he and Mr. Miyagi trained on is no longer an option, the two of them practicing on a large rock created a similar visual.

26. Some rivalries never die

From: Episode 9

Daniel and Johnny bickered a bunch during Season 1, but this is the first time they nearly came to blows–recreating their final showdown at the All-Valley Tournament. It doesn’t seem quite as intimidating when it’s poolside.

27. Back at the South Seas

From: Episode 9

Though they don’t come to blows, the two do go for a ride through the Valley, which brings Daniel back to his first Southern California home. This is the same run-down apartment complex he and his mom moved into in the first movie.

28. Some things have changed

From: Episode 9

Unlike when Daniel lived at the South Seas, the complex looks like it’s been cleaned up–and there’s actually water in the pool now.

29. Hitting the beach

From: Episode 9

What’s the Karate Kid universe without a beach party? Unlike the one Johnny crashed in the movie, though, this one mostly goes off without a hitch.

30. Facebook stalking your ex is cool, right?

From: Episode 9

Johnny and Daniel’s trip down memory lane leads them to a bar, which brings up the final mention of Ali this season. It seems Daniel is Facebook stalking his ex, though he won’t add her as a friend. The audience learns that she went on to become a doctor, got married, and now lives in Colorado.

31. It’s the final countdown

From: Episode 10

Some things never change–like the signage on a community center. The All Valley Sports Arena marquee looks incredibly dated.

32. This is a little awkward

From: Episode 10

While Daniel probably loved seeing a picture of himself on display this big, it’s a little strange that the tournament had a poster printed of a moment from over three decades ago.

33. The yellow and black attack

From: Episode 10

If Cobra Kai is going to fight in a tournament, they’re going to look good doing it. The classic sleeveless black and yellow gi makes its return in this episode and have the new class of Cobra Kai looking sharp.

34: Is he stealing Daniel’s move?

From: Episode 10

Having the tournament start with the move that ended it in the movie is a really fun choice. Having star Cobra Kai student Miguel using it to taunt Daniel is even better. It’s good to know the Crane Kick is still pretty devastating.

35. Hawk takes things too far

From: Episode 10

Just like Bobby in The Karate Kid, Hawk ultimately adheres to Cobra Kai’s rule of showing no mercy and gets himself disqualified while attacking his opponent. Unlike Bobby in the movie, though, Hawk is thoroughly satisfied with his actions.

36. Kreese is always watching

From: Episode 10

Before the final fight between Miguel and Robby, Johnny is at odds with himself. After all, his star student is about to fight his son. Walking the hallways of the sports arena and seeing his old sensei’s photo on the wall certainly doesn’t help matters, though it does give Johnny a glimpse at who he’s turning into.

37. That trick doesn’t always work

From: Episode 10

While Miyagi was able to cure what was ailing Daniel with the heat from rubbing his hands together, Daniel clearly does not have the same talent. However, he does know how to call for a medic.

38. The students have become the teachers

From: Episode 10

It’s Daniel vs. Johnny at the All-Valley one more time. However, now they’re the senseis and not the students. Daniel is right when he says this will never be over.

39. It looks all too similar

From: Episode 10

The final fight is Cobra Kai vs. Miyagi-Do. Nothing has changed (except for the color of the mats). Even the scoreboard is the same.

40. The new Crane Kick

From: Episode 10

Since Miguel already unleashed a Crane Kick, Robby decided to up his game. Miyagi-Do is nothing if not creative when it comes to an attack. Daniel certainly couldn’t pull this off.

41. Sweep the… shoulder?

From: Episode 10

Just like when Johnny swept Daniel’s leg, Miguel targeted Robby’s injured shoulder to get an advantage over his competition.

42. This looks wrong

From: Episode 10

In the end, the result wasn’t what The Karate Kid prepared audiences for. Cobra Kai’s ruthless ways won the trophy, leaving Robby defeated and Miguel and his crew standing tall.

43. Wait, isn’t he dead?

From: Episode 10

Johnny clearly said that John Kreese was dead earlier in the season. That’s simply not the case, though. In the final moments of the Season 1 finale, the former Cobra Kai sensei makes his grand return, puffing on a cigar and telling his student that the story is just beginning.

Pokemon Go‘s next real-world event is right around the corner. Niantic is hosting May’s Community Day this weekend, and ahead of the event, the developer has finally revealed which exclusive move players will be able to get this time.

May’s Community Day takes place this Saturday, May 19, and features the popular Red and Blue starter Pokemon Charmander. For the duration of the event, Charmander will spawn much more frequently than usual, and if players manage to evolve it into its final form, Charizard, it will learn the powerful Fire-type attack Blast Burn.

As was the case with previous Community Days, players will need to evolve or catch a Charizard before the event ends to learn Blast Burn. Any Charmander or Charmeleon captured prior to the Community Day will also know the attack if they evolve during the event hours, but the Pokemon will no longer be able to learn Blast Burn once the event concludes.

On top of increased Charmander spawns, any Lure Modules that are activated during the Community Day will last for three hours, as opposed to their usual 30 minutes. Niantic is also offering an additional bonus to players who participate in the event. This time, everyone will receive triple the normal amount of Stardust for capturing Pokemon.

As usual, this month’s Community Day only runs for a three-hour window of time, and the event begins at different times depending on the part of the world you live in. You can see the event schedule for each region below:

North America

• 11 AM – 2 PM PT
• 2 PM – 5 PM ET

Europe and Africa

• 10 AM – 1 PM BST

Asia-Pacific

• 12 PM – 3 PM JST

Beyond this month’s Community Day, Niantic will soon kick off the Pokemon Go Summer Tour 2018, a series of real-world events taking place throughout the summer. The tour begins next month with a Safari Zone event in Germany, with the second annual Pokemon Go Fest taking place in Chicago on July 14-15. A special Safari Zone event will also be held in Yokosuka, Japan later this summer; details on that will be shared later.

In the meantime, players can still capture the Legendary Eon Pokemon Latios and Latias in Pokemon Go. After swapping regions earlier this month, Latios is now appearing across Europe and Asia, while Latias can be found in North America, South America, and Africa. The Legendaries will remain in those regions until June 5. Players can also capture the Legendary bird Zapdos by completing the newest batch of Field Research quests.