A solar explosion called a coronal mass ejection is poised to graze Earth on Friday or Saturday (Jan. 24 or Jan. 25), potentially triggering colorful auroras over the northern U.S.

UPD: Starbreeze has confirmed to 80 Level that the layoffs did take place, affecting no more than 10 people who, according to the studio, were not assigned to any specific projects, suggesting that the layoffs are unlikely to affect the games the company currently has in the works.We can confirm that we did a number of reductions in December involving fewer than 10 roles in total, as part of our regular efforts of aligning resources with all of our projects current and future needs, a Starbreeze representative told us. As such, they were not tied to any specific project.Original article: It seems like the consequences of Payday 3, the ill-fated 2023 installment of the iconic crime simulator franchise, continue to haunt its developer Starbreeze Studios to this day, with the company quietly firing a number of developers in December 2024 a move that has only recently come to public attention.StarbreezeAccording to a LinkedIn post shared by Starbreezes former Creative Director, Tancred Dyke-Wells, several employees, including Dyke-Wells himself, were laid off last December. The post mentioned that the cuts affected the companys UK and Sweden offices, leaving the fate of the Barcelona and Paris branches up in the air.In November 2024, Starbreeze had reported having around 200 developers, and with that number still listed on their website and no public announcements about the layoffs on their social media or the websites News section, its unclear how many of the studios employees had their Christmas ruined last year. It is also unknown how the layoffs might affect Project Baxter, a cooperative multiplayer adventure game based on the Dungeons & Dragons franchise that Starbreeze is developing in collaboration with Wizards of the Coast.Although Dyke-Wells didnt explicitly state the reason for the terminations, its reasonable to assume that the failure of Payday 3 played a significant role. Since its launch, the game has been plagued with problems, earning it the label of disastrous from Starbreezes Lead Producer Andreas Penniger and even resulting in the dismissal of the studios CEO, Tobias Sjgren.In November, it was reported that Starbreeze had reduced the size of the team working on Payday 3, with no mention of layoffs, however, as we now see, the cuts did indeed come just a month later. As it stands, Payday 3 is among the AAA titles that have failed both commercially and critically, bringing in far less revenue than its creators expected and earning a less-than-stellar 3.2/10 rating, with daily player counts hovering around a mere thousand or fewer.For comparison, Payday 2 continues to attract tens of thousands of players daily, sitting at an impressive 31,000 at the time of writing despite turning 12 years old this year.80 Level has reached out to Starbreeze for confirmation and will provide an update if a response is received.Dont forget to join our80 Level Talent platformand ournew Discord server, follow us onInstagram,Twitter,LinkedIn,Telegram,TikTok, andThreads,where we share breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.Source link The post Payday Developer Starbreeze Quietly Fired a Number of Developers in December appeared first on CG SHARES.

As the latest installment in one of the best shooter franchises of all time, Doom: The Dark Ages seemed like a good candidate for multiplayer options. But as part of today's Xbox Developer Direct, Bethesda and id Software have revealed that there will be no multiplayer in The Dark Ages. Regardless, it sounds like Doom fans are getting the best possible game in return for that tradeoff.As reported by Eurogamer, Doom: The Dark Ages executive producer Marty Stratton confirmed that the new game is laser-focused on creating an "epic campaign.""We made that decision early so we could really just go all-in on the campaign," said Stratton. "It's our largest, most expansive, most epic campaign ever, and we're just really happy with the decision."Continue Reading at GameSpot

Doom: The Dark Ages Standard Edition $70 Preorder at Best Buy Preorder at Target Get deal at Fanatical (PC) Doom: The Dark Ages Premium Edition $100 Preorder at Best Buy Preorder at Target Get deal at Fanatical (PC) Doom: The Dark Ages Collector's Bundle $200 Preorder at PlayStation Direct (PS5) Preorder at Microsoft (Xbox) Preorder at Bethesda (All) Doom: The Dark Ages is nearly here. The follow-up to Doom Eternal launches on Xbox Series X|S, Game Pass, PS5, and PC on May 15. Preorders for the game are now available, including a massive Collector's Bundle that includes physical collectibles, extra in-game content, and more. Preorders also include bonus in-game skins and even early access to the game. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate 3-Month Code $30.59 (was $50) with promo code SAVETEN (Jan. 23) See at Woot See at Amazon Doom: The Dark Ages Preorder BonusDoom: The Dark Ages preorder bonusesPreordering any version of Doom: The Dark Ages gets you the Void Slayer in-game skin as a free bonus.Additionally, preordering the Premium or Collector's Editions also gets you up to 2-day early access to the full single-player campaign starting May 13.Continue Reading at GameSpot

Diablo 4 players have been eagerly awaiting the start of Season 7 due to a number of features being added to the game, including the Armory. The Armory allows players to easily switch between loadouts, enabling playstyles that have "bossing builds" and "farming builds" on the same character. However, as with all new systems, a small learning curve is to be expected.

Grenades find their mark and more accidental wins in Rainbow Six Siege.

Important ChangesIntroduced LuminousIntensity (expressed in candela) and Illumination (expressed in lux) classes.Replaced Spot/Point lights specular and diffuse intensities with a single LuminousIntensity value.Replaced Directional lights specular and diffuse intensities with a single Illumination value.The specular, diffuse, sheen, clearcoat, and scattering models are now fully replaceable.The default lighting model is now glTF's.

Hot on the heels of yesterdays news that Nosferatu director Robert Eggers will follow his vampire movie with a 13-century werewolf thriller called Werwulf, and todays news that Nosferatu is in the running for four Academy Awards, the Eggers news drops keeps landing: Deadline reports that Eggers has signed a deal to direct a sequel to Jim Hensons 1986 fantasy Labyrinth. To anyone who saw Nosferatu (or the earlier news that Eggers was in talks on a Labyrinth project), that maybe isnt the biggest possible surprise all the blood, perverse monster-sex, and full-frontal male nudity in Nosferatu aside, there are elements in the script that feel surprisingly Labyrinth-esque, like the revelation that Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) maybe summoned up her personal destructive monster Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgrd) out of unformed adolescent desire, and gave him power over her that she has to take back in order to survive. The conversation between Orlok and Ellen, where he insists that she summoned him, and theyre now fated for each other, so she needs to surrender to him, feels like a darker mirror of the conversation the Goblin King Jareth (David Bowie) and his teenage summoner/victim Sarah (Jennifer Connelly) have at the end of Labyrinth, where he demands her fear and love, and offers himself as her slave in return.A darker, more adult take on Labyrinth might be a natural fit for audiences that grew up with the movie.The film has a surprisingly strong strain of lust and psychosexual tension for a Jim Henson project. And a sequel, with Connelly reprising her role and facing Jareth in adulthood, could be an interesting thread to pull on. (Or not, given how Beetlejuice Beetlejuice tossed away its similarly intriguing reunion between a supernatural stalker and the adult woman he chased around when she was a teenager.)What exactly the sequel would entail is unclear. The Deadline report says theres no plot summary or cast information, though it lists Jim Hensons children Brian Henson (puppeteer coordinator and the voice of Hoggle in the original Labyrinth) and Lisa Henson (CEO of The Jim Henson Company) as producers, and says Eggers and his writing partner Sjn (The Northman) will co-write the script.The real problem with a direct sequel, though, is who could possibly replace David Bowie as Jareth? As much as the movie revolves around the Henson workshops puppets and Brian Frouds creature designs, Bowie was the movies breakout star. Fans memories of and conversations about the film (and their fan art, cosplay, and even annual masquerade ball) have centered on him for decades, and even the spin-off comic series Labyrinth: Coronation focused on his backstory. The 1986 Labyrinth is also built around Bowie performing original songs he wrote for the film.Its hard to imagine any modern rock star nailing the odd, slippery mixture of sexual menace, jovial humor, casual physicality, and sheer alien weirdness that Bowie brought to the role. Billy Porter might come closest in terms of persona and cultural positioning; Tilda Swinton might come closest in terms of otherworldly looks. But who has the star power to walk onto a set and replace David Bowie? If youve got any suggestions, spit them out while you can Eggers and the Hensons are probably having the same conversation right now.

Critical Role has announced Vox Machina: Stories Untold, an upcoming anthology of short stories narrated by characters from the actual plays flagship first campaign. Over the last decade, the Dungeons & Dragons livestream has evolved from a single weekly game into a media empire that encompasses a proprietary streaming service, animated television shows on Amazon Prime, a series of novels and comics, and a tabletop game publishing company.While the main campaign along with the subsequent animated show and prequel comics focused on the core cast of Vox Machina, the anthology will look at the land of Exandria through the perspective of the storys supporting characters whose lives have intersected with the band of adventurers. Fair warning, there are spoilers ahead for those who havent seen the full campaign.One of the stories within the anthology, written by Critical Role guest star and actual play powerhouse Aabria Iyengar, centers on Shaun Gilmore, the magical merchant and flirtatious friend to the party, as he reflects on the life he has chosen. Another, by NYT bestselling author Rory Power, follows green dragon Raishan as she descends into madness while plotting the release of Thordak, the Cinder King. Also included in the collection is a story by young adult author Sarah Glen Marsh that follows the unofficial Vox Machina mascot, Trinket the Wonder Bear, as he accompanies the descendants of Vox Machina on their first adventure.Vox Machina: Stories Untold will also include seven other short tales about characters like Scanlan Shorthalts daughter Kaylie, Taryon Darringtons automaton Doty, and Grogs antagonistic goliath uncle Kevdak. With a forward by Critical Role cast member Liam OBrien, other contributors to the anthology include Jess Barber, Martin Cahill, Rebecca Coffindaffer, Sam Maggs, Nibedita Sen, Izzy Wasserstein, and Kendra Wells.The anthology will be available to the public on March 4 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the franchise. Vox Machina: Stories Untold is currently available for presale for $30 through Penguin Random House.

sEMG is the new technology innovation redefining interaction with all types of digital devicesContinue reading on UX Collective