Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Tony Awards ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis. The prediction pages reflect the current standings in the race and do not reflect personal preferences […]
ENTERTAINMENT
Dragon’s Dogma 2: How Pawns Are Getting Better – IGN First
Dragon’s Dogma was always envisioned as a single player game that gave off the impression of a multiplayer one, or a “Single-Player Online Party Action Game” in Director Hideaki Itsuno’s own words. And one of the key elements of driving that feeling home are the AI-controlled Pawns that make up 3/4s of your party. Pawns were a fascinating inclusion in the original game – at times endearing with their amusing (and frequent) comments on whatever was happening, other times bewildering with some of their behaviors in battle, and very often a great source of humor and levity.
That system is largely the same in Dragon’s Dogma 2 – you still create your own Pawn with their own Vocation that you can gear up however you like, and that Pawn will get shared online with the rest of the world so that another player can hire your Pawn that’s equipped with both the gear and knowledge that you provide to it. You’ll then fill out the remaining two slots of your party with two other Pawns that you can hire from The Rift – essentially a Pawn Network – who will provide you with quest knowledge and information that they themselves gained from their own creator’s adventure.
One of the key things that I noticed in my own playthrough, and something that Itsuno also highlighted when speaking with IGN, is that both Pawns and NPCs in general are much better this time around at guiding the player to a quest, or pointing out areas of interest, basically themselves acting as replacements for UI elements like markers or arrows.
“We wanted it to feel like a friend who’s played the game before is sitting there next to you and giving you advice. Like, ‘Hey, go this way,’ or ‘In this case, you should go with this here,’ or ‘This is what you do.’ In other words, having a friend there with you who provides guidance in an enjoyable way,” said Itsuno. “We wanted to avoid putting too many markers and such on the screen, if possible. We didn’t want too much that kills a player’s mood, so we put a lot of effort into having Pawns and NPCs be your only guides in the world.”
Like the first game, Pawns will also have Inclinations as well, with you being able to outright select whether you want your Pawn to be kindhearted, calm, simple, or straightforward, without having to go through a questionnaire first. Your Pawn’s Inclination has a substantial role in dictating how that Pawn will behave in battle, with kindhearted Pawns favoring a balanced approach with an emphasis on support; calm Pawns being more proficient with defense and evasion; simple Pawns being extra diligent about looting items; and straightforward Pawns being more daring when it comes to attacking foes head-on. Each Inclination also has its own set of voice actors, with different options for pitch modulations, and their own unique actions that they can take as well.
According to Kento Kinoshita, lead game designer for Dragon’s Dogma 2, “If you want to think of it in terms of individuality, I think we’ve very consciously tried to expand the number of ways in which Pawns are individuals. There’s personality, as we just mentioned; while in terms of knowledge, they might have knowledge of certain enemies. This game also isn’t really about a specific main quest that they freely play through, but instead contains lots of different quests. It isn’t very forceful. The game is made in such a way where only the Pawns on a quest with a player learn from that quest, so I think there will be clearly individual experiences based on how different people play the game, what quests they go on, and what kind of knowledge they have. Part of the fun in finding Pawns will be the reaction of ‘Oh, this Pawn knows about this particular subject, awesome.’ where all the different parts of the game work together.”
Finally, one new aspect of Pawns are Specializations, which are special abilities given to Pawns, similar to what we would call licenses or qualifications. The idea is basically that Pawns can learn the ropes from their master – they can develop the Woodland Wordsmith specialization, which allows you to understand Elvish, by getting close with an NPC that speaks Elvish. Another example is the Chirurgeon Specialization, which allows Pawns to use healing items on others, as opposed to only being able to use them on themselves, allowing you to basically make a Pawn a healer, even if they aren’t a Mage.
“In this game, we have also made it possible for players to leave some things to their Pawns that they might find tedious or uninteresting, including not only combat, but also some other elements. We believe that by combining Inclinations and Specializations, players can create a Pawn that best suits their preferences,” said Itsuno.
Mitchell Saltzman is an editorial producer at IGN. You can find him on twitter @JurassicRabbit
The Ecoflow River 2 256Wh LiFePO4 Power Station Is Down to $178
Amazon is offering an Ecoflow River 2 256Wh LiFePO4 Power Station for $178.00 (normally $299) thanks to a 40% Lighting Deal discount. This is a good price for a decently sized power station that won’t break your back every time you lift it up. It’s also equipped with LiFEPO4 batteries, the best battery chemistry type for power stations.
Ecoflow River 2 256Wh LiFePO4 Power Station for $178
The Ecoflow River 2 is a power station with a 256WH battery capacity. It has two AC outlets capable of up to 600W max output (300W per outlet), two USB Type-A ports, and one USB Type-C port. Although each AC outlet is capable of up to 300W of sustained power output, Ecoflow’s X-Boost technology allows it to handle up to 600W of surge power for certain electronics and appliances that require a temporary power boost to start up. The River 2 can be recharged using traditional AC or up to 110W of solar. If using grid power (AC), the 360W input will fully charge the River 2 from 0% to 100% in only one hour. Although it’s typically used as a mobile backup power solution when you have no available grid power, it can also work as an always-on passthrough AC power strip as well. It has an EPS function that will automatically swap to battery power when there is a power outage. The shutoff delay is less than 30ms, which is small enough for even sensitive electronics like PCs to remain on the entire time.
The 256Whr battery can power your PC or appliances for several minutes or mobile elecronics (including your laptop) for several hours to days. The River 2 uses the newer LiFePO4 cells instead of the traditional NCM sells you find in the original River. LiFePO4 cells have inherently safer chemistry and have a much higher cycle lifespan than NCM cells. They also have lower calendar aging. The only negative of LiFEPO4 is the lower energy density (heavier weight). That said, the River 2 weighs only 7 pounds, which is very respectable for a battery capacity of this size, and with this deal it’s not much pricer than NCM alternatives.
Standard “UPS” battery backups like APC and CyberPower are cheaper because they use traditional lead acid batteries. As opposed to lithium batteries like LFP and NCM, lead acid batteries are super heavy, have a much shorter lifespan, and are far less efficient. This is the primary reason why your UPS battery backup should be replaced every 3-5 years. An LFP battery will generally retain at least 85% of its charge even after 10 years of service, and it will do so with even more usage than a lead acid battery.
The River 2 is a smart battery and thus you can change settings, check on its status, and power on or off outlets remotely, all from your phone. In my personal experience, Ecoflow has good product support and they are continuously rolling out new firmware and software updates.
100W Solar Panel for $58.69
The Ecoflow River 2 has an XT60 port for connecting up to 110W worth of solar panels for charging. A 100W solar panel can fully charge the River 2 from 0% to 100% in about 2-3 hours in perfect conditions. A more realistic charging time is wholly dependent on the weather conditions and solar panel placement. Ecoworthy is one of the most popular solar panel brands on Amazon and they’re a lot cheaper than buying Ecoflow panels direct. You will have to pick up an XT60 adapter cable to connect your panel to the River 2 since Ecoflow doesn’t include one in the package.
James Brolin, Lizzy Greene, and Eoin Macken Join Netflix’s ‘Ransom Canyon’
James Brolin, Lizzy Greene (“A Million Little Things”), and Eoin Macken (“La Brea”) are set to join Netflix’s upcoming romantic drama “Ransom Canyon,” Variety has confirmed. They join previously announced leads Josh Duhamel and Minka Kelly. Kelly will portray Quinn, a character who “has often found herself in the shadow of others, but after a […]
There’s Already Jacob Elordi x Reneé Rapp Merch Ahead of Their ‘SNL’ Episode
Jacob Elordi will host “Saturday Night Live” on Jan. 20 with Reneé Rapp as the musical guest. And if that’s not enough to get millions of fans excited, NBC is selling merch inspired by the highly anticipated episode. The black t-shirt is designed with a classic yellow taxi cab, zooming by in the New York City […]
5 Takeaways From BAFTA Noms: Lily Gladstone’s Snub, ‘Barbie’s’ Underperformance and More
The BAFTA film nominations offered jaw-droppers and a couple of head-scratchers with their inclusions (and exclusions) this year. Always an interesting precursor to the Oscars, the past few years have produced less overlap between them, partially due to jury intervention in compiling the nominees. That makes deciphering what the BAFTAs mean to the overall awards […]
The HP OMEN 16 AMD Ryzen RTX 4060 Gaming Laptop Is Only $939.99
For today only, HP is offering this HP OMEN 16 GeForce RTX 4060 gaming laptop for only $939.99 after a $550 flash discount and an additional $100 off with promo code: “OMHXRIOT10“. This is an excellent price for an RTX 4060 laptop, especially since the laptop in question is from HP’s premium OMEN lineup instead of their budget Victus lineup. What that means is you’re getting better build quality and a sleeker design than most laptops in this price range.
HP OMEN 16 RTX 4060 Gaming Laptop for $933.99
The HP OMEN 16 laptop features a 16″ 1080p IPS display, the new AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS CPU, GeForce RTX 4060 GPU, 16GB of DDR5-5600MHz RAM, and a 1TB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD. The AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS is AMD’s newest mobile chip with a boost clock of 5.1GHz and 8 cores and 16 threads. This is a lower voltage processor that sips power yet and yet it’s still one of the fastest mobile CPUs available. It is superior in performance to its Intel counterpart, the i7-13700H.
The RTX 4060 sits between the RTX 3070 and the RTX 3070 Ti so it’s definitely no slouch in terms of gaming performance. This is a very capable, current generation GPU that can easily run games on the native 1080p display even at high or maximum settings. We normally see this laptop on sale for about $1000, which is already a good deal. At the price of $939.99, it beats out comparable offerings from Dell and Lenovo, even if you factor in their budget models like the Dell G-series or Lenovo LOQ.
GTA Online Is Ending Support for Rockstar Editor on PS4 and Xbox One
Rockstar is looking to the horizon as it begins to “approach the limits of what’s possible” on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and it’s starting by removing the Rockstar Editor from those versions of Grand Theft Auto Online.
The Grand Theft Auto maker announced plans to make a shift toward the future in a news post on its website. It says that, while the Rockstar Editor will survive on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X | S, players on last-gen consoles will lose access come February 20, 2024. The editor’s removal is said to be part of the “necessary steps” that Rockstar is taking to ensure GTA Online additions continue to roll out on PS4 and Xbox One.
“This update will help to ensure the stability of these platforms and keep them updated with GTA Online additions for as long as possible,” Rockstar says.
Clips and projects created on these platforms will be deleted when the Rockstar Editor is removed next month. Those who are interested in saving or exporting their projects can view instructions on the Rockstar support page.
Today’s update isn’t all bad news. The post also includes promises to deliver more GTA Online love to players this week, including doubled rewards and vehicle discounts through January 24.
GTA Online has thrived for around a decade, so it makes sense to see Rockstar making new moves toward what’s next while still supporting its existing fans. These plans obviously include the hotly anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6, which was officially unveiled late last year. Potential online plans for the new open-world entry in the studio’s trend-setting series are a mystery for now, though we might have some guesses thanks to T-Pain.
For more on the world of Grand Theft Auto, you can check out our colleciton of every GTA trailer ever released. You can also read up on some possible evidence that suggests Grand Theft Auto 5 DLC and Bully 2 almost happened.
Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He started writing in the industry in 2017 and is best known for his work at outlets such as The Pitch, The Escapist, OnlySP, and Gameranx.
Be sure to give him a follow on Twitter @MikeCripe.
‘Schmigadoon’ Canceled After Two Seasons at Apple TV+
“Schmigadoon” has been canceled at Apple TV+. The series aired two seasons at the streaming service, with the most recent season debuting in April 2023. Series co-creator Cinco Paul shared the news of the cancellation on Instagram. “I am sad to share that Apple will not be moving forward with Season 3 of Schmigadoon!” Paul […]
In a Galaxy Far, Far Away, Jodie Foster Played Princess Leia in Star Wars
Jodie Foster might have played Princess Leia in Star Wars instead of Carrie Fisher, as the Freaky Friday and The Silence of the Lambs star has revealed she was offered the role first but turned it down.
As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, Foster said on NBC’s Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon she was offered the role of Leia when she was pitched as a younger character, aged just 13 or 14.
“I was [offered the role], yeah,” Foster said. “They were going for a younger Princess Leia but I had a conflict. I was doing a Disney movie and I just didn’t want to pull out of the Disney movie because I was already under contract.”
Foster would have been 13 or 14 during filming of the original film, now called Star Wars: Episode 4 – A New Hope, compared to Fisher who was 19. It’s unclear which Disney film caused Foster to turn down the role, though it’s perhaps 1976’s Freaky Friday.
Regardless, she seemingly has no regrets giving up the role. “They did an amazing job,” Foster said of Lucasfilm and the original Star Wars cast. “I don’t know how good I would have been. I might have had different hair. I might have gone with a pineapple.”
Star Wars, of course, has grown into one of the most popular franchises of all time, and somewhat ironically is now owned by Disney. Though there hasn’t been a film release since Star Wars: Episode 9 – The Rise of Skywalker in 2019, Disney currently has eight films in the works.
This includes a trilogy from Star Wars: Episode 8 – The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson, one from Thor Ragnarok director Taika Waititi, another from The Mandalorian and Ahsoka’s Dave Filoni, and one from Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny director James Mangold.
Sequel Trilogy star Daisy Ridley is also set to return as Rey Skywalker in a movie directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, taking place 15 years after Star Wars: Episode 9 – The Rise of Skywalker.
And if that’s not enough, another Star Wars film was announced in January 2024. The Mandalorian & Grogu comes from Jon Favreau and will go into production later in the year.
None of these have actual premiere dates, though Disney has three Star Wars films on its schedule. It’s unclear which will be which, but these films are set for May 22, 2026, followed by December 18, 2026 and December 17, 2027.
Image Credit: Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty Images
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.