Monthly Archives: August 2021

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Fortnite Adds Will Smith’s Mike Lowrey Character From Bad Boys

Fornite has added Will Smith's Mike Lowrey character from the Bad Boys movie franchise to the battle royale's Item Shop.

Epic Games announced the Bad Boys x Fortnite crossover in a blog post on Saturday, revealing that a little of Miami's South Beach would be coming to the game by way of detective Mike Lowrey.

The Mike Lowrey Outfit can be purchased in the Fortnite Item Shop right now and it includes the Detective's Duffle Back Bling. The Loose Cannon set also features Lowrey's dual-wielding pickaxe known as the Loose Cannon Cutters. You can see the entire Mike Lowrey set in the image below:

Unfortunately for Bad Boys diehards, Lowrey's police partner and best friend, Marcus Burnett (played by Martin Lawrence in the movies) is nowhere to be seen.

"Mike Lowrey is one cool customer," the blog post reads. "Whether he's involved in explosive action or a high-speed chase, he's always undeniably smooth."

Hopefully he's great at building, too.

While the addition of Lowrey is probably exciting for Will Smith and Bad Boys fans, the character's inclusion in Season 7 of Fortnite Chapter 2, specifically, is an odd one. That's because the entire season is themed around aliens and alien invasions, and not many actors have fought aliens on the big screen more than Will Smith, as noted by PCGamesN.

The most obvious alien-themed choice when choosing a Will Smith character would have been Agent J from Men in Black, but Steven Hiller from Independence Day would have worked just as well too. Lowrey, however, has not fought off an alien invasion before.

Nevertheless, it's a good day to be a Fortnite fan who's also a fan of Will Smith. Mike Lowrey and his equipment are now available to purchase in the Fortnite Item Shop.

For more Fortnite, read about how Epic Games recently added Ryan Reynold's Dude character from Free Guy to the game and then read about how the company added Ripley and the Alien Xenomorph to the battle royale. Catch up on everything in Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 7 after that.

Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

Halo Infinite: Why The Campaign Wasn’t Shown During Gamescom

Halo Infinite received quite the spotlight during Gamescom's One Night Live showcase, including the reveal of the game's December 8 release date, but more of the game's campaign wasn't shown.

Fans were disappointed when Halo Infinite's campaign failed to make an appearance during Gamescom, citing concerns they have considering the game's release is just a couple of months away and the last time the campaign was shown in a big capacity was over a year ago.

However, 343 Industries has seen and heard the disappointment over the campaign's lack of appearance during Gamescom and Halo Infinite Head of Creative, Joseph Staten, has now addressed where the campaign was, as reported by GameSpot.

"We're at a critical phase in the flight that is Halo Infinite, so it's extremely important to avoid distractions and stay focused on mission-critical tasks only," Staten wrote in the latest Inside Infinite news post. "For Campaign, that means putting maximum effort into ensuring the wide-open, adventure-filled experience you'll all get to play on December 8 is as great as it can possibly be. And gameplay demos and trailers not only take a huge amount of effort to do well, they also take cycles away from bugs and other shutdown tasks."

In short, when developing a game, creating a gameplay demo or story trailer — which is probably what fans wanted to see of the game's campaign during One Night Live — takes time and that time takes away from developers that would otherwise be working on the full game release.

Staten continued in the blog and explained that he's in the middle of a campaign playthrough and that he can't wait to get home (from Gamescom) to continue.

"I hope all of you take comfort from the fact that, honestly, I can't wait to get back home, fire up the build, and hit 'Continue' on the campaign," Staten said. "No matter how many times I play, Halo Infinite remains, fundamentally, super fun to play — and we're very eager to share all the fun with you through captured gameplay, trailers, and other content once we get this plane safely on the ground."

Staten's statement comes from the same Halo Infinite news post where 343 Industries explained that Halo Infinite's multiplayer progression is tied to challenges rather than XP-based leveling. Just days before all of this, Staten also revealed that the game will be released without campaign co-op or forge at launch.

Halo Infinite's multiplayer and campaign will be released on December 8. While waiting for that, check out IGN's thoughts on the multiplayer technical preview and then check out the recently-revealed Halo Infinite PC requirements.

Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

Halo Infinite: Why The Campaign Wasn’t Shown During Gamescom

Halo Infinite received quite the spotlight during Gamescom's One Night Live showcase, including the reveal of the game's December 8 release date, but more of the game's campaign wasn't shown.

Fans were disappointed when Halo Infinite's campaign failed to make an appearance during Gamescom, citing concerns they have considering the game's release is just a couple of months away and the last time the campaign was shown in a big capacity was over a year ago.

However, 343 Industries has seen and heard the disappointment over the campaign's lack of appearance during Gamescom and Halo Infinite Head of Creative, Joseph Staten, has now addressed where the campaign was, as reported by GameSpot.

"We're at a critical phase in the flight that is Halo Infinite, so it's extremely important to avoid distractions and stay focused on mission-critical tasks only," Staten wrote in the latest Inside Infinite news post. "For Campaign, that means putting maximum effort into ensuring the wide-open, adventure-filled experience you'll all get to play on December 8 is as great as it can possibly be. And gameplay demos and trailers not only take a huge amount of effort to do well, they also take cycles away from bugs and other shutdown tasks."

In short, when developing a game, creating a gameplay demo or story trailer — which is probably what fans wanted to see of the game's campaign during One Night Live — takes time and that time takes away from developers that would otherwise be working on the full game release.

Staten continued in the blog and explained that he's in the middle of a campaign playthrough and that he can't wait to get home (from Gamescom) to continue.

"I hope all of you take comfort from the fact that, honestly, I can't wait to get back home, fire up the build, and hit 'Continue' on the campaign," Staten said. "No matter how many times I play, Halo Infinite remains, fundamentally, super fun to play — and we're very eager to share all the fun with you through captured gameplay, trailers, and other content once we get this plane safely on the ground."

Staten's statement comes from the same Halo Infinite news post where 343 Industries explained that Halo Infinite's multiplayer progression is tied to challenges rather than XP-based leveling. Just days before all of this, Staten also revealed that the game will be released without campaign co-op or forge at launch.

Halo Infinite's multiplayer and campaign will be released on December 8. While waiting for that, check out IGN's thoughts on the multiplayer technical preview and then check out the recently-revealed Halo Infinite PC requirements.

Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

The American Vandal Team Is Working on ‘The Last Dance’ Style Mockumentary About Esports

The creators of American Vandal are creating a mockumentary in the style of The Last Dance about a fictional pro League of Legends esports team.

Titled PLAYERS, this documentary series is being produced by CBS Studios for Paramount+ and it will explore the world of esports through a comedic lens. Creators Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault will examine esports through a fictional pro League of Legends team aiming to achieve their first championship win.

"PLAYERS is a comedic documentary-style series that follows a fictional pro League of Legends esports team as they pursue their first championship after years of close calls and heartache," a press release reads. "To win it all, they will need their prodigy, a 17-year-old rookie, and their 27-year-old veteran to put their egos aside and work together."

This series will be produced by CBS Studios in association with Funny or Die and it will actually reunite Yacenda and Perrault after their work on two seasons of American Vandal. Both will serve as co-creators and executive producers for PLAYERS, but Yacenda will also direct the series.

Funny or Die's Joe Farrell and Mike Farah will serve as executive producers, too, alongside Tim McAuliffe, 3Arts' Ari Lubet, Brillstein Entertainment Pictures' Todd Sellers, and the studio behind League of Legends, Riot Games.

Anyone that's watched American Vandal, a raunchy and hilarious high-school-based mockumentary, knows that Yacenda and Perrault don't pull any punches when it comes to telling their stories, so it will be interesting to see if PLAYERS leans as hard into the raunch, vulgarity, and critical nature that American Vandal did, especially with Riot Games actually involved.

League of Legends is a great window into esports as it's one of the most-played PC games in the world, generating billions of hours in gameplay each year. It also happens to be the largest esport on the planet, with the 2020 League of Legends World Championship Finals “generating a record-breaking 23.04 million average minute audience,” according to a press release about PLAYERS.

PLAYERS will hit Paramount+ when it premieres, but a release date for the mockumentary series has not yet been revealed.

While waiting for PLAYERS, read about why we gave Season 1 of American Vandal a 9.1 out of 10 in IGN's review and then check out our thoughts on the second season in IGN's American Vandal Season 2 review.

Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

The American Vandal Team Is Working on ‘The Last Dance’ Style Mockumentary About Esports

The creators of American Vandal are creating a mockumentary in the style of The Last Dance about a fictional pro League of Legends esports team.

Titled PLAYERS, this documentary series is being produced by CBS Studios for Paramount+ and it will explore the world of esports through a comedic lens. Creators Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault will examine esports through a fictional pro League of Legends team aiming to achieve their first championship win.

"PLAYERS is a comedic documentary-style series that follows a fictional pro League of Legends esports team as they pursue their first championship after years of close calls and heartache," a press release reads. "To win it all, they will need their prodigy, a 17-year-old rookie, and their 27-year-old veteran to put their egos aside and work together."

This series will be produced by CBS Studios in association with Funny or Die and it will actually reunite Yacenda and Perrault after their work on two seasons of American Vandal. Both will serve as co-creators and executive producers for PLAYERS, but Yacenda will also direct the series.

Funny or Die's Joe Farrell and Mike Farah will serve as executive producers, too, alongside Tim McAuliffe, 3Arts' Ari Lubet, Brillstein Entertainment Pictures' Todd Sellers, and the studio behind League of Legends, Riot Games.

Anyone that's watched American Vandal, a raunchy and hilarious high-school-based mockumentary, knows that Yacenda and Perrault don't pull any punches when it comes to telling their stories, so it will be interesting to see if PLAYERS leans as hard into the raunch, vulgarity, and critical nature that American Vandal did, especially with Riot Games actually involved.

League of Legends is a great window into esports as it's one of the most-played PC games in the world, generating billions of hours in gameplay each year. It also happens to be the largest esport on the planet, with the 2020 League of Legends World Championship Finals “generating a record-breaking 23.04 million average minute audience,” according to a press release about PLAYERS.

PLAYERS will hit Paramount+ when it premieres, but a release date for the mockumentary series has not yet been revealed.

While waiting for PLAYERS, read about why we gave Season 1 of American Vandal a 9.1 out of 10 in IGN's review and then check out our thoughts on the second season in IGN's American Vandal Season 2 review.

Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

Wednesday: Netflix Reveals 10 Characters for Tim Burton’s Addams Family Spinoff

Netflix announced that Tim Burton was creating a live-action Addams Family spinoff show for the subscription service back in February and now the cast has grown by 10.

The spinoff, titled Wednesday, will be aptly centered on Wednesday Addams, played by Jenna Ortega. Luis Guzmán was cast as Gomez Addams earlier this month and Catherine Zeta-Jones was cast as Morticia Addams just a few days later, and now, 10 more characters have been added to the show.

  • Hunter Doohan (Your Honor, Truth Be Told) has been cast to play Tyler Galpin, the son of the town's local sheriff who becomes friends with Wednesday.

  • Georgie Farmer (Treadstone, The Evermoor Chronicles) has been cast to play Ajax Petropolus, a gorgon student attending Nevermore Academy who is awkward, shy, and anxious.

  • Moosa Mostafa (Nativity Rocks!, The Last Bus) has been cast to play Eugen Otinger, a quirky student at Nevermore Academy who is president of the school's bee-keeping club.

  • Emma Myers (Girl in the Basement, Taste of Christmas) has been cast to play Enid Sinclair, Wednesday's sunny and Californian roommate who hails from a pack of San Francisco-based werewolves

  • Naomi J. Ogawa (Skylin3s) has been cast to play Yoko Tanaka, a vampire with Harajuku-inspired goth flair and one of the cool kids at Nevermore Academy.

  • Joy Sunday (Dear White People, The Beta Test) has been cast to play Bianca Barclay, one of the most popular students at Nevermore Academy who hails from a long line of Sirens.

  • Percy Hynes White (The Gifted, Pretty Hard Cases) has been cast to play Xavier Thorpe, a charismatic and supernaturally artistic Nevermore Academy student whose father is a celebrity psychic.

  • Thora Birch (Ghost World, The Walking Dead) has been cast to play Tamara Novak, Wednesday's dorm mother and the only "Normie" staff member at Nevermore Academy.

  • Riki Lindhome (Knives Out, Another Period) has been cast to play Dr. Valerie Kinbott, Wednesday's new therapist.

  • Jamie McShane (Mank, Bloodline) has been cast to play Sheriff Donovan Galpin, an officer who takes issue with Nevermore Academy and especially one of its former students, Gomez Addams.

These 10 characters will join the already-cast Gomez, Morticia, and Wednesday in the Addams Family spinoff.

This Addams Family spinoff hails from Tim Burton, who will direct and executive produce the eight-episode series coming from MGM and UA Television. Showrunners Al Gough and Miles Millar are set to executive produce the series as well alongside Andrew Mittman, Kevin Miserocchi, Kayla Alpert, Jonathan Glickman, and Gail Berman.

There's no official release date for Wednesday just yet, but the series is set to premiere on Netflix sometime in 2022.

Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow Twitter @LeBlancWes.

Wednesday: Netflix Reveals 10 Characters for Tim Burton’s Addams Family Spinoff

Netflix announced that Tim Burton was creating a live-action Addams Family spinoff show for the subscription service back in February and now the cast has grown by 10.

The spinoff, titled Wednesday, will be aptly centered on Wednesday Addams, but the titular character has not been cast yet. Luis Guzmán was cast as Gomez Addams earlier this month and Catherine Zeta-Jones was cast as Morticia Addams just a few days later, and now, 10 more characters have been added to the show.

  • Hunter Doohan (Your Honor, Truth Be Told) has been cast to play Tyler Galpin, the son of the town's local sheriff who becomes friends with Wednesday.

  • Georgie Farmer (Treadstone, The Evermoor Chronicles) has been cast to play Ajax Petropolus, a gorgon student attending Nevermore Academy who is awkward, shy, and anxious.

  • Moosa Mostafa (Nativity Rocks!, The Last Bus) has been cast to play Eugen Otinger, a quirky student at Nevermore Academy who is president of the school's bee-keeping club.

  • Emma Myers (Girl in the Basement, Taste of Christmas) has been cast to play Enid Sinclair, Wednesday's sunny and Californian roommate who hails from a pack of San Francisco-based werewolves

  • Naomi J. Ogawa (Skylin3s) has been cast to play Yoko Tanaka, a vampire with Harajuku-inspired goth flair and one of the cool kids at Nevermore Academy.

  • Joy Sunday (Dear White People, The Beta Test) has been cast to play Bianca Barclay, one of the most popular students at Nevermore Academy who hails from a long line of Sirens.

  • Percy Hynes White (The Gifted, Pretty Hard Cases) has been cast to play Xavier Thorpe, a charismatic and supernaturally artistic Nevermore Academy student whose father is a celebrity psychic.

  • Thora Birch (Ghost World, The Walking Dead) has been cast to play Tamara Novak, Wednesday's dorm mother and the only "Normie" staff member at Nevermore Academy.

  • Riki Lindhome (Knives Out, Another Period) has been cast to play Dr. Valerie Kinbott, Wednesday's new therapist.

  • Jamie McShane (Mank, Bloodline) has been cast to play Sheriff Donovan Galpin, an officer who takes issue with Nevermore Academy and especially one of its former students, Gomez Addams.

These 10 characters will join the already-cast Gomez and Morticia, and eventually Wednesday, in the Addams Family spinoff.

This Addams Family spinoff hails from Tim Burton, who will direct and executive produce the eight-episode series coming from MGM and UA Television. Showrunners Al Gough and Miles Millar are set to executive produce the series as well alongside Andrew Mittman, Kevin Miserocchi, Kayla Alpert, Jonathan Glickman, and Gail Berman.

There's no official release date for Wednesday just yet, but the series is set to premiere on Netflix sometime in 2022.

Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow Twitter @LeBlancWes.

Netflix Revives Manifest For One Last Season After NBC Cancellation

Netflix has revived Manifest for one last season after NBC cancelled the series earlier this year.

NBC cancelled Manifest back in June and fans quickly took to Twitter with the "#SaveManifest" hashtag to express their desire to see a fourth season happen.

Now, just over two months later, Netflix has announced that it has picked the series up to create a fourth and final season.

"The fourth and final season will be comprised of 20 episodes, which will bring the story of the passengers of Flight 828 to its conclusion," a press release from Netflix reads.

When Season 3 of Manifest came to an end, the series left quite a few questions open on the table, ideally to be answered in a fourth season...but Netflix cancelled the series. It seems "#SaveManifest," and the great numbers the show has seen on Netflix since its premiere on the subscription service back in June, showed that the show had more story to tell (and fans to please).

"Since its premiere on Netflix in June, Manifest has proven very popular with our members," Netflix Head of Global TV, Bela Bejaria, said in a press release. "[Manifest producer and creator Jeff Rake] and his team have crafted a beguiling mystery that has viewers around the world on the edge of their seats and believing again in second chances, and we're thrilled that they will bring fans some closure with this final super-sized season."

Rake said that never in his wildest dreams did he envision the amount of support and love for Manifest that's been revealed as of late — enough support to revive the series. He also said he's excited to have the chance to reward the show's fans with the ending they deserve.

"On behalf of the cast, the crew, the writers, directors, and producers, thank you to Netflix, to Warner Bros., and of course to the fans," Rake said. "You did this."

Manifest premiered on NBC back in 2018 and ran for three seasons before it was cancelled in June of this year. The series revolved around the mysterious Montego Air Flight 828. What was supposed to be a standard flight quickly turned into something else when passengers realized that five years had passed after landing.

The mystery of this flight will seemingly be wrapped up in a final 20-episode season set to premiere on Netflix, although the company didn't mention a release date.

For more about Manifest, check out our thoughts on the show's start in IGN's Manifest Season 1 Episode 1 review and then watch this Manifest Season 3 trailer.

Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

Netflix Revives Manifest For One Last Season After NBC Cancellation

Netflix has revived Manifest for one last season after NBC cancelled the series earlier this year.

NBC cancelled Manifest back in June and fans quickly took to Twitter with the "#SaveManifest" hashtag to express their desire to see a fourth season happen.

Now, just over two months later, Netflix has announced that it has picked the series up to create a fourth and final season.

"The fourth and final season will be comprised of 20 episodes, which will bring the story of the passengers of Flight 828 to its conclusion," a press release from Netflix reads.

When Season 3 of Manifest came to an end, the series left quite a few questions open on the table, ideally to be answered in a fourth season...but Netflix cancelled the series. It seems "#SaveManifest," and the great numbers the show has seen on Netflix since its premiere on the subscription service back in June, showed that the show had more story to tell (and fans to please).

"Since its premiere on Netflix in June, Manifest has proven very popular with our members," Netflix Head of Global TV, Bela Bejaria, said in a press release. "[Manifest producer and creator Jeff Rake] and his team have crafted a beguiling mystery that has viewers around the world on the edge of their seats and believing again in second chances, and we're thrilled that they will bring fans some closure with this final super-sized season."

Rake said that never in his wildest dreams did he envision the amount of support and love for Manifest that's been revealed as of late — enough support to revive the series. He also said he's excited to have the chance to reward the show's fans with the ending they deserve.

"On behalf of the cast, the crew, the writers, directors, and producers, thank you to Netflix, to Warner Bros., and of course to the fans," Rake said. "You did this."

Manifest premiered on NBC back in 2018 and ran for three seasons before it was cancelled in June of this year. The series revolved around the mysterious Montego Air Flight 828. What was supposed to be a standard flight quickly turned into something else when passengers realized that five years had passed after landing.

The mystery of this flight will seemingly be wrapped up in a final 20-episode season set to premiere on Netflix, although the company didn't mention a release date.

For more about Manifest, check out our thoughts on the show's start in IGN's Manifest Season 1 Episode 1 review and then watch this Manifest Season 3 trailer.

Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

Xbox Engineer Fixes Legacy Gamerpic Bug

A viral Twitter thread about someone’s old Xbox 360 Gamertag profile picture being cropped weird with each new Xbox console has prompted one Xbox engineer to go ahead and just… fix the problem.

As reported by The Verge, Twitter user Noukon purchased a Pac-Man ghost avatar years ago and has kept it as their profile picture ever since. According to Noukon, they purchased the Gamerpic for 80 Xbox Points in 2006 and he’ll “be f*cked if it won’t remain the best dollar I’ve ever spent until the seas boil over.”

Unfortunately, advances in Xbox’s UI means the profile pic from 2006 now looks like a tiny square surrounding by an empty gray circle. Luckily, Xbox engineer Eden Marie saw Nokoun’s Tweet and decided to go ahead and solve the problem, calling it her “personal mission to fix this.”

Marie posted a full Twitter thread of her process, beginning with purchasing the same profile picture pack as Noukon (for a more expensive price of $2.38), before setting out to diagnose and ultimately solve the issue.

According to Marie, “a long time ago someone decided that no matter how big a Gamerpic we wanted to display, the 360 Gamerpic would never get bigger than 72 x 72 pixels. The rest of the background is filled in with a blown up, faded version of itself,” Marie says.

The solution, ultimately, lay with the Xbox dashboard’s ability to recognize transparent PNG files. This allowed Marie to take the small square 360-era Gamerpic and put it in a transparent circle and adjust the dimensions, resulting in a fixed, totally normal-looking Pac-Man ghost avatar for Noukon.

Marie was able to fix the issue during something called Exploration Time which is where members of the Experiences team can spend half a day each week to tackle random things within the product. "This week I absolutely chose to use it to rescue ghosts," Marie tweeted.

Who knows, maybe the next time you're having a weird issue on Xbox Live, an Xbox engineer with free time can fix your problem for you?

Matt T.M. Kim is IGN's News Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.

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