The fires, which the police said were intentionally set, are the latest in a series of attacks against Elon Musks company.

Opera has announced that its browser is now equipped with Browser Operator, a built-in AI agent that can help users with a variety of tasks. For example, if an Opera user wants help buying a large pack of socks in a certain color or booking a flight, the user can ask Browser Operator can do it.The video below shows how it works:Browser Operator is currently classified as a preview version, indicating there might still be some bugs to work out.In addition to Browser Operator, Opera also plans to invest in additional AI features in the near future.

In a new appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live," Ben Stiller tells the story of how he tried to get former President Barack Obama to do voice work on the season two premiere of "Severance." But, let me be clear he didn't take Stiller up on the offer.An animated Lumon Industries voiced by Keanu ReevesIn the season two premiere, a short animated section features a talking Lumon Industries building. While he went uncredited, Stiller confirms that the voice belonged to Keanu Reeves.However, that wasn't the first person he had in mind for the role. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Apple is expected to upgrade its MacBook Air on Wednesday, though like with the iPad Air and new iPad, the update will probably be just a spec bump.MacBook Air M3On Tuesday, Apple introduced the new M3 iPad Air. It also announced a new base-model iPad, upgraded with double the base storage and the A16 chip.Now, it looks like we could see another upgrade to Apple's lineup as soon as Wednesday the M4 MacBook Air. The prediction comes from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, who posted to X on Tuesday. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

The gap between academia and professional practice has been analyzed in a new RAND Corporation study commissioned jointly by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), and Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA).The new Building Impact report, which offers a follow-up to theBuilding Community report (aka the 'Boyer Report') from almost thirty years ago, focuses on proposing changes that will improve the relationship between both areas that consider from program accreditation to professional licensure. AIA President Evelyn Lee says this will, in the end, "strengthen and diversify the architecture pipeline."Chief among the findings is that the costs and requirements of an architectural degree program and post-graduation licensure studies are creating barriers that have, for years, underpinned a pronounced attrition among underrepresented groups.Towards this end, the AIA says, "establishing more acces...

Astro Bot creative director Nicolas Doucet has revealed that the platforming titles VIP Bot stages were originally planned to be done at a much smaller stage. In an interview with Japanese publication Famitsu (translation via Genki), Doucet revealed that those VIP Bot stages were conceived as mini stages rather than being full on stages.The [VIP Stage] was initially thought of as a mini-stage, but it got bigger and bigger, said Doucet (translated via Firefox). Its not mini at all.Ultimately, these VIP Stages ended up being widely celebrated by Astro Bot players, since they had a large part in celebrating the history of PlayStation by exploring classic franchises through the lens of the cheerful platformer. Some of the games referenced by these stages include Ape Escape through the Apes on the Loose stage, God of War through the Bot of War stage, and even PSP platformer Poco Loco through the Going Loco stage.Since its PS5 release back in September 2024, Astro Bot has been incredibly successful for Sony. The company revealed back in November that the game had sold more than 1.5 million copies at the time. Along with being a commercial success, Astro Bot was also critically acclaimed, ending up as the highest rated game of 2024 on Metacritic.Since then, Astro Bot has continued to get support through free updates that brought with them not only new stages, but also celebratory events with their own themed stages. For example, December saw the release of the Winter Wonder level, which had players celebrate Christmas by finding shiny presents.Back in February, Sony expressed an interest in bringing more family-oriented games to PlayStation. President Hiroki Totoki spoke during an earnings call that the success of Astro Bot would be worth exploring more family-friendly games to PlayStation.At The Game Awards 2024, our first-party title Astro Bot won four categories, including Game of the Year and Best Family Game the most of any title, said Totoki. He also celebrated the success of co-op action game Helldivers 2.In addition, the live service game Helldivers 2, which was released in February last year, won Best Ongoing Game and Best Multiplayer Game awards, he said. The fact that titles in genres we are planning to expand in the future, including titles for families and live service games, have received these awards is a major stride towards building a broad title portfolio.February also brought an update to Astro Bot that features five new levels (released on a weekly basis), as well as support for the souped up hardware of the PS5 Pro. Among the levels released in the update was Tick-Tock Shock, which was originally revealed thanks to a speedrunning tournament earlier this year.Astro Bot Creative Director Nicolas Doucet said that the special VIP Bot stages in Astro Bot were originally just supposed to be mini stages!He said the plan at the start was to have them as small stages but they turned out to be not mini at all!https://t.co/pDJIUguRcH pic.twitter.com/gBvxFIQW4M Genki (@Genki_JPN) March 3, 2025

The Sinking City 2, Frogwares sequel to the 2019 survival horror title, doesnt have a release date, but its Kickstarter campaign will begin on March 6th. While the crowdfunding goal has yet to be revealed, the developer promises unique pledge awards, including the studios first-ever physical Limited and Collectors Editions.Based on the images, backers who pledge enough for the latter will receive a SteelBook, a collectors box, a figure, what appears to be a vinyl record, a hardcover art book, stickers, a medallion, and more. Theres even some art of Cthulhu with a rubber ducky in the bath.Frogwares also promises exclusive first looks at new environments, creatures, and gameplay features during development. Fans can also participate in challenges and community events for hidden secrets before launch.The Sinking City 2 is coming to Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC in 2025. While exploration and battling cosmic horrors like the Deep Ones is the name of the game, youll also investigate and gather clues. Its developed on Unreal Engine 5, utilizing MetaHuman, Lumen GI, and more.

Monster Hunter Wilds shatters sales records in just three short days, but what are the pros and cons of the RE engine it runs on?Read More

Match-3 devs blasted for "incredibly harmful" stereotypes and gender-based violence in advertisementsWhilst Microfun pulled the ads concerned, Nanobit and Magic Tavern ads remain onlineImage credit: Magic Tavern News by Vikki Blake Contributor Published on March 4, 2025 Mobile game developers Microfun, Nanobit, and Magic Tavern have been accused of reinforcing harmful stereotypes and gender-based violence in a new report about mobile game advertising.In a Sky News report, Project Makeover (Magic Tavern), Gossip Harbor (Microfun), and Hollywood Story (Nanobit) were singled out for perpetuating "incredibly harmful" misogynistic tropes to sell their match-3 puzzle games in the UK.The advertisement for Project Makeover portrayed a man dumping a woman's deceased parent's ashes on her head to force her into the salon for a makeover.Gossip Harbor shows a man physically assaulting his partner and daughter, prompting the pop-up choice "Leave or Endure," whilst Hollywood Story depicts a conventionally unattractive woman piercing a condom to trap a man into a relationship with her.Using data from Similarweb and AppMagic, Sky calculates that the three games combined generated 67.7 million downloads last year, making a global revenue of $367 million through in-app purchases.Sky reports this is "just some of many examples Sky News has seen of mobile games companies using themes of domestic abuse, violence, and the humiliation of women to get downloads, when the games themselves - simple puzzle apps - bear little relation to the narratives presented in the adverts.""It's incredibly harmful if you're seeing these things even subconsciously, if you're seeing them actively, you're engaging them when you're downloading these games," said Eliza Hatch, who runs Cheer Up Luv, an anti-public harassment campaign. "What is that encouraging?""[Our] purpose is to entertain safely and responsibly. In this case, we clearly missed the mark, and we apologise sincerely for any distress that our ads may have caused," Microfun said in a statement. "We have removed the ads in question. They are no longer running, and we have made every effort to ensure that they remain unavailable to view."We have been reviewing our policies and procedures, and we continue to do so, in order to ensure that our content is appropriate."Hollywood Story developer Naobit said: "We understand your concerns, but reiterate that our advertising materials are intended to be lighthearted, fictional scenarios that do not promote harmful stereotypes or gender-based violence."While we regret any offence inadvertently caused, we remain confident that our ads comply with the relevant regulations."Magic Tavern declined to comment at all.The Advertising Standards Authority is aware of the advertising campaigns.In September 2022, the Advertising Standards Authority took action against several mobile game adverts, deeming them likely to cause "serious or widespread offence."Three mobile games were flagged to the ASA for featuring harmful gender stereotypes in promotional material. One Twitter advert for Refantasia: Charm and Conquer, from Chinese studio Oasis Games, was reported as "sexist," and was described as displaying an "anime-style young woman in a cage."

Jagex appoints new CEO Jon BellamyPresent CEO, Phil Mansell, steps down after eight years News by Vikki Blake Contributor Published on March 4, 2025 Jagex has appointed Jon Bellamy as its new CEO.Phil Mansell - who has run Jagex since 2017 - will remain with the business "for a period of time to ensure a smooth transition."Bellamy has served on Jagex's board since 2024 and brings experience from Huuuge Games, as well as prior executive roles at Jagex."On behalf of the board, I want to sincerely thank Phil for his leadership and contributions to Jagex over the past 14 years," said Marc Allera, Jagex chairman."Under Phils leadership, Jagex has undergone significant transformation, growing into the Company it is today while always staying true to its player-centric focus with an all-time record number of Old School RuneScape players in Q4- 2024. We all wish him the very best and know he will go on to do great things in the future."This is an incredibly exciting time for the company as we continue to offer a world-class gaming experience and introduce new content, including the highly anticipated Sailing skill to Old School RuneScape in 2025. Were confident that under Jons leadership, the business will continue to provide players the most fulfilling and engaging gaming experiences possible."Last February, CVC Capital Partners and Haveli Investments confirmed an agreement to purchase RuneScape developer Jagex from Carlyle Group.Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed, but a report that same week suggested CVC was planning to spend 900 million on the purchase.