Before Rise of the Beasts, Transformers was an exceedingly white franchise, with white leads in every movie and a white guy in the director's chair every time out. Rise of the Beasts represents a major break from that franchise tendency, though, with a Black director and two people of color in the lead roles. It's a pleasantly surprising shift, and it began with the hiring of Creed 2 director Steven Caple Jr. to sit behind the camera.

"I'm trying to cast people who look like me, and who just don't get the opportunity to be in this position and/or be on these platforms and showcase our talent," Caple told GameSpot.

As it turns out, one of the people who had a hand in inspiring Caple to become a filmmaker in the first place was the white guy who directed five of the not-diverse previous Transformers flicks, Michael Bay. It was the first Bad Boys film that gave Caple that initial spark--because it was a big studio action flick with two Black lead actors.

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Being the seventh movie in a giant franchise, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts doesn't exist in a vacuum. A movie like this always has an eye on what's next--or at least what could be next. And it's got at least one very clear idea for a sequel.

At the end of Rise of the Beasts, our main human hero, Noah Diaz (Anthony Ramos), returns to his old life in Brooklyn. He still needs a job, and he's got an interview. But it's going a bit oddly, because this guy he's interviewing with seems to know all about his big adventure with the Transformers.

Warning: This remainder of this article contains spoilers for the ending of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts

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Diablo 4 has only been officially out for less than a week, and one player has already managed to clear its hardest challenge and defeat the most challenging boss, all while playing in Hardcore mode.

Thanks to Wowhead, we know that a Twitch streamer who goes by the name Ben_ was able to defeat Lilith. Ben_ defeated her with their Barbarian class character and used their "Spinnywinny" alongside other moves that complemented his Whirlwind damage to help him defeat the demon.

For those who are unaware, the Echo of Lilith is an optional level 100 boss players can fight. The only way players fight her is by completing the main game first and progressing to the final World Tier. On top of that, she's a lot stronger than her non-Uber phase, and every time she hits a player, they receive a debuff that makes them take even more damage. And on top of that, whenever a player dies in Hardcore Mode, permadeath is enabled. So if they had died during the boss fight, there would have been no way of getting that character back.

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If you saw Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse over opening weekend and found yourself struggling to hear a few lines, it wasn't just you. Now, Sony Pictures has sent a new version of the movie to theaters meant to address those concerns, Variety reports.

The sound issue was reportedly isolated to a handful of theaters, but Sony updated all prints anyway. The issue was most noticeable during Gwen Stacy's opening scene at the very beginning of the movie.

Writer and producer Phil Lord posted to Twitter about the sound issues, noting that the team mixed the movie at a volume reference level of 7--which the movie theater operators use to make sure they're running the movie at the volume it was intended to run at.

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Visually, Immortals of Aveum is one of the most impressive first-person shooters I've seen. Flinging spells with the frenetic intensity of firing a gun is a fun idea, and developer Ascendant Studios has captured it in a brightly colored fantasy world with clear military action game inspirations. The game sees you play as Jak, a battlemage with the rare ability to use all three forms of magic, who is fighting in a war for control of his planet. There are some potentially interesting narrative twists hiding in the magical FPS' story, like environmentalism-inspired creature design and set dressing, but the big draw is the fast-paced shooting. Ahead of the game's release, I spoke with Ascendent Studios founder and Immortals of Aveum game director Bret Robbins to talk about how the initial pitch of the game came together and what it takes to make a good magic-based action game.

"I had been working on Call of Duty before I started [at Ascendant Studios] where, obviously, you get very dialed into what makes a great shooter and how it should play and how it should feel, how the control should feel," Robbins said. "When we started prototyping with Immortals, we did a lot of experimentation very early and we failed fast at a lot of different things. And everyone's familiar with what an assault rifle feels like, what a shotgun feels like. We had to create our own language and our own rules around how magic was going to feel and how it was going to play. And I think early on, especially early in development during our prototyping, we went down pretty complicated and bizarre roads and came up with a lot of weird shit and we were like, 'All right, not sure this is working so well.'"

With ideas not panning out, the team decided to reset. Instead of initially prioritizing the fantasy side of the world, the game needed to be a great shooter first and foremost. "About a year in, I just said, 'You know what? We need to make a shooter first. We need to make it feel great and then we're going to do all the cool weird stuff we want to do and layer it on top of that,'" Robbins said. "And we spent about six months as a team just really focusing on that. It ended up being this really great combat prototype and that really became the foundation for the game would be. And once we had that, we were like, 'This is the magic shooter. This feels great. This is magic. It's not guns, it's cool, it's fast, you feel powerful.' The whole thing was always about being a battlemage, living that fantasy of being this awesome battlemage. And we nailed it with that prototype and then layered the game on top of that."

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Preorders for the upcoming third-person shooter Remnant 2 are discounted to as low $41 over at Green Man Gaming. To get the discount, all you need to do is make a free GMG XP account. GMG XP members earn points on each purchase they make through Green Man Gaming. The points earned unlock perks like free games, store credits, and special offers such as this Remnant 2 preorder discount.

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Thanks to the special discount, you can preorder Remnant 2 standard edition for $41 (normally $50), the deluxe edition for $49.19 (normally $60), or the ultimate edition for $57.39 (down from $70).

All preorders include early access to Remnant 2's gunslinger character. Additional perks like free DLC and pre-launch game access are also available depending on which version of the game you purchase. Check the image below for a breakdown of what each version includes if you're curious. All game and DLC keys are redeemable via Steam.

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Alan Wake 2 launches this fall, and for many players, it will mark the arrival of a project that once seemed impossible. The sequel 13 years in waiting is nearly upon us, which is exciting in its own right, but Remedy's first-ever survival-horror game is just one part of a bigger rollout of upcoming games from Remedy. The team used to take a long time between games, having released only six total between 1996 and 2012, but Remedy has picked up the pace since then, with four console games since 2016 and a fifth due out this fall.

Furthermore, the team has a record number of in-development projects that go beyond this year's Alan Wake 2, all part of a conscious effort to make more games faster. We decided to round them all up and see what information we could glean from them so far, especially since presumably many or perhaps all of them are in the Remedy Connected Universe, so the events of Alan Wake 2 may ripple into these future storylines. Here's everything Remedy has announced it's working on so far, including a special section built on some theories related to one project in particular.

Max Payne 1 & 2 remakes

Rockstar and Remedy have seemed to stay close in the decades that followed their collaboration for 2001's Max Payne and 2003's Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne. Now, in an age of video game remakes built from the ground up, Remedy has been given the keys to the Max Payne kingdom once more. Remedy said these games will release as a single title, so players will have access to both stories from one purchase.

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Preorders for the PC version of Lords of the Fallen are currently 25% off at Green Man Gaming. With the discount, the Lords of the Fallen standard edition is just $45 (normally $60), and the deluxe edition is $52.49 (normally $70). Lords of the Fallen keys purchased from GMG are redeemable via Steam.

Preorder at GMG

To receive the lower prices, you must make a free GMG XP account. Through GMG's XP program, members earn points on purchases that unlock extra coupons, free games, and other special offers.

Preordering Lords of the Fallen at GMG also gets you a collection of in-game items as a pre-purchases bonus, including special armor color variants and consumables. These preorder bonuses are also available from other retailers. Check our Lords of the Fallen preorder guide for more info these preorder offers as well as the bonuses included in the deluxe and collector's editions of the game.

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The real-world trucking company Schneider National is paying for ads in American Truck Simulator to try to convince people to come work for them.

SCS Software, the developers of American Truck Simulator, said in a blog post (via GamesRadar) that the billboards in the game are now advertising Schneider National and directing players to the company's careers website. This might not be a permanent addition to the game, as SCS said it's only in the "try-out phase." That said, the studio believes the concept "holds promise" for its own games and the automotive industry at large.

American Truck Simulator is now helping recruit real-world truck driversGallery

Billboards in American Truck Simulator were previously used to promote new content updates for the game.

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Fortnite Chapter 4 Season 3 has introduced a ton of cool new gimmicks to Battle Royale, and the one we're all probably going to be using the most is the Kinetic Boomerang. If you were hoping this new weapon would somehow double as a mobility device like the Kinetic Blade and Shockwave Hammer did, sorry--no such luck. This thing is only for attacking your enemies.

The Kinetic Boomerang is, thankfully, fairly easy to find. They drop from chests, spawn as floor loot, and, like the Kinetic Blade, there are dedicated boomerang stands in the new jungle area--look for those old temple ruins that are scattered all throughout that area--where they're guaranteed to spawn every game.

The Kinetic Boomerang is pretty simple in concept: You throw it, it does damage to the first player or object that it hits--60 damage to players--and then it comes back to you. And it will cause damage to anything it hits along the way back to you. There's no cooldown--as soon as it returns to your hand, you're free to throw it again. But the further you throw it, of course, the longer it's going to take to get back to you.

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The Diablo 4 best Druid builds make the most out of everyone's favorite nature and animal-loving class. With the powers of the elements and loyal companions at your side, there's nothing that can stop you. Here's our guide to help you with the best Druid builds in Diablo 4.

Table of Contents [hide]

• The best Druid builds in Diablo 4
  • Related Druid class guides
  • Leveling build
  The best Druid builds in Diablo 4Related Druid class guides

  Before we discuss the Diablo 4 best Druid builds, let's talk about various concepts about the class, as well as related mechanics. We've listed several guide topics below:

  • Druid skills
  • Druid talents/passives
  • Druid Spirit Animal Boons
  • Best Legendary Aspects for the Druid
  • Dungeon locations/Codex of Power
  • Occultist mechanic: Imprinting and extracting
  Leveling build

  Our leveling guide for the Druid comes from experience while playing the beta. We made use of several Werebear-related abilities:

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It looks like Activision officially severed ties with Nickmercs, one of Call of Duty's most prominent content creators. The company removed the operator bundle named after him from the Modern Warfare II and Warzone store after he made an anti-LGBTQ comment in response to a tweet about Pride Month protests.

Chris Puckett, one of esports' most popular commentators, tweeted about the sad state of the country in response to news about anti-LGBTQ protestors attacking Pride supporters outside of a schoolboard meeting in Glendale, CA. The schoolboard was voting on recognizing June as Pride Month, which apparently some locals didn't agree with.

They should leave little children alone. That’s the real issue.

— FaZe Nickmercs (@NICKMERCS) June 7, 2023

"They should leave little children alone. That’s the real issue," Nickmercs commented on Puckett's post, spreading an erroneous talking point that LGBTQ people prey on children in pedophilic or otherwise predatory ways.

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John Wick director Chad Stahelski has confirmed that Oscar-winner Halle Berry, who starred in John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, is interested in coming back to the John Wick universe. Stahelski also talked about the fate of John Wick himself, so obviously be aware that spoilers are coming.

Concerning Berry's involvement in future John Wick projects, Stahelski said on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast that Berry has been in talks "several times" to try to come back. He suggested Berry might return in a spinoff, or a "satellite" project, as he likes to say.

"Yeah. We have actually been in talks several times to try to... I hate the term spinoff. But they are trying to do other satellite projects off the Wick franchise. Hopefully they'll be good ones," Stahelski said.

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Fortnite Chapter 4 Season 3: Wilds has arrived, bringing raptors, Optimus Prime, and ancient ruins to the battle royale. Among the new ancient ruins areas on the island, you can find vault doors, typically hiding rare chests behind them. Unlike previous vaults, instead of needing a simple key, you need to solve a sometimes confusing puzzle, which can vary from vault to vault. Here's where you can find these new vaults and how to unlock each kind.

Fortnite Vault locationsRed is for classic wildcard vaults, blue is for the new puzzle vaults.

With the addition of the new vaults, there are two types scattered across the island. On the above map the red circles indicate the classic Wildcard Vaults that have been around for a few seasons. The blue circles show the new puzzle vaults, the solutions for which are below.

How to unlock Fortnite Vaults in Chapter 4 Season 3

There are three different types of vault doors that have been found around the island as part of Fortnite Chapter 4 Season 3: Wilds. Each type of vault door has its own specific puzzle solution.

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It's the start of a new weekend in Destiny 2, and as usual, anyone craving some PvP action should make a beeline for the Trials of Osiris. It's another chance to earn some of the best weapons and shaders in the game, and once you've made a stop to see where Xur is, you can hop into the online lobby and attempt a flawless run.

Here's a look at where you'll play Trials of Osiris this weekend and what weapons you can earn.

• Map: The Burn
• Reputation Rank 4: Upgrade Module
• Reputation Rank 7: Enhancement Prism
• Reputation Rank 10: The Messenger (Pulse rifle)
• Reputation Rank 13: Upgrade Module
• Reputation Rank 16: Unexpected Resurgence (Glaive)
• Flawless Reward: Unexpected Resurgence (Adept)

Season of the Deep is adding some excellent new rewards to the Trials pool, and if you're a fan of shaders, then there's a glorious golden one to grab from this multiplayer event. Alongside the Glorious Patina shader, Trials will also have some new Exotic cosmetic gear to unlock, including a new Ghost shell, ship, and Sparrow. Glorious Patina will only be available to players who go Flawless during Season 21, and the weapon pool is being updated with The Messenger pulse rifle and the Unexpected Resurgence glaive as possible prizes.

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Vin Diesel, known for his role as Dominic Toretto in the Fast and Furious franchise, recently took to Instagram to hint at the release date of the upcoming sequel to Fast X. Diesel shared a photo of himself alongside Jason Momoa, who plays Fast X's villain, and suggested that the next installment in the Fast and Furious series is expected to be released on April 4, 2025.

"April 4th 2025… is less than 22 months away," Diesel wrote. "I love how expressive and collaborative all of the actors in our franchise feel coming into the World's Saga. Jason wanted to try something totally unique and special and ended up creating a scene stealing character that the world won't forget."

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What Diesel doesn't clarify is whether the teased release date would be for The Rock's highly anticipated standalone bridge story, seamlessly connecting the narrative threads of the final movie in the franchise, or Fast X Part 2.

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Fortnite Chapter 4 Season 3 brings back NPCs, which you could've guessed since they've now been in the game consistently for more than two years. Each season of new Fortnite characters to meet and greet means new dialogue lines, new items or services to buy from them, and debuts of recently revealed characters. This season is no different, with a sweet group of 16 Fortnite NPCs to meet. Here's every character's location plus what goods or services they can offer you to help claim your next Victory Royale.

All NPCs in Fortnite Chapter 4 Season 3

There are currently 16 characters to find on the island. Below you'll see where they are on the map, what they sell, and whether you can hire them.

All 16 Fortnite NPCs in Chapter 4 Season 3.NumberNPCLocationItems for saleCan you hire them?1FennixEast of The CitadelCombat SMG, FirefliesNo2VolpezSouthwest of Brutal BastionDisguise, SMGNo3Innovator SloneSoutheast of Rumble RuinsFlapjack Rifle, GrenadesNo4AuraSoutheast of Slone's locationThermal DMR, Holo-Chest KeysNo5NiaSteamy SpringsHeavy Sniper, Tactical PistolNo6Guardian AmaraBrutal BastionKinetic Boomerang, Small Shield PotionsNo7TraceEast of Rumble RuinsThermal DMR, Tactical PistolNo8PeelyShady StiltsShadow Tracker, BananasNo9Purradise MeowsclesWest of Creeky CompoundHavoc Pump Shotgun, Shield PotionsNo10RemedyFrenzy FieldsMed-MistYes (Medic Specialist)11Triage TrooperSlappy ShoresMed KitYes (Medic Specialist)12KitbashBreakwater BayMaven Auto ShotgunYes (Heavy Specialist)13BeastmodeNorth of Mega CityDrum ShotgunYes (Heavy Specialist)14InsightRumble RuinsStorm Circle IntelYes (Scout Specialist)15LongshotWest of The CitadelStorm Circle IntelYes (Scout Specialist)16Munitions ExpertNorth of Kenjutsu CrossingWeapon upgradesYes (Supply Specialist)

As more NPCs arrive, we'll be sure to update our guide as well. For a lot more on Fortnite's wild new update, don't miss the new weapons, map changes, vault locations, and a lot more in our Chapter 4 Season 3 hub.

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Diablo IV players are scratching their heads in regards to the game's resistance stat, which according to one content creator, is about 10 times worse than any of the game's other defensive stats.

Kripparrian, who is known for creating content around Blizzard's ARPG franchise as well as Blizzard's digital card game Hearthstone, attempts to explain in one of his latest videos. He is playing a Sorceress and has stacked resistances thanks to the main Sorceress stat, Intelligence, also rewarding a bonus to all resistances. In doing so, he has learned that resistances don't seem to compare favorably when it comes to other defensive stats.

Breaking down the numbers, Kripparrian explains that every other defensive stat in Diablo IV, including armor and damage reduction from close, are vastly superior to stacking resistances. Armor, for example, grants both physical damage reduction and resistances to all elements, whereas pieces of gear typically only have resistance to one particular element. At first glance, a piece of gear that has a 50% elemental resistance roll may seem good. But in reality, it only raises the overall resistance to that element by a few percentage points, and overall offers very little actual damage reduction. A piece of gear with a good plus percent to armor value, on the other hand, raises overall mitigation to every type of damage by a higher percentage.

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Transformers: Rise of the Beasts hit $8.8 million in box office previews, according to a new report. These preview grosses include select fan screenings on Wednesday and regular box office from Thursday.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, tracking reports that Rise of the Beasts is set to make a $55-60 million in its opening weekend. It's gunning for the top box office spot, currently held by Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse. The spider sequel opened to $120 million.

Rise of the Beasts is something of a direct sequel to 2018's Bumblebee and it's the first theatrically-released Transformers film since then. It's set in 1994 and follows Noah (Anthony Ramos) as he gets caught up in a galactic level conflict between Autobots and Maximals (the titular beasts) vs. the planet devouring Unicorn and the Terrorcon Scourge.

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It might be a weekend for video game reveals and new trailers, but not even the mightiest showcase can stop Xur from landing and offering some fine Exotic gear from his inventory. As usual, the mysterious Agent of the Nine is back and ready to outfit you for the challenges that lie ahead, like Nightfall strikes, raids, and this week's Trials of Osiris. Here's where you can find Xur this week and what the Agent of the Nine has for sale.

This week you can find Xur on Nessus, in the Watcher's Grave area. For his weapon, Xur is offering Graviton Lance. Hunters can pick up Orpheus Rig leg armor; Titans can grab the Crest of Alpha Lupi armor; and Warlocks can buy Claws of Ahamkara.

Xur LocationXur's location on Nessus.

Head to Nessus and use the Watcher's Grave transmat zone to find Xur this week. When you arrive, hop on your sparrow and head north toward the exit of the area. Look for a big tree with pink moss on the right side of the area. Climb up onto its big, flat branch, where you can reach Xur.

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