MagicSpan

Calling all Death Stranding fans! This is your chance to take home a free PlayStation 4 Pro and set out on an adventure to put America back together again.

Hideo Kojima’s latest game launched on November 8 and we have a full Death Stranding review. We’ve also got very handy guides to help you throughout your adventure, which you can check out in our in-depth complete Death Stranding coverage hub.

The grand prize package includes a custom 1TB PS4 Pro system and a custom DualShock wireless controller inspired by the game, as well as a copy of the Death Stranding on Blu-ray disc. But that’s not all, we’ll also award a first prize winner a Death Stranding collector’s edition bundle that comes with the full game, a steelbook case, a full-sized BB pod statue, a Ludens keychain, and a Bridges cargo case.

To enter the giveaway read the official rules found in the form below, accept the terms and conditions, and then proceed to fill out the form. You also have the option of increasing your chances of winning by doing extra actions like following us across social media.

Remember to check your email and junk mail on November 21 because we will be emailing the winners after 12 pm PT. Head over to the comment section and tell us what was the first thing that got you excited about Death Stranding. Good luck, everyone!

Go to Source
Author: Tania Gonzalez

In Death Stranding, you’ll find yourself delivering all sorts of items for the strange and eccentric survivors in Hideo Kojima’s post-apocalyptic world. Whether it’s bringing classic game consoles to the Collector or delivering well-aged wine to those in the furthest reaches of the map, you’ll be putting in the leg work to ensure you can form bonds with the many characters you’ll come to know. However, there’s one especially strange series of deliveries that’s worth taking the time for.

In Episode 3, you’ll eventually get an optional order in Lake Knot City asking you to deliver a pizza. Shipping to Peter Englert, a prepper in the west, you’ll have to bring the hot item to his shelter in under an hour–even less if you choose to take on the premium delivery challenge. Once you deliver the cargo, you actually won’t speak to him directly, the terminal’s automated system will take care of the handoff. Once that’s done, you’ll eventually get a follow-up message from Peter thanking you for the pizza. Later on, the mystery man will send you an email asking for another one, this time, presenting clues on where to find the pizza, which you’ll need to deliver in the same fashion.

What makes delivering pizzas in Death Stranding a bit of challenge is that it is sensitive cargo that must be stacked horizontally at all times. The worst thing you can do to a box of pizza is to place it on its side, and in Death Stranding, that will cause it significant damage. To ensure that you can keep the item safe and sound, always make sure that you have items in your backpack before placing it into your inventory. If you have a full set of cargo in your backpack, the pizza will stack on top of it. Also, avoid using the auto-arrange feature when carrying pizza. While this feature can come in handy most of the time, it will ignore requirements for sensitive cargo to optimize the layout for Sam’s inventory. This means that it will more than likely pack the pizza vertically to make space. If you want to avoid messing with your inventory, grab a truck and place the pizza inside its cargo hold–instant pizza delivery truck!

These missions may seem like an odd diversion and a waste of time, but if you stick with it, you’ll come to find this questline has a somewhat surprising payoff. In total, there are about four different pizza delivery missions throughout the game. Eventually, you’ll be able to learn more about the identity of Peter Englert, and just what’s inside of his shelter. Once you complete Episode 10, you’ll be able to return to Peter’s shelter and find the door wide open. For the sake of spoilers, we won’t reveal what’s inside. However, we can say it’s a satisfying discovery which adds a lot to the overall plot. But if you’re looking for a more tangible reward, completing all the pizza delivery missions will open up special upgrades for Sam’s firearms, allowing him to fire rounds made from chiralium.

For more on Death Stranding, including some essential tips on movement, fighting MULEs, and figuring out where how to find other hidden preppers in the game, be sure to check back with GameSpot for more on the game.

Go to Source
Author: Alessandro Fillari

In her workshop on world-building, the master fantasist schools the audience in the structural forces that cause inequality.
Go to Source
Author: Jason Parham

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

The long-rumored 16-inch MacBook Pro is due for an imminent release, according to Bloomberg. Mark Gurman reports that Apple could launch the machine as early as tomorrow, with sales immediately kicking off this week.

The new MacBook Pro is expected to cost “about the same” as the 15-inch model, which starts at $2,399. That’s because, according to Gurman, it’s going to fully replace the classic 15-inch MacBook Pro in Apple’s laptop lineup. I think some people were expecting it to slot in above the existing options as a premium choice, but apparently not.

Aside from its larger display, the 16-inch MacBook Pro will mark the debut of a “revamped” keyboard that’s “designed to be more reliable” than the butterfly-mechanism keyboards featured…

Continue reading…

Go to Source
Author: Chris Welch

iPhone company Apple is making a big hire for its newly launched TV and film business. It has been reported that former HBO CEO Richard Plepler will be heading up a production company within Apple to create new content for the nascent Apple TV+.

According to Deadline, Plepler considered other, unspecified companies before agreeing to go with Apple. His specific deal with Apple is still being negotiated, according to reports.

Apple TV+ launched on November 1 with new shows including The Morning Show starring Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon, and See featuring Aquaman star Jason Momoa. Another show, Dickinson, stars Hailee Steinfeld as Emily Dickinson.

Plepler spent close to 30 years at HBO before stepping down earlier this year during AT&T’s takeover of HBO parent company WarnerMedia. In his decades-long career at HBO, Plepler greenlit a number of high-profile shows, including Game of Thrones and Veep. He was also instrumental in getting new platform projects off the ground such as HBO Go and HBO Now.

According to Deadline, “Plepler’s goal is to deliver as a producer the kind of high-quality series he championed as a top executive at HBO, including Game of Thrones.”

The news about Plepler moving to Apple comes just as Disney launches its own streaming service, Disney+.

Go to Source
Author: Eddie Makuch

Richard Plepler is best known as the man who helped shape HBO into the prestige network it is today, and now he’s in final negotiations to bring those talents to Apple.

Plepler is looking to sign an exclusive production deal at Apple that will see him produce “the kind of high-quality series he championed as a top executive at HBO, including Game of Thrones,” Deadline first reported. The Verge can confirm those details. Focusing on just a few projects centered around talented actors, writers, and filmmakers is the same strategy that Plepler brought to HBO when he was appointed co-president in 2007. HBO under Plepler and co-president Michael Lombardo saw the release of series like Game of Thrones, True Blood, Boardwalk Empire, and The…

Continue reading…

Go to Source
Author: Julia Alexander

Designed to rival streaming giants like Hulu and Netflix, Disney+ is live

Continue reading…

Go to Source
Author: Andrew Liptak

The DC Universe’s roster of original programming is about to get a little bit bigger. At the end of this month, the brand-new Harley Quinn animated show will premiere on the streaming service, complete with all the ultra-violent, slapstick mayhem you’d expect from the Clown Queen of Crime as she returns to her cartoon roots. But if you’re expecting a resurgence of the Harley you remember from your Batman: The Animated Series nostalgia, you might be in for a surprise. Check out the full-length trailer for the show to get an idea of just what you’re in for.

If f-bombs and dirty jokes are your cup of tea, you’re definitely in for a treat. The show, seemingly channeling other adult animated favorites like The Venture Brothers and Rick & Morty, takes Harley out on her own in search of a crew in Gotham City. But of course, finding reliable villains is hard even on the best day–and harder still when you’re trying to duck and dodge around your horrible ex, The Joker. But Harley’s nothing if not determined and hatches a scheme to enlist the worst of the worst. Which is to say, the bad guys who are just objectively horrible at everything they do.

Seen in the trailer, Harley winds up mingling with C and D list DC rogues like King Shark, Dr. Psycho, Clayface, and Felix Faust as she goes galavanting around Gotham, running into fan favorites like Bane, Two Face, and Scarecrow. All the while, she’s got her sardonic best friend Poison Ivy (channeling the dead-pan humor of someone like Daria of MTV’s Daria) to help keep her on the level.

Harley Quinn hits the DC Universe streaming service on November 29.

Go to Source
Author: Meg Downey

Image: Microsoft

Minecraft Earth (think Pokémon Go, but Minecraft) was first revealed in May, and following its beta, it’s been slowly rolling out in early access across the world, first hitting Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, the UK, and other countries. Now, it’s available in early access in the US, and you can download it for iOS and Android.

The app worked when I downloaded it for iOS (my colleague Sean Hollister confirmed that it worked on Android), but there were a few steps I had to go through before I could start playing. I had to wait a bit for the app to install a content update, sign in with my Microsoft account, accept the Terms of Service (which ask you not to trespass or operate a vehicle while you’re playing the game), pick how my character…

Continue reading…

Go to Source
Author: Jay Peters

The first episode of The Mandalorian has arrived thanks to the official launch of the Disney+ streaming service. If you’ve had a chance to sit down and watch the show–and haven’t been bogged down by service problems–you’ve no doubt noticed how the first episode is positively stuffed with Easter eggs and references designed to entertain hardcore Star Wars fans.

However, there’s one specific reference that stands tall over the rest. After being captured by The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal), a lowly bounty (Horatio Sanz) makes mention of a specific holiday. “I was hoping to be free for Life Day,” he said. “Maybe even get home to the family.”

With that one small line, a massive piece of the extended Star Wars universe, has now been made canon. Life Day is a celebrated holiday on Kashyyyk–Chewbacca’s home world–that was first introduced in the Star Wars Holiday Special. You remember that, right? The Star Wars Holiday Special was a truly bizarre TV event in 1978 that has been practically lost to time because, well, it’s bad. It still has an important place in Star Wars lore, though. It’s in this special that Boba Fett is glimpsed for the first time, albeit as a cartoon character. It’s also the first appearance of Mandalorian armor, making it especially relevant to The Mandalorian.

So what is Life Day? It’s a day celebrated by Wookiees, in which they journey to the Tree of Life on Kashyyyk and feast with their family and friends, celebrating their culture. It hasn’t appeared that often throughout Star Wars, though there is a brief mention in the video game Star Wars Battlefront II and has popped up on the official Star Wars website.

When it comes to the Holiday Special, though, that particular Life Day celebration saw Han Solo (Harrison Ford) venture to Kashyyyk with Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) to visit the Wookiee’s family. It’s there that we met such important Star Wars characters as Chewie’s wife Malla, their son Lumpy, and his dad Itchy. Clearly, the 1970s were a weird time. However, it’s also interesting to note that should this Life Day mention make the Holiday Special canon, Chewie still has a family out there somewhere.

Looking forward, the creative team behind Star Wars should really lean into the celebration of Life Day. Why not feature it more heavily in an upcoming Mandalorian episode or even a future Star Wars movie? In fact, take it one step further and do a Life Day celebration during the holidays at the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge theme park expansions at Disneyland and Walt Disney World.

Now that we know Life Day still has a place in Star Wars, it’s time to make it count.

Go to Source
Author: Chris E. Hayner