Genesius Member Nov 2, 2018 20,119 Still the GOAT after all these years. Best roster, best story, best gameplay. Remake/remaster this with an MK11 Krypt and I'll have all the MK I'll ever need.  TheChungusAmongUs Member Oct 25, 2017 14,413 I read this title as 14th anniversary of MK11 and actually felt myself turn into a skeleton until I clicked and saw pics of MK9   Osu 16 Bit QA Lead at NetherRealm Studios Verified Oct 27, 2017 3,173 Chicago, IL The game that kompletely altered the kourse of my life. Wild it's been that long.   Nemesis121 Member Nov 3, 2017 16,246 Best story, MKX, MK11, and MK1 were mediocre to awful, probably one of the best fighting games story ever told.   Buzzkiller_20 Corrupted by Vengeance Member Oct 27, 2017 2,500 Loved playing as Kratos. His stage was cool too. Especially the stage fatality. Great game.   nsilvias Member Oct 25, 2017 29,521 the envirement art aged well   Dukie85 Chicken Chaser Member Oct 25, 2017 3,100 This is the last time I thoroughly enjoyed a fighting game... MK9 is one of my GOATs   TheJollyCorner AVALANCHE The Fallen Nov 7, 2017 10,280 Before I saw the year I thought this was for the first movie and, for a fraction-of-a-fraction of a second believed my dreams of time-traveling backwards actually happened. Shit.  MrNewVegas Member Oct 27, 2017 11,326 That POS Shao Khan battle will be seared into my mind forever.   VariantX Member Oct 25, 2017 17,929 Columbia, SC I still can't believe I did all 300 missions in the challenge tower. I put more time into MK9 than any other MK before or after it. It's yet to be surpassed in my mind   Pyro God help us the mods are making weekend threads Member Jul 30, 2018 18,420 United States The game shows its age in the funniest way possible (16 year old me thought this was a fucking JAM): View: https://open.spotify.com/track/1GPVsNek0U5PegVpW0rxcy?si=EIVI8MoATemh8kMchjUL1A&context=spotify%3Asearch   JusDoIt ▲ Legend ▲ Member Oct 25, 2017 42,923 South Central the biggest reinvention of a fighting game series ever, imo   PhoenixAKG Member Aug 14, 2019 9,242 Best story but the female characters designs are just awful   DrFunk Member Oct 25, 2017 14,487 MrNewVegas said: That POS Shao Khan battle will be seared into my mind forever. Click to expand... Click to shrink... Ridiculously hard. AND he used finishing moves!   UshiromiyaEva Member Aug 22, 2018 1,927 Glad it saved MK but the story in this one will forever frustrate me, body count for body count's sake. I think MKX is a pretty straight improvement gameplay wise but if there's anything I miss from 9 it's the static Challenge Tower and having such a high count of stages  Niklel Prophet of Regret Member Aug 10, 2020 4,351 The GOAT. MK 2011 was peak. MKX didn't do much for me. Skipped MK11. MK1 has amazing graphics, but other than that didn't hold my interest for long, sadly.  Boy Member Apr 24, 2018 4,929 I feel like this was the best MK game. Probably my most played MK game of them all.   xmonkeyofevil Member Jun 9, 2019 657 Love MK9, but unfortunately everytime I think of it I remember how it came out right along the PSN situation and by extension didn't have online play for weeks ;_; But I played the hell out of it anyways. Got arcade mode down to a science and was able to regularly beat it without blocking. Such a fun game. Some of the character models aside, it's aged beautifully imo.  Zaied Member Oct 27, 2017 5,007 MK9 easily has my favorite soundtrack of the last four games. I also thought it had the peak portrayals of a few characters like Kabal and Cyrax. Great game; in hindsight, I wish I had bought the 360 version at launch instead of the PS3 version so I could be playing it on my Series X.  Unicorn One Winged Slayer Member Oct 29, 2017 10,707 Love the stages, love the battle damage, love the human cyrax/sektor alts   Cameron122 Rescued from SR388 Member Oct 27, 2017 2,572 Texas I would like a remaster of this game. With Kratos on other consoles/pc   secretanchitman One Winged Slayer Member Oct 25, 2017 9,775 Chicago, IL My favorite game in the series - very much enjoyed the story, roster, stages, music and gameplay. I'm lucky to still have a copy on Steam!  Miamiwesker Member Oct 25, 2017 5,131 Miami The best MK game ever. Loved everything about it. Sparked my love for the franchise to return.   Scrappy-Fan92 Member Jan 14, 2021 10,825 A seminal game in many ways.   zoodoo Member Oct 26, 2017 14,410 Montreal Very important game for the franchise but not my favorite. Going back to it, it feels janky. MKX is a much better game and the best NRS entry in my opinion.   Sign My Guestbook! Member May 26, 2018 29,118 Art style is weird as all heck but the game is so good. Some might prefer MKX more. They're both good to me.   CaveGhostPurp Member Jan 12, 2022 1,277 This was the pinnacle of the series, for me. The true ultimate MK game (besides Shaolin Monks, of course). I haven't liked anything they've done since. Would love a remaster, but they'd probably find some way to screw it up.  zoodoo Member Oct 26, 2017 14,410 Montreal Viennality recently had a pro players showing and Ketchup won with Noob. It was great. View: https://youtu.be/lg566a-jc08?si=oP-suFINt4Nb-fI5 The actual Top 6: View: https://youtu.be/TGgJG-uHm80?si=LaGUlCypM6Bpvmz5  Scotty Member Nov 11, 2023 367 Special shout out needs to be made to the Vita port. My most played Vita game.   Velikost Member Oct 28, 2017 1,397 Loved this game. Evo when this + SFIV + UMvC3 were in rotation? Peak   Madao Avalanche's One Winged Slayer Member Oct 26, 2017 5,549 Panama i played this game for the first time 2 years ago but somehow it felt nostalgic. can't really explain why. on also, it made me rage at the single player since Shao Kahn was such a cheater. funnily enough i came up with a way to completely cheese him and the fight became like 10x easier, though if he managed to break the pattern, i would be screwed often. 

Hogwarts Legacy may have been the highest-selling game of 2023, but there were still plenty of ways the wizard-fueled RPG could be improved in its potential sequel. A DLC for Hogwarts Legacy may have recently been reportedly canceled, but there are still plans for a follow-up game. Hogwarts Legacy isn't the only major action adventure sequel in the works, though.

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.At $1,399 (down from $1,899), this deal on the 14-inch Apple MacBook Pro (2023, M3 Pro chip) brings some high-end specs into a more accessible price range, especially considering it’s still $1,699 on Amazon. Apple MacBook Pro (2023, M3 Pro chip) $1,499.00 at Best Buy $1,899.00 Save $400.00 Get Deal Get Deal $1,499.00 at Best Buy $1,899.00 Save $400.00 This base M3 MacBook Pro configuration gives you an 11-core CPU, a 14-core GPU, 18GB of unified memory, and a 512GB SSD, which is plenty for handling creative workloads like editing 4K video, code compiling, or juggling multiple apps and browser tabs without hitting thermal limits or draining battery in a couple of hours. It runs on macOS Sonoma, has a backlit keyboard, and supports Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth, though those were already around in the 2021 model.The display is a 14.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR screen with a 3024 x 1964 resolution and up to 1000 nits of sustained brightness (which makes a difference if you work outdoors or with HDR content). Colors look vibrant, and Apple's ProMotion tech keeps things smooth with a 120Hz refresh rate that adjusts dynamically. This helps during video playback or fast-paced visuals, though it won’t make much of a difference for static office work. And while it’s not a touchscreen (something Windows users might miss), the display clarity more than makes up for it in sharpness and depth. Battery life is solid too, with up to 30 hours unplugged, according to this PCMag review.You’re also getting a more generous port selection than what you’d get on a MacBook Air (speaking of, read why Apple's newest MacBook Air is the one to buy) or most laptops in this class. There are three Thunderbolt 4 ports, an HDMI output, an SDXC card reader, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and MagSafe charging—so dongle life doesn’t have to be your default. If you don’t need a powerhouse for 3D rendering or machine-learning tasks, this M3 Pro version is more than capable. It’s a good fit for creative professionals, developers, gamers trying to get more mileage from the Mac ecosystem, and anyone who doesn’t want to compromise on screen quality or build, but also doesn’t need the fully loaded top-tier models.

With the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showcase behind us, we now know more about the console than ever before, including its release date (June 5) and price ($450). We're also keeping a close eye on how the recently-announced tariffs in the United States are affecting Nintendo's launch plans. Pre-orders in the US and Canada are now set to start on April 24. Thanks to Nintendo's January 16 teaser trailer, we've long known what the Switch 2 will look like, and that it will arrive in 2025 — over eight years after its predecessor. The Nintendo Switch 2 looks very similar to the original system, albeit with a larger display, magnetic Joy-Cons and a sleeker design. The upcoming console will be backwards compatible with Switch games. Looking to catch up on everything we know about the Switch 2? Read on. What are the key new features of the Nintendo Switch 2? Display and dock The Nintendo Switch 2 has a 1080p 7.9-inch display with a 120Hz refresh and HDR compatibility. It also supports up to 4K output at 120Hz (with variable refresh rates) when docked. Joy-Con and Pro Controller The new Joy-Con 2 for Nintendo Switch 2 attaches magnetically with a button to release them. They have larger SL and SR buttons (the ones hidden when the Joy-Con are attached) to make playing multiplayer games on individual Joy-Cons more feasible. These buttons are also made of steel and attach to the Switch 2's magnets. The analog sticks are no longer tiny nubs, and are closer in size to the ones you might find on a PS5 or Xbox controller. However, they do not have Hall effect sensors, the use of which can minimize the risk of the "stick drift" issue that plagued the original Joy-Cons. The Joy-Con 2 have what Nintendo is calling “HD Rumble 2” built in, which seems to be a refinement of the original (and still very good) vibration function. Finally, each Joy-Con 2 has an optical sensor that allows you to use it as a mouse, and a C button, which we’ll get to in a minute. Nintendo The new Pro Controller for the Nintendo Switch 2 comes with everything you’d expect based on the refreshed Joy-Con 2: Namely HD Rumble 2 and the C button. There are also remappable GL/GR buttons around the back and a standard audio jack for connecting a headset. Both options come with Amiibo support built in. The Switch 2 comes with two Joy-Con 2, as you’d expect, and additional pairs are priced at $95. The Pro Controller will cost $85. The C button stands for "chat" The new C button is a dedicated way to enter a chat session with friends. As well as the standard features you’d expect from voice chat, Nintendo has built a Discord-like video-sharing feature, which lets you show your gameplay to others and see other people’s screens while you’re playing.  The GameChat function works with a mic built into the console, though headsets are also supported. Nintendo will also sell a $55 camera that plugs into the USB-C port on the top of the console, which will allow you to stream your face along with your game. Nintendo GameCube support The Switch 2 will work with GameCube games via the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack. The three titles available at launch will be F-Zero GX, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and Soul Calibur II. Improved specs Perhaps the biggest feature, though, is one you can’t see: The Switch 2 has an all-new processor and GPU and significantly more storage (256GB vs 64GB in the Switch OLED), along with support for faster and more capacious microSD cards. This will obviously lead to better first-party games and upgraded Switch experiences, but more importantly it will mean multi-platform games that had to skip the original, underpowered Switch will be able to be ported over. With games like Cyberpunk 2077 coming to the Switch 2 at launch, it seems like far more ports will be feasible than on the original console. Another major improvement comes in the form of networking — the Switch 2 supports Wi-Fi 6, which will improve the original's often glacial download speeds. Similarly, the new dock sports an Ethernet port for a rock-solid connection. What's it like to play? Nintendo gave the press a chance to check out the Switch 2 and a few of the games it highlighted. You can read our impressions of Mario Kart World as well as more general thoughts on how the Switch 2 feels in person. Right off the bat, Mario Kart World feels like an outstanding launch title, with more depth and better visuals than we've ever seen from a Mario Kart game. The core formula is intact, but there are a lot of new features and play styles to dig into.  As for the Switch 2 hardware, it feels like a major step forward from the original Switch — it has grown up a lot and feels far more polished and refined. And while it may not have an OLED screen, the 7.9-inch LED display Nintendo did use is outstanding. When will the Nintendo Switch 2 come out? June 5, 2025. When do pre-orders open for Nintendo Switch 2? Pre-orders will go live in the US and Canada on April 24. They were originally set to begin on April 9, but on April 4 Nintendo announced it was suspending pre-order plans in the US "indefinitely" in reaction to a slate of tariffs imposed by President Trump. In any case, Nintendo says that the release date for the console is unchanged.  How much will the Nintendo Switch 2 cost? On April 2, Nintendo announced that the Switch 2 would cost $450 standalone, or $500 with a bundled digital copy of the new Mario Kart game, Mario Kart World. That’s significantly more expensive than the original Switch, which launched at $300, and has remained at that price ever since. It’s also more expensive than the entry-level current-gen consoles from Sony and Microsoft. The comparison looks a little better up against Valve’s Steam Deck, which costs $400 for the LCD model or $550 for the basic OLED model. The Steam Deck is more affordable than most PC handhelds. When Nintendo delayed the pre-orders from the original date of April 9, it said it was doing so "in order to assess the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions." With heavy US tariffs levied on Nintendo's Asian production centers, the implication was that would have little choice but to pass at least some of those costs on to American consumers. But Trump's April 9 tariff pivot — reverting to 10 percent across the board for 90 days for all countries except China, which now gets a triple-digit hit — further muddied the waters. That's because it's unclear how much, if any, of the components and assembly of US-bound Switch 2 consoles will originate in China. The administration exempted some electronics from reciprocal tariffs, but they'll soon be subject to new levies on semiconductors. Some analysts suggest that Nintendo will be selling consoles at a loss in the US with even a 10 percent tariff. Nevertheless, the company is keeping the price of the Switch 2 at $450 and the Mario Kart World bundle at $450. However, it noted that it had to increase the prices of Switch 2 accessories "due to changing market conditions" and added that other price modifications may occur in the future for a similar reason. How much do the Nintendo Switch 2 accessories cost? When Nintendo announced the rescheduled Switch 2 pre-order date for the US and Canada, it confirmed price increases for many of the console's accessories. The current US prices for the accessories are as follows: Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller — $85 Joy-Con 2 Pair — $95 Joy-Con 2 Charging Grip — $40 Joy-Con 2 Strap — $14 Joy-Con 2 Wheel Set — $25 Nintendo Switch 2 Camera — $55 Nintendo Switch 2 Dock Set — $120 Nintendo Switch 2 Carrying Case & Screen Protector — $40 Nintendo Switch 2 All-In-One Carrying Case — $85 Nintendo Switch 2 AC Adapter — $35 Samsung microSD Express Card – 256GB for Nintendo Switch 2 — $60 The price of the Joy-Con 2 strap has gone up by $1, but the prices of other products have risen by between $5 and $10, with the dock set getting the larger increase. Thankfully, your Nintendo Switch 2 will come with a dock. Nintendo also released a list of accessory prices for Canada. How long will the Switch 2's battery last? Nintendo says that the Switch 2 will last between 2 and 6.5 hours on a single charge. This is similar to the original Switch, which was rated for 2.5-6.5 hours, though later revisions upped that figure significantly. The company cautions that "this time is an estimate ... battery life will depend on the games you play and usage conditions." When can I try the Nintendo Switch 2? Nintendo is hosting a worldwide roadshow to let gamers go hands-on with the console. These events started in New York and Paris on April 4-6, with others taking place throughout the following two months.  Ticket registration for many of the Nintendo Switch 2 Experience events has closed, but waitlists are available. However, given that Nintendo is taking a first come, first served approach, your chances of attending the roadshow if you don't already have a ticket (or unless you signed up for the waitlist immediately) seem very small at this point. The full list of Nintendo Switch 2 Experience dates is as follows: North America: New York, April 4-6, 2025 Los Angeles, April 11-13, 2025 Dallas, April 25-27, 2025 Toronto, April 25-27, 2025 Europe: Paris, April 4-6, 2025 London, April 11-13, 2025 Milan, April 25-27, 2025 Berlin, April 25-27, 2025 Madrid, May 9-11, 2025 Amsterdam, May 9-11, 2025 Oceania: Melbourne, May 10-11, 2025 Asia: Tokyo (Makuhari), April 26-27, 2025 Seoul, May 31-June 1, 2025 Hong Kong, To be announced Taipei, To be announced Is the Nintendo Switch 2 backwards compatible? Nintendo confirmed in November 2024 that the Nintendo Switch 2 will be backwards compatible. It will also feature access to Nintendo Online, so users will be able to play all of those old retro titles. In the initial Nintendo Switch 2 press release, Nintendo reiterated that physical and digital Switch games will work on the new system. However, it noted that "certain Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2." We now have more information on which games are working thanks to a guide Nintendo put together. Nintendo's software compatibility chart on April 2, 2025.Nintendo As of April 1, the vast majority of Switch 2 games are marked as compatible, but many popular games are said to have some issues. Nintendo has marked most of these as “under investigation,” suggesting a fix may be on the way in time for launch. Nintendo says it is manually testing every Switch game for compatibility. Only one title is marked as incompatible: Nintendo Labo Toy-Con 04: VR Kit. This was part of Nintendo’s Labo range of games that worked with Cardboard accessories, and is incompatible as the Switch 2 doesn’t physically fit in the VR headset. Will old games be enhanced in any way? The original Switch has, to put it mildly, struggled to run some of the late-generation software that's come down the pike. Could these games be enhanced to take advantage of the increased horsepower of the Switch 2? That’s unclear. In an “Ask the Developer” page on its site, Nintendo says that old games are working through a real-time translation system, which sounds similar to how Rosetta allows modern Macs to run old software. With that said, the new and old Switch are much closer in hardware than that. In the same developer interview, it’s said that in its testing of old games for compatibility, there were some occasions “where loading times became faster, or game performance became more stable,” but we don’t have any detail beyond that. As well as backward compatibility, Nintendo is also offering up premium "Switch 2 Edition" upgrades for a select few games. These have improved resolutions and frame rates, and (in some cases) bonus features and content. What exactly that means will vary, but Nintendo did confirm that Metroid Prime 4: Beyond will have 4K/60 fps and 1080p/120 fps options on the Switch 2. Games confirmed to have a Switch 2 Edition to date include: Super Mario Party Jamboree The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Kirby and the Forgotten Land Pokémon Legends: Z-A Metroid Prime 4: Beyond In the case of the two mainline Zelda games, those upgrades will be included with a Switch Online + Expansion Pack membership or cost $10 each. Upgrades for the other games are also paid, but Nintendo has not said how much those will cost. What will the cartridges taste like? You may remember that the original Switch cartridges taste absolutely awful. This was on purpose, to discourage folks from putting the games in their mouth. Similarly, the Switch 2 carts are also said to taste terrible, in large part to stop children or pets from accidentally ingesting them. It is not yet clear what substance Nintendo has coated the Switch 2 cartridges in to make them taste foul, but Nintendo's Takuhiro Dohta advised against licking them all the same. "We don't want anybody to be at risk of any unwanted consumption," he told GameSpot. "We have indeed made it so that if it enters your mouth, you'll spit it out." What are the launch games? We expect this list to change substantially over the coming weeks and months, but the titles currently confirmed to be available on day one follow: Arcade Archives 2 Ridge Racer Bravely Default: Flying Fairy HD Remaster Cyberpunk 2077 Deltarune Fast Fusion Fortnite Hitman: World of Assassination Hogwarts Legacy Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess Mario Kart World Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S Split Fiction Street Fighter 6 Survival Kids Yakuza 0: Director's Cut That's everything we know about the Nintendo Switch 2 today. We'll update this article with any information we can gather directly from sources. Any changes made to the article after its initial publishing will be listed below. Update, January 24, 2025, 12:36 PM ET: This story has been updated to include speculation about price, potential game enhancements and the taste of cartridges. Update, February 5, 2025, 9:30AM ET: This story has been updated to note the time when the April 2 Nintendo Direct starts. Update, February 24, 2025, 12:30 PM ET: This story has been updated to include speculation about storage and information about the new microSD Express standard. Update, March 6, 2025, 2:30PM ET: This story has been updated to note recent FCC filings to indicate the presence of Wi-Fi 6 and NFC support. Update, March 14, 2025, 12:15PM ET: This story has been updated to include pricing and sales speculation from analysts. Update, March 20, 2025, 12:45PM ET: Updated to include a note about the Seattle Mariners new jersey patches featuring Nintendo and the Switch 2. Update, March 27, 2025, 3:50PM ET: Updated to add details about the C button, Nintendo Today! and Virtual Game Cards. Update, April 1, 2025, 10:16AM ET: Updated to add link to livestream and details on its length. Update, April 2, 2025, 4:40PM ET: Added details from the April 2 Nintendo Direct event, including specifications, price, release date and launch titles. Update, April 4, 2025, 11:17AM ET: Added details about pre-orders being put on hold.  Update, April 7, 2025, 1:56PM ET: Added details about the Switch 2 cartridges still (reportedly) tasting terrible, the lack of Hall effect sensors in the controllers and game upgrade pricing. Update, April 9, 2025, 5:41PM ET: Added context on how the changing rules on the Trump tariffs may or may not affect Switch 2 pricing in the US.  Update, April 11, 2025, 7:11PM ET: Re-affirmed that May 8 is when Nintendo is confirming the first batch of pre-orders through its site, after a faulty report online suggested otherwise. Update, April 18, 2025, 10:33AM ET: Added details about the new pre-order date for the US and Canada, as well as accessory pricing. Jeff Dunn contributed to this report.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/nintendo-switch-2-updates-pre-order-date-price-games-and-everything-else-you-need-to-know-143310081.html?src=rss

Looking for NYT Connections answers and hints? Here's all you need to know to solve today's game, plus my commentary on the puzzles.

If you have investments in the stock market, the past several weeks have probably felt a little worrisome. (And by “a little worrisome” I mean “just barely keeping oneself from sobbing in the bathtub with a pint of Ben & Jerry’s.”) U.S. and global markets have yo-yoed in reaction to the current administration’s inexplicable tariff wars. And since this market volatility is a direct result of America’s foreign economic policy rather than “normal” economic fluctuation, it’s difficult to know what to expect. There’s no promise of fiscal unicorns and rainbows when we get to the other end of this trade war—but before you cash out your 401(k) and bury the money in your backyard, keep these important facts in mind. Yes, this does feel different If it feels like this market turbulence is different from others in recent memory, that’s because it is. The current market instability stems from the president’s tariffs rather than a market crash (like the 2008 housing bubble collapse) or a disruptive global event (like the 2020 COVID-related market downturn). That’s significant because economists and investors know what to expect from market crashes, which are relatively common and repeat on a somewhat predictable 7-to-10-year pattern, followed by an average recovery time of 1.4 years. While the 2020 market shenanigans also felt unprecedented at the time—since none of us had ever lived through a global pandemic before—the recovery within four months of the market’s lowest point made it clear that everyone wanted to get back to business as soon as possible post-COVID. In both of those cases, it made sense to “HANK TOUGH!” and stay the course through the market downturns, since there was a long history of the market rebounding from similar situations. But our current heartburn-inducing market ride stems from America’s global retaliatory trade war, and we can’t necessarily count on the “natural” rebound that has occurred after every other destabilizing market event in recent memory. Any countries angry about U.S.-imposed tariffs could make long-term financial or policy changes that will continue to affect our domestic market for years. There is simply no way of knowing what long-term effects there will be on our investments. But there is a precedent Just because we have never lived through a tariff-triggered market downturn doesn’t mean our current situation is unprecedented. Almost 100 years ago, isolationist tariffs introduced by Utah Senator Reed Smoot (yes, that was really his name) and Oregon Representative Willis Hawley exacerbated an existing financial crisis. You may only remember the Smoot-Hawley tariffs of 1930 as part of the mind-numbing lecture Ferris Bueller missed on his day off, but this act raised import duties in an attempt to protect American farmers and businesses. Unfortunately, the Smoot-Hawley tariffs prompted retaliatory tariffs, and the American economy suffered for nearly a decade. Thankfully, we are in a much better situation than our ancestors were. The Great Depression started with the 1929 stock market crash—before Smoot and Hawley teamed up, ammonia and bleach style, to impose tariffs. As of February 2025, the U.S. was enjoying a robust economy with a growing GDP, while the 1930 tariffs introduced by Smoot and Hawley kicked the wounded economy when it had already been sucker punched by the market crash. The drop in your investment portfolio over the past couple of weeks was nausea-inducing in part because it was falling from a high point. But investors in the 1930s saw their money lose value in the crash and then lose more value from the tariff wars. No one wants to hear a financial expert say, “It could be worse—and here are some examples of when it was!” However, recognizing that the recent turbulence is rocking an economy that had otherwise been stable can help fend off the worst of the panic. Planning for the unexpected Any financial adviser worth their salt will tell you that past performance is no guarantee of future returns, but understanding how markets have reacted in the past can offer some perspective on how markets may react in the future. Since we can look back to the 1930s and see how other countries reacted to America’s isolationist financial and foreign policy—and how the market responded to tariffs being flung back and forth across borders like a game of hot potato—we can make plans and predictions based on the worst-case scenario. We know from Smoot and Hawley that tariffs often lead to retaliatory tariffs, which can have a negative impact on the market. Even though there is no way of knowing what will happen, it’s probably a good idea for investors to buckle up for a bumpy ride. Here’s how: Remember that the market will eventually recover For anyone who is 10 or more years out from retirement, you can feel confident that things will improve. Unless we’re in a “dogs and cats living together—mass hysteria!” type of extinction-level event, consider ignoring your 401(k) balance for a little while. Your investments will do better if you slowly back away from your portfolio and let the market recover. Forewarned is forearmed Just because the market will return to some semblance of normalcy without any effort on your part doesn’t mean you should do nothing. Now is the time to shore up your finances by paying off high-interest debt, setting aside money in an emergency fund, finding ways to lower your expenses, and starting some secondary income streams in case of job loss or involuntary retirement. All of these actions will help your finances whether we’re in for a long stretch of market nastiness or things are about to come up roses. Invest conservatively as you get closer to retirement Your asset allocation is supposed to get less risky as you approach retirement, since that will protect your principal in case of a market downturn at the wrong time. If you’re planning to retire in the next few years, you can make sure any new contributions you make to your retirement accounts are invested in low-risk-lower-return assets, like bonds, treasury funds, CDs, or other cash equivalents. While these investments aren’t going to grow like the market normally would, the market also may not grow like it normally would. Stashing your contributions into these kinds of investments will offer you more peace of mind that the money will be waiting for your retirement. You still have time for market recovery Once you’re no longer in the flush of youth, you may assume you don’t have the luxury of investing for the long term. It’s not like a 60-year-old can afford to wait out the market like a 30-year-old can. But you can invest like you have decades ahead of you. Because you do! As you approach retirement and even during your retirement, you will keep a portion of your portfolio invested for the long haul. When you retire, you don’t need all of your money right away. You’ll keep a significant chunk invested for a longer time horizon, which helps ensure that your money will last your entire life. How to respond if you’re already retired By far, retirees are the most vulnerable to a protracted market plunge. Going back to work and/or waiting out the market weirdness is generally off the table for retirees, so it can feel like there are no good choices. But that doesn’t mean retirees are helpless in the face of larger economic forces. As with current workers and near-retirees, retirees can make plans now for the worst-case scenario. This might include: Reducing expenses: This is easier said than done, considering the price of eggs and everything else, but start thinking about ways to downsize your costs. Selling items: If you have a lifetime’s worth of home goods, collectibles, or Precious Moments figurines sitting around, you may want to start selling some off. This could be a good way to increase your retirement income without having to take money from your investments. Considering a reverse mortgage: Since your home is likely your most valuable asset, a reverse mortgage could be a decent way to access cash from something other than your investments. Don’t panic—plan Panic is the leading cause of selling at the market’s low point. Instead of selling off your investments to staunch the flow of tariff-induced anxiety, make a plan instead. If you assume the market may be bumpy for the foreseeable future, how will that change your financial decisions? Making investment choices based on that assumption will serve you well no matter what happens. In the best-case scenario, things will recover sooner than expected and this will be a footnote in your investing career. But even in the worst-case scenario, planning for volatility will help you make more rational decisions—and protect you from making your paper losses real by getting out of the market. It may be a bit of a grim sounding win-win, but it’s a heck of a lot better than crying into a pint of Chunky Monkey in the bathtub.

I’ve heard of people taking meetings from the backseat of their car, but what the Caro is proposing is pretty wild – turning your driver seat into a makeshift desk for quick in-car productivity. Designed as a stand that locks into your steering wheel and gives you a tabletop surface, the Caro Stand & Table lets you turn your driver seat into a makeshift table for pretty much anything. Work on emails, take quick meetings, watch a movie, get stuff done on road trips, create content on-the-go, heck you can even eat an entire meal on the stand’s tabletop accessory so you don’t accidentally get barbecue sauce on your pants because you kept your food on your lap. The idea, as bizarre as it sounds, is perfect for a whole variety of scenarios – especially for remote work, road trips, city commutes, on-the-go content creation, or just anyone who needs to quickly get stuff done between car rides whether it’s checking a document or checking your make-up. Think about it – your car seat is nothing more than a comfortable chair – so why not have a table along with it? That’s what the Caro Stand & Table sort of addresses. When parked, the stand slips right into your steering wheel, locking into place so you can dock a laptop with near-perfect precision and work from your seat without moving. Want to ditch the laptop for your Chipotle bowl and Jamba Juice shake? The Caro Stand has a four-part folding table that locks into place, giving you a perfect place to eat a meal, place a Nintendo Switch, or even work with a laptop and a mouse on the side. Necessary? Well, maybe. Genius? Absolutely. Designer: Yun Seok Shin (caomobi CEO) Click Here to Buy Now: $79 $119 (34% off). Hurry, only 174/200 left! Car desks have existed for a while now, but search the internet and you’ll see how childish they look. Designed to feel like the kind of tray attached to a child’s high chair, these are mostly designed for holding food and drinks – anything else feels weirdly out of place. The Caro, on the other hand, is designed differently. A minimal, foldable, slick device, the Caro opens up and locks into your steering wheel, giving you a very stable place to dock your laptop. The metal design feels intentional – it’s strong, dissipates heat, and allows the Caro to be very compact. You can dock your laptop in a variety of angles, or ditch the laptop entirely to dock a four-part table that turns your car into anything you want it to be – a dinner table, a vanity table, a place to get a quick nap – it’s entirely your choice. The Caro Stand is rather clever, with its tiny, yet hyper-adjustable form factor. Sort of like one of those laptop stands you’d use on your desk, the Caro Stand is optimized for your steering unit. It unfolds, locks into your steering wheel, and rests against the housing of the steering shaft. The base of the Caro Stand can then rest a laptop on it securely, going from anything as small as an 11″ tablet to a mammoth 18″ laptop. Why not just place the laptop on your lap instead? You could, but anyone who’s tried actually working that way will tell you that the Laptop (despite its name), isn’t really comfortable on the lap. Your neck bends too low, the laptop heats your thighs, and your eyes get strained because of the angle. It isn’t ergonomic at all – which is why most desks are at least a good 6-inches higher than the average lap. The Caro Stand does that too, stably balancing your laptop on the same level as your steering wheel. This is perfect because your neck is used to looking at the steering wheel or the speedometer behind it, and your hands are used to the angle of the wheel itself. Studs let you adjust your laptop, so you’re not limited to just one angle. Sit the laptop flat for the basic version, angle it once and you have an even more ergonomic setup with a lifted display, and angle it further and you can actually slide a keyboard in and work in ways that you wouldn’t even think possible with existing car desks. If you want to take your setup even further, the Caro Stand supports dual-monitor use, simply by allowing you to tilt your laptop upwards and fit an extra portable monitor in place (like the setup shown below). If the stand isn’t enough, the foldable table is Caro’s pièce de résistance. It locks into the stand and folds out into a versatile table that you can use for pretty much anything. The table’s four-part design means you can fold out half the table if you want a compact space at just 13.1″ wide. Open the panels further and it goes up to 23.4″, while being 8.2″ deep. The table sits perfectly flat and has a fairly matte surface that prevents items from sliding around. It also holds a respectable 33lbs (15kg) of weight, so you could easily use it to place your work setup, your lunch spread, or even vlogging gear in case you’re the kind to vlog from your car. Moreover, integrated supports in the center hinge let you angle-adjust your laptop even on the table, giving you a perfect combination of ergonomics and space efficiency. A fair warning: the Caro clearly isn’t meant to be used while the car’s on. It locks INTO the steering wheel, which nobody should do while the car’s running or not parked. It does, however, allow you to freely enter and exit your car without needing to disassemble your setup (so you can pop out for a quick break or grab an extra soda from the drive-thru restaurant). The Caro’s parts are designed to be compact and resilient, docking into the steering wheel with silicone pads that prevent the wheel’s leather from getting damaged, as well as around the laptop docking section to prevent scratches on your device. That being said, it fits most steering wheels and even yokes and should work with almost every car. For pretty much anyone who needs a quick workspace between home and the office, the Caro Stand & Table offers a great alternative to scrambling and struggling with your laptop or your lunch in your car. When all’s said and done, the entire thing folds into a compact format small enough to fit into your glove box. Pretty smart, no? Click Here to Buy Now: $79 $119 (34% off). Hurry, only 174/200 left!The post Weirdly Awesome Car Laptop Stand Turns Your Driver’s Seat Into The Most Versatile Workspace Ever first appeared on Yanko Design.

A new experiment suggests that the thalamus plays a key role in humans becoming consciously aware of stimuli their brain receives.

With over 108 million subscribers, WWE has truly colossal reach on YouTube. The company currently sits just behind PewDiePie at number 11 on the list of most-subscribed channels across the entire platform. When you’re at that level of popularity, there’s constant communication with YouTube about best practices, key viewership metrics, and the latest strategies for pulling in even more eyeballs. Last year, WWE decided to shake up (and split up) its YouTube strategy. The company introduced a new standalone channel called WWE Vault that became the new destination for classic live events, full matches, and rare archival footage — much of which fans are seeing for the very first time. For a company with a fanbase that’s never universally happy with anything, the Vault became an instant hit. Scroll down to the comments of any video, and fans heap praise upon the channel. For some, it has filled the void that was left when WWE Network went dark after WWE and Peacock announced their streaming partnership several years ago.The Vault also helps the flagship channel stay focused on modern WWE programming as the company continues to do big business with stars like Cody Rhodes, Roman Reigns, Gunther, and CM Punk. “The current product on our main channel seemed to be outpacing a lot of what we were doing from a historical perspective,” Steve Braband, who oversees WWE’s digital team, told me this week. “So a few of us sat around and said, ‘our historical content still means a lot to us on YouTube.’”Older programming still has its place on the main WWE channel; this month has featured a countdown of the 50 all-time greatest WrestleMania matches as part of the run-up to WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas this weekend. But the majority of it now gets forked off to the Vault. “It’s fun to see the internet wrestling community kind of try and figure out who the admin of the Vault is,” Braband said. In reality, it’s a group effort that involves many longtime employees. “We have a ton of knowledge within the building of clips from years in the past and clips that we haven’t unearthed,” he told me.“As much as people want to believe it’s one person just clipping and posting the best video they could find off a server, there’s a whole cohesive digital strategy to it.”Being able to stream some of yesteryear’s best pay-per-views (now “premium live events” in WWE parlance) for free on YouTube without a Peacock subscription is nice, but it’s the unpolished, never-before-seen clips that have kept lifelong fans coming back and hitting the notification bell. Not all that long ago, it would’ve been unthinkable for WWE to pull back the curtain to this degree. Maybe you’d catch some raw, unrehearsed moments during a DVD documentary — but now they’re popping up weekly on the WWE Vault channel. Full matches easily still get the most views, but it’s these random segments that prove so addictive.Easily the highlight among them is the “Found Footage” series. WWE’s team of archivists, researchers, and video editors sift through the company’s vast library to find backstage gems, fan signings, and even footage from un-televised live events. “There’s been a few examples of content that was filmed from house shows, which in the past we wouldn’t have shown,” Braband said. “Now we’re a little more flexible with some of that unseen footage going out on Vault.”In the clip above, you’ll see wrestlers playing on an arcade cabinet in between takes for Monday Night Raw’s TV opening. At the end, Bret “Hitman” Hart very casually offers Jerry Lawler — his longtime rival in WWE lore — a hookup for Cavaliers / Celtics tickets. Even if you stopped watching WWE decades ago, these shots of nostalgia might reel you back in. The Vault also includes “The Story Of” compilations that pack entire feuds and storylines into single videos, which means viewers don’t have to hop between a playlist to see everything.“We have people that really, really like to do it,” Braband said of wading through all that footage. “It’s a good team of people led by Ryan Murphy and John Clapp utilizing both content research and ultimately our video editing teams. As much as people want to believe it’s one person just clipping and posting the best video they could find off a server, there’s a whole cohesive digital strategy to it.”Like WWE’s primary YouTube channel, some videos posted to the Vault will eventually disappear. But others are meant to be more evergreen. As John Cena continues his final year of in-ring action for the company, a collection like the one below is guaranteed to rack up views. “The edit is really raw and it’s not a full in and out of each moment,” Braband said. “So we’re hoping that sits on the channel for a while as Cena does this last run.”Encouraged by Vault’s success, WWE has recently launched a dedicated channel for WCW, the wrestling promotion that it famously spent decades competing against and eventually acquired. Soon there will be another for ECW and its extremely brutal events. “It’s a clear destination telling fans where to go,” Braband said of the strategy. For now, the recipe is largely the same with new matches and full events posted weekly. But eventually more original programming might weave its way into these split-off WWE channels as the company makes every effort to reach fans wherever they are.See More:

Mark Hamill's Luke Skywalker showing up in The Mandalorian remains one of the biggest surprises in Star Wars history, and Rosario Dawson told us at Star Wars Celebration that she had no idea his cameo was happening until Hamill walked onto the set of The Book of Boba Fett.It's already been revealed that Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau had used Jedi Master Plo Koon as a decoy when trying to hide Luke's cameo, but during our chat they also helped share the hilarious story of how Dawson had one of the biggest surprises of her career because, by accident, no one told her the truth of what was going on.Speaking exclusively with IGN at Star Wars Celebration, Filoni, Favreau, and Dawson gave us all the details of the hilarious incident Concept art of Plo Koon made to throw off leaks. Image Credit: Disney & LucasfilmTo keep this megaton secret, the scripts involving Luke had him replaced by Plo Koon, and Dawson was no exception to this safeguard against potential leaks. She recalled reading about Plo Koon's arrival in the script for The Book of Boba Fett, and it confused her just as much as it would have for any Star Wars fan because we all saw the Jedi Master tragically meet his end in Revenge of the Sith. "I was like... I don't know... but people disappear and then they come back, so maybe it's possible?" Dawson said. "And then Mark Hamill was on set and surprised me and it was a whole thing. He even said, 'Plo Koon? That wouldn't even make sense!' and I'm like, 'I know it didn't make sense, but I still had to think it made sense because I got the script and everything!' Favreau and Filoni immediately shared their regret over not telling her sooner, saying, "That was bad on us!"Play"I think we assumed you'd gotten told the right information," Filoni added with a laugh. "We were in it so much.""There were two secrets we knew we had to keep on the show," Favreau said. "One was Grogu's reveal at the end of the first episode, and the other one was Luke Skywalker at the end of season two. We were biting our nails all the way the whole way through, and we somehow miraculously made it cleanly to both of those because everything else leaked. But, unfortunately, we didn't fill in our partner here."Dawson laughed it off as well, saying, "I love it, they know I can't be trusted."Adam Bankhurst is a writer for IGN. You can follow him on X/Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on TikTok.