Wizards of the Coast is shutting down the online servers for Dungeons & Dragons: Dark Alliance early next year. According to the updated store listings, the game will no longer be available for purchase and its servers will go down for good on February 24, 2025. "The base game and all DLC are still available to play in offline single player by anyone who currently owns it," the notice from the company adds.Dark Alliance launched in 2021 with a single-player mode and an option for up to four-player co-op. It marked the first time WotC had published a video game from the hugely popular D&D universe. The project was meant to follow in the lineage of the Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance games that were released in the 2000s, but the title made by Tuque Games didn't receive the same high praise as those predecessors. For some context, Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance has an 87 score on Metacritic and Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance 2 has a 78. Dungeons & Dragons: Dark Alliance sits down at a decidedly middling 53.At least Larian Studios' excellent Baldur's Gate 3 is still thriving and getting new patches for your D&D-inspired video game needs.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/dungeons--dragons-dark-alliance-servers-will-shut-down-in-february-233454799.html?src=rss

Grubhub has agreed to pay $25 million to settle charges from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Illinois Attorney General. The company was accused of a laundry list of sketchy behavior, including misleading customers about delivery charges, deceiving delivery drivers about income and listing restaurants on the platform without consent. Last month, the food delivery startup Wonder bought Grubhub for one-tenth of what it was worth during the pandemic.Under the proposed settlement, Grubhub has to make changes to remedy the problems. The requirements read like a stop doing that list, one per charge. This includes notifying customers of full delivery costs, being honest with drivers about pay and listing restaurants only with their consent.The FTC says Grubhub, to appear more robust than it was, added as many as 325,000 unaffiliated restaurants to the platform without permission since at least 2019. Customers ordering from those businesses discovered added fees and numerous ordering problems. Meanwhile, the agency says the restaurants bore the brunt of diners ire, leading to damaged reputations and lost money.The company also allegedly added junk fees after advertising to customers that theyd pay a low-cost, flat rate for deliveries. The FTC says Grubhub labeled them service fees or small order fees, but they were simply delivery fees under another name. The agency quotes a former Grubhub executive as calling it a pricing shell game.The FTC also accused the company of blocking customers accounts with large gift card balances, leaving them no way to regain access. The agency said diners who complained to the company either werent told their accounts were blocked or werent given any meaningful way to contest the ban.The false pay allegations include advertising that Grubhub drivers could make up to $40 hourly in the New York area. In reality, the median driver pay in that area was around $10 hourly and only 0.1 percent of drivers are said to have made the advertised rate. And in Chicago, an ad promised earnings of up to $26 hourly when the median was $11.Grubhub denies the allegations but says it settled to put the matter behind it. At Grubhub, were committed to transparency so that every single day diners, restaurants and drivers can make well-informed choices to do business with us, the company wrote in a statement. While we categorically deny the allegations made by the FTC, many of which are wrong, misleading or no longer applicable to our business, we believe settling this matter is in the best interest of Grubhub and allows us to move forward.Our investigation found that Grubhub tricked its customers, deceived its drivers, and unfairly damaged the reputation and revenues of restaurants that did not partner with Grubhub all in order to drive scale and accelerate growth, FTC Chair Lina M. Khan wrote in a statement. Todays action holds Grubhub to account, putting an end to these illegal practices and securing nearly $25 million for the people cheated by Grubhubs tactics. There is no gig platform exemption to the laws on the books.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/grubhub-settles-with-the-ftc-over-adding-restaurants-without-their-consent-221006330.html?src=rss

Looking for NYT Strands answers and hints? Here's all you need to know to solve today's game, including the spangram.

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.

Looking for Quordle clues? We can help. Plus get the answers to Quordle today and past solutions.

Despite Nvidia's recent fall, its stock is still up more than 160% for the year. Broadcom has risen more than 120% in the same time frame.

The company's new valuation is up from $43 billion in 2023.

Dexcom is bringing generative AI to Stelo users, starting with weekly personalized reports about their glucose

A new video breakdown is out!The post Watch Rodeos VFX breakdown for s2 of The Rings of Power appeared first on befores & afters.

From the Academy:Ten films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 97th Academy Awards. The Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist. All members of the Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 11, 2025. Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:Alien: RomulusBetter ManCivil WarDeadpool & WolverineDune: Part TwoGladiator IIKingdom of the Planet of the ApesMufasa: The Lion KingTwistersWickedNominations voting begins on Wednesday, January 8, 2025, and concludes on Sunday, January 12, 2025.Nominations for the 97th Academy Awards will be announced on Friday, January 17, 2025.The 97th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 2, 2025, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood and will be televised live on ABC, streamed live on Hulu and airs live in more than 200 territories worldwide.The post Heres the 10 films that will go to the VFX Bake-off in early 2025 appeared first on befores & afters.