Take a look at this dynamic music game with fascinating visuals, Future Vibe Check by Unwise, which combines automation, features of an industrial sim, and a rhythm musical game.The game is a strategy that tasks the player with building a factory that produces music instead of regular goods. Summoned by Infinity, players need to rebuild a reality and automate the Vibe. Every technical mechanism, like belts, inserters, mergers, and launchers, makes sounds, creating an industrial, automated symphony. The developers shared on Reddit that they tried to convey a cyberpunk meets yoga vibe with surreal objects, creating a unique atmosphere with appealing visuals.UnwiseUnwiseTo create the vibe, you dont need to be a musical specialist, as the smart musical engine powers the creative process, adjusting the sound. The game features entertaining mini-tasks during which players gather resources. But not everything is as effortless as it seems: as your musical industrial enterprise evolves, the Vibe Stealers will appear. However, you have plenty of options to protect your vibe at your disposal.UnwiseUnwiseUnwiseThe release date has not been revealed yet. In the meantime, the developers invite users to join Discord for the playtest.Wishlist the game on Steam anddont forget to join our 80 Level Talent platform and our new Discord server, follow us on Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Telegram, TikTok, and Threads, where we share breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.Source link The post Create an Industrial Symphony in This Upcoming Musical Factory Sim appeared first on CG SHARES.

Arcade1Up's Infinity Game Board is on sale for $50 off at multiple major retailers, including Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy. Normally $500, the Infinity Game Board is up for grabs for $450. Essentially an oversized tablet designed specifically for tabletop games, this well-designed platform includes over 50 digital board and card games and has built-in shop where you can purchase more from a steadily growing library that currently includes over 170 games and activities. Arcade1Up Infinity Game Board $450 (was $500) | $399 from third-party seller All of these deals are available directly from each retailer, but you'll notice that Walmart's listing defaults to a larger $100 discount. This deal is shipped and sold by a seller with only a few customer reviews. We generally don't recommend buying from third-party sellers unless they are more established with lots of positive user feedback. That said, if you feel like taking a chance and saving an additional 50 bucks, the seller offers free returns within 30 days, and you can even return it to your local Walmart. See at Amazon See at Walmart See at Best Buy The Infinity Game Board is a lap-sized device with a built-in 18.5-inch HD touchscreen and supports multiplayer for up to six users (number varies by game). There's even online play using its built-in Wi-Fi functionality, and with a full-HD resolution, you're getting a sharp picture for your sessions. Numerous all-time classics received custom makeovers specifically for the Game Table platform. For a full list of games, check out the official Infinity Game Table site. Here are some of the highlights:Continue Reading at GameSpot

A new update arrived to Black Ops 6 And Warzone on March 13, bringing Call of Duty's Clover Craze limited-time event. The update adds St. Patrick's Day-themed rewards and new options for loadout customization. New multiplayer game modes are also added, including the return of the Gun Game party mode. Clover Crave is a two-week event for both Black Ops 6 and Warzone. During the event, players can collect clovers across all modes. These clovers can be found in various ways, either obtained from eliminated players or zombies in Black Ops 6, or they can be found after opening supply crates in Warzone. These clovers are used to unlock reward milestones.The event rewards are mostly cosmetic items themed around St. Patrick's Day, but Clover Craze does include new customization for loadouts. You can find more on those in our full guide for unlocking and using Low Profile and Flyswatter in Season 2 Reloaded.Continue Reading at GameSpot

It's not long into Luffy and the gang's adventure to find the One Piece that they stumble into a group of Fishmen. However, while Arlong and his violent band of pirates made a pretty bad first impression, the truth is, fishmen in the world of One Piece are all different due to their personal beliefs, motivations, and outlooks on the world. While some may want nothing more than to inflict as much human suffering as possible, others are a lot more friendly and compassionate; needless to say, this is a species that is very much divided in its way of thinking.

Some NPCs in Monster Hunter Wilds are item traders, which do exactly what it sounds like but can be a great source of some of the rarer items in the game. As you progress through the main story, you'll unlock new regions and new villages, leading to new items traders that usually give out better things than those in the early regions.

Blobun is an indie puzzle game currently making waves on social media thanks to a joke setting that eliminates its lesbian content. The problem? Blobun protagonist Stephanie is gay, so flipping the so-called lesbian toggle in the options menu removes her from the game and renders it totally unplayable.It all started a while back with our friends game Buck Up and Drive, which features billboards with various fake advertisements, Blobun developer Jess told Polygon via email.[Ed. note: Pronoun usage may vary throughout this story as Jess is a plural collective consisting of multiple system members.]Guys, gals, and nonbinary palswe gottem Jess(Blobun out now!) (@cyansorcery.com) 2025-02-27T21:58:54.369ZJess encouraged Buck Up and Drive creator Fbio Fontes to add trans pride flags to the games possible advertisements. Fontes not only took Jess up on their suggestion, but also included a pride toggle in his games options. Rather than remove the LGBTQ+ content, however, the setting turned every billboard into a pride flag. Some people were angry about it, but on the whole everyone loved it and thought it was really funny, Jess said.When it came time to make Blobun, Jess took the toggle a step further by adding a lesbian toggle that removed the games gay main character, Stephanie, from the playing field, making even the simple early levels impossible to complete. The toggle was so popular in Blobuns Steam Next Fest demo that its effects were expanded to skip cutscenes, make it so that players cant view the credits, and remove Stephanies silhouette from the logo in the full game.Its been really funny so far seeing peoples reactions, whether it be confusion because they didnt realize what the toggle was doing, laughing because they figured out exactly what the toggle was doing, or (in rare instances so far) being upset about it, Jess said. It was really important to us though, especially in the current political climate, to put this in the game both to represent ourselves, our friends, and many people out there as well as to filter out the kind of people we dont want playing our games anyways.Some players have even asked Jess to have the toggle make Stephanie invisible rather than removing her altogether to make Blobun more difficult.It sounds like a fun challenge, and we may implement it some time in the future, Jess said.

Prytania Media owners Annie and Jeff Strain are suing NetEase for defamation, unfair trade practices, and interference with business relations, which the lawsuit says led to the destruction of the company and its multiple subsidiaries: Crop Circle Games, Possibility Space, Fang & Claw, and Dawon Entertainment. Each of these studios shut down in 2024, and the Strains laid off all their employees; in the case of both Crop Circle and Possibility Space, the Strains blamed the closure on staff allegedly leaking information about their studios to the press (and in particular, an unpublished Kotaku story about Possibility Space) and an inability to get funding.NetEase, for its part, was an investor in Crop Circle Games. Per documents filed in court, Prytania Media owned approximately 75% of that particular subsidiary, and NetEase owned 25%. Both Annie and Jeff Strain resigned from their positions within the studio when filing the lawsuit, leaving NetEase executive Chenglin Han the remaining board member. Technically, the lawsuit was also filed against Crop Circle bringing Han in as the remaining board member. Attorney Michael Magner, representing NetEase, said in accompanying documents that suing Crop Circle is effectively suing themselves to defeat diversity jurisdiction a tactic that is improper, fraudulent, and an inadequate basis to defeat diversity jurisdiction.The lawsuit, which Polygon has reviewed, was filed in January in Louisiana state court before NetEase filed for the case to be moved to federal court in March. In a letter sent to NetEase CEO Ding Lei in January, Steven Griffith, Jr., representing Prytania Media and the Strains, claimed that NetEase spread false and defamatory statements that caused the demise of Prytania Media. In the lawsuit, he said, theyre seeking $900 million in damages, triple an earlier $300 million valuation of the company. Griffith also alleged that NetEase, and in particular the NetEase employee Han, spread defamatory rumors that suggested Prytania Media was engaging in financial fraud. The Strains blame NetEase for any issues, suggesting that NetEase wasnt interested in complying with the United States Department of the Treasury regulations.I can share details in our next call, but the high level message is we want to keep away from the radar of [the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States] which can be quite tricky, Griffith attributed to a NetEase representative in the letter. Geopolitical stuff is already causing trouble to our business efforts in North America, truth to be told.Addressing the lawsuit, NetEase provided the following statement to Polygon:The allegations by Prytania Media and its founders Annie and Jeff Strain are wholly without merit, and we emphatically deny and will vigorously defend ourselves against them. Our record as a global gaming company speaks for itself, and we remain committed to conducting business with integrity. We are confident that the legal process will vindicate our position and shed light on the real reasons behind the demise of the Strains studios.The Strains say they urged NetEase to be compliant with U.S. law regarding its Crop Circle investment, but that NetEase representatives became increasingly hostile and aggressive. They assert that NetEase is hesitant to comply with these laws because itd have to identify owners and board members that are Members of the [Chinese Communist Party] and their position within the CCP, as well as the existence of its CCP party organizations, it [sic] members, and the control it exerts over NetEase. The lawsuit also claims NetEase dodged confirming its compliance in the U.S. because NetEase executives wanted to emigrate to the U.S., including Lei, who allegedly intended to move into a $29 million mansion purchased from Elon Musk.The lawsuit alleges that the rumors about financial mismanagement, which eventually spread to the press, were an attempt on the part of NetEase to silence Prytania Medias concerns. The Strains say they learned about these rumors when an investor, Transcend Fund, reached out with concerns of fraud and misuse of funds within Crop Circle Games. Andrew Sheppard, the managing director of the fund, allegedly confirmed that the report was from NetEase. From the lawsuit:NetEase told this gaming company that Crop Circle Games was investigating fraudulent activities on several bases. First, it was stated, incorrectly, that [f]unds had been moved from Crop Circle Games to other subsidiaries without prior consent of relevant stakeholders. Second, quarterly financials [were] potentially materially inaccurate. Lastly, NetEase asserted that many key appointments [had] been let go since the potential leak of the foregoing inaccurate information.The Strains further deny that key employees were let go because of the leak, but because of the financial state of the company. Transcend eventually requested full access to all financial and audit information. As the information spread, the Strains said, investors pulled out of discussions with both Crop Circle and Fang & Claw. One by one, each of Prytania Medias studios had to be closed, lawyers wrote in the suit. Ultimately, Prytania Media itself had to be shut down.Possibility Space was shut down in April 2024, preceded by Crop Circle. The other studios that were part of Prytania Media followed. There was not a single organization of any kind willing to invest in continued game development, Annie Strain wrote in a now-deleted post on the Crop Circle website. The dissolution of these studios came as a surprise to their employees, who were all laid off without notice, per reports.Prytania Media was founded by Annie and Jeff Strain in 2021, building off the success of Jeff Strains first studio, ArenaNet. ArenaNet was founded in 2000 and is best known for Guild Wars. Jeff Strain moved on to found Undead Labs in 2009 and release State of Decay. Undead Labs was acquired by Microsoft in 2018 and came under fire in 2022 for alleged sexism, bullying, and burnout, per a Kotaku report. Before founding these studios, Jeff Strain worked at Blizzard Entertainment on the likes of StarCraft, Diablo, and World of Warcraft. Prytania Media was sued in August 2024 by Omnipresent Group, an employee management and human resources company, for failing to pay the invoices rendered. In March 2024, Omnipresent terminated its contract with Prytania Media. The company owes Omnipresent $212,019.18; in court documents, Prytania Media accepted the judgment and settlement amount of $218,250. That was in October 2024, and by December 2024, Omnipresent filed documents saying Prytania Media did not meet the deadline for payment.The Strains lawsuit against NetEase has been assigned to a judge in federal court. Polygon has reached out to both sides for comment.Update: This story has been updated to include new details from a separate lawsuit against Prytania Media, as well as a statement from NetEase.

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.Practicing a new language can be fun, but premium language apps can be expensive. Babbel makes it easier with practical, bite-sized lessons designed for real-life use, focusing on conversations youd actually haveordering food, chatting with the locals, asking for directions (read PCMag's in-depth review of Babbel to learn moreand right now, its lifetime subscription is on sale for a huge discount. Normally $599, its currently 71% off on StackSocial, bringing the price down to $169.99, plus you can use the promo code LEARN40 to knock off another $40, dropping the final price to just $129.99. The sale ends March 23. Thats a one-time paymentno recurring fees, no monthly chargesfor lifetime access to all 14 languages (including French, German, Italian, and Spanish), making it cheaper than Babbels regular one-year plan at $215.40 (usually discounted).Babbels lessons take just 10 to 15 minutes, so you can easily squeeze your practice into a commute or coffee break. And, unlike other language-learning apps that rely on repetitive vocabulary drills or random gamified exercises, Babbel follows a structured, linguist-designed curriculum that progressively increases in difficulty, so you don't plateau after the basics (earning itself a place in PCMag's "The Best Language Learning Apps for 2025" roundup). Plus, its not just passive learningyou get writing, speaking, and listening exercises with speech recognition technology to fine-tune your pronunciation, creating a far more immersive experience. Of course, dedication is still key, and no app will make you fluent overnight, but if youre willing to put in the effort, this Babbel lifetime subscription gives you the tools to succeedwithout the burden of ongoing costs.

Just 25 years ago, the disease of measles was declared to have been eliminated from the U.S. Cases were sometimes imported from overseas, from people who traveled from Europe, Africa, or Asia. But not until this year did we have a measles death on U.S. soil; and not until this year have we had a notorious anti-vaxxer as the head of our Department of Health and Human Services.That department head, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has sorta-kinda acknowledged that vaccines have a role in preventing measles. This opinion piece that appeared under his name at Fox News carefully weaseled around the needed vaccine messages, saying that parents should consult with their healthcare providers to understand their options about the vaccine, and that Good nutrition remains a best defense against most chronic and infectious illnesses. Kennedy previously led an anti-vaccine propaganda organization that spread misinformation so egregious it got kicked off of Facebook.Contrast his messaging with the World Health Organization, which is able to lay it out more plainly: Being vaccinated is the best way to prevent getting sick with measles or spreading it to other people. So far, the CDCs website still has accurate information about measles, including yet another plain statement that RFK, Jr. couldnt bring himself to say: The best protection against measles is measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine.While public health authorities in Texas and elsewhere are doing their best to contain the latest outbreaks, RFK Jr. is going on Fox News talking up the "benefits" of measles infection and making the vaccine sound as bad as the disease. So, with the people in charge of the measles response sending mixed messages, I want to make sure the correct information is getting out there. So heres what you should know about measles and the measles vaccine.The MMR or MMRV vaccines are the best protection against measlesThis is the absolute first and best thing to know: The measles vaccine protects you against measles. It is the best protection we have against measles, as both the CDC and WHO will openly tell you. The World Health Organization estimates that measles vaccination saved 60 million lives worldwide between 2000-2023. Most measles deaths were among children under 5 who were not vaccinated, or who didnt get the two recommended doses on schedule.There are two types of measles vaccine available: the MMR vaccine that provides protection against measles, mumps, and rubella; and the MMRV vaccine that covers those three plus varicella, better known as chicken pox.The recommended schedule for MMR or MMRV vaccination is to get the first dose at an age of 12 to 15 months, and the second dose at age 4 to 6 years. Infants who are traveling or who live in a place with a measles outbreak can get a dose at age 6 months, but this protection isnt expected to last long, so they will still need two more doses on the usual schedule. Adults and older children can also get a two-dose series (four weeks apart) if they didn't get it as kids or don't remember whether they got it.Measles is one of the most contagious diseases known, and can be deadlyIs it worth vaccinating against measles? Yes, very much so. Anti-vaxxers like to point out that measles used to be a common childhood illness, which is true. But that doesnt mean its harmless. Before vaccination was common, according to a 2013 report from the CDCs vaccine advisory board, there were 500,000 cases of measles in the U.S. in a typical year. Those resulted in 500 deaths, 48,000 hospitalizations, and 1,000 cases of permanent brain damage from encephalitis.Measles is also horrendously contagious, perhaps the most contagious human disease known. For a comparison, the average person with the flu will give it to 1.3 other people. For ebola, that number is 1.8. For smallpox, before we eradicated it through vaccination, it was 3.5 to 6. Chickenpox is near the top of the list, with each sick person giving it to 10 to 12 others. But measles beats even that, spreading to 12 to 18 people, on average. Im getting my numbers from this chart on Wikipedia. The exact number for each outbreak can depend on the specifics of the time and place it occurs, but these statistics are pretty widely agreed upon.Measles is so contagious that, after an infected person leaves a room, the air and surfaces in that room can infect people for the next two hours. This is why just avoiding sick people isnt enough, and why authorities announce where and when a person with measles was known to be in public, like two Philadelphia childrens hospital locations on March 7 and 10. Anybody who visited those places at those times is being told to find out if they are protected from measles and to talk to their healthcare provider about getting the vaccine if appropriate.The measles disease is so, so much worse than the vaccineKennedy repeated a common and wrong anti-vaxxer talking point when he said that the measles vaccine causes all the same illnesses as measles. No, the vaccine does not give you measles. Even if he meant all the same symptoms, its still not true.He specifically called out encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain that can lead to death or brain damage. The measles vaccine causes 1-2 cases of encephalitis per one million children vaccinated. Measles, on the other hand, causes encephalitis in 1-3 out of every thousand children who get the disease, according to Encephalitis International. In other words, measles the disease has 1,000 times greater encephalitis risk compared to the vaccine.Kennedy also claimed that the measles vaccine cause[s] deaths every year, which isnt true. The Infectious Disease Society of America says that There have been no deaths shown to be related to the MMR vaccine in healthy people. There have been a very few deaths from vaccine side effects in children who were immunocompromised, which is why the first step in getting a vaccine is talking to a healthcare professional who can determine whether its safe for you to get the vaccine.The vaccine can be given after youre exposed to the measles virusThe best time to get an MMR vaccine is when youre young, at 12-15 months and 4-6 years old. The second best time, if youve just been exposed to measles, is now. A dose of the vaccine can be given within 72 hours of being exposed to the virus to provide last-minute protection.If you think you need the vaccine for this reason, ask your doctor. There is another option, which is to get a dose of immunoglobulin instead. It has to be one or the other, not both; the globulin can cancel out the vaccine.Vaccine immunity can fade, but not as much as RFK Jr thinksAfter one dose of the MMR vaccine, you have a 93% chance of being protected against measles. After both recommended doses, that increases to 97%. This is exactly why two doses are recommended.Its probably true that immunity from a measles infection lasts longer than from the vaccine, but the vaccine still gives lifelong protection to the vast majority of people who got their two doses. Kennedy said that vaccinated people lose 4.5% of their immunity each year. I dont know where he got that number, but I did find a study that postulated a 0.04% waning per yearthats about 100 times less than the number he cited.For the love of god, you do not want natural immunityIn the 1950s and earlier, natural immunityfrom getting infectedwas the only measles immunity we had. Everybody still got the disease, because children without any measles immunity were constantly being born. Eventually theyd encounter the virus, and get sick. As I discussed above, this was fine for most kids and catastrophic for some. Read Roald Dahls letter about losing his daughter to measles, if you havent already. She was healthy, and then she had a routine case of measles, and then she felt all sleepy one day, and shortly afterward, she was dead.The only way you get natural immunity is by rolling those dice. One child in every 1,000 died of measles. The other 999 carry that immunity with them for life, but only because they were lucky. The point of a vaccine is to give you the immunity without the risk of complications and death.Which means, sorry, no measles parties. Or, as the Texas health department puts it, No! DSHS strongly advises against intentionally exposing anyone to infectious diseases like measles. As they correctly point out, youd be risking severe complications and death for the attendees of the party, you cant predict how severe the symptoms will be, and youre creating a bunch of walking measles vectors who can then transmit the virus to the elderly, unvaccinated, and immunocompromised. Vaccination, on the other hand, provides protection for 97% of those who receive the vaccine, with far smaller risks of complications.How to know if you need a measles vaccineWhen I said that everybody used to get measles as a child, thats true enough that the CDC and other health authorities rely on that fact to know who is immune. If you were born before 1957meaning you are 69 or older in 2025you are assumed to have already survived a bout of measles.You can also assume you are immune if you have medical records saying that you got two doses of the measles vaccine, or that you had a laboratory-confirmed case of measles, or that you have had a blood test that confirms your immunity.If you dont remember whether you had the vaccine, you can get your immunity tested, but thats not necessary. As the CDC states: There's no harm in getting another dose if you may already be immune to measles, mumps, or rubella.If you are in Texas, where the largest measles outbreak is currently occurring, this page from Texas Health and Human Services has information on staying safe, including where to get an MMR vaccine in Texas.