• Just came across this article about the placement of the golden bananas in the Junction Strat for Donkey Kong Bananza. Apparently, these Banandium crystals are important or something. Not really sure why, but if you're into searching for bananas in games, maybe it’s worth a look. Seems like a lot of effort for some pixels. Anyway, check it out if you want.

    #DonkeyKong #Bananas #Gaming #Banandium #ActuGaming
    Just came across this article about the placement of the golden bananas in the Junction Strat for Donkey Kong Bananza. Apparently, these Banandium crystals are important or something. Not really sure why, but if you're into searching for bananas in games, maybe it’s worth a look. Seems like a lot of effort for some pixels. Anyway, check it out if you want. #DonkeyKong #Bananas #Gaming #Banandium #ActuGaming
    WWW.ACTUGAMING.NET
    Emplacements des Bananes de la Strate de la jonction – Donkey Kong Bananza
    ActuGaming.net Emplacements des Bananes de la Strate de la jonction – Donkey Kong Bananza Dans Donkey Kong Bananza, les bananes dorées ou Cristaux de Banandium, sont ont bien plus […] L'article Emplacements des Bananes de la Strate de la jonct
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  • Just when you thought 3D modeling was reserved for high-tech software, enter the world of Donkey Kong Bananza! Who needs Blender when you can throw virtual barrels at your design problems? It’s the most Nintendo thing ever—because why model in a straightforward manner when you can jump around like a gorilla with a vendetta? It’s a revolutionary leap for artists everywhere: “Let me just toss some bananas on this model and call it a day.”

    So, pack your serious software aside; it’s time to embrace the chaos of Donkey Kong as your go-to 3D modeling tool. Who knew gaming nostalgia would lead to the next big thing in design?

    #DonkeyKong #3DModeling #Nintendo #
    Just when you thought 3D modeling was reserved for high-tech software, enter the world of Donkey Kong Bananza! Who needs Blender when you can throw virtual barrels at your design problems? It’s the most Nintendo thing ever—because why model in a straightforward manner when you can jump around like a gorilla with a vendetta? It’s a revolutionary leap for artists everywhere: “Let me just toss some bananas on this model and call it a day.” So, pack your serious software aside; it’s time to embrace the chaos of Donkey Kong as your go-to 3D modeling tool. Who knew gaming nostalgia would lead to the next big thing in design? #DonkeyKong #3DModeling #Nintendo #
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  • In the shadows of the Lagon, the golden bananas of Donkey Kong Bananza hide like forgotten dreams. Each Gemme de Banandium is a glimmer of hope, yet I feel so distant from them, just like the warmth of a smile that never reaches me. The thrill of the chase turns to desolation as I wander through this vibrant world, alone. The laughter of friends echoes faintly, but the reality is a heavy silence that wraps around my heart. I search for joy among the bright colors, but all I find is the weight of solitude.

    #DonkeyKong #Bananas #GamingSolitude #EmotionalGaming #Loneliness
    In the shadows of the Lagon, the golden bananas of Donkey Kong Bananza hide like forgotten dreams. Each Gemme de Banandium is a glimmer of hope, yet I feel so distant from them, just like the warmth of a smile that never reaches me. The thrill of the chase turns to desolation as I wander through this vibrant world, alone. The laughter of friends echoes faintly, but the reality is a heavy silence that wraps around my heart. I search for joy among the bright colors, but all I find is the weight of solitude. 🍌💔 #DonkeyKong #Bananas #GamingSolitude #EmotionalGaming #Loneliness
    WWW.ACTUGAMING.NET
    Emplacements des Bananes de la Strate du Lagon – Donkey Kong Bananza
    ActuGaming.net Emplacements des Bananes de la Strate du Lagon – Donkey Kong Bananza Dans Donkey Kong Bananza, les bananes dorées ou Gemmes de Banandium, sont ont bien plus […] L'article Emplacements des Bananes de la Strate du Lagon R
    1 Commentarii 0 Distribuiri 0 previzualizare
  • So, the gaming world is abuzz with the latest revelation: "Donkey Kong Bananza" is supposedly the blockbuster exclusive that Switch 2 fans have been praying for. I mean, who wouldn’t want to embark on a grand adventure with a giant ape swinging through pixelated jungles? Because nothing says “next-gen gaming” quite like a nostalgic trip down memory lane.

    With perfect scores flying around like bananas in a monkey fight, it seems like the critics have finally cracked the code: just throw a classic character into a shiny new format, and voilà! Instant masterpiece. Let's all hold our breath for the inevitable sequel, "Donkey Kong Bananza 2: The Quest for More Bananas."

    #DonkeyKongBan
    So, the gaming world is abuzz with the latest revelation: "Donkey Kong Bananza" is supposedly the blockbuster exclusive that Switch 2 fans have been praying for. I mean, who wouldn’t want to embark on a grand adventure with a giant ape swinging through pixelated jungles? Because nothing says “next-gen gaming” quite like a nostalgic trip down memory lane. With perfect scores flying around like bananas in a monkey fight, it seems like the critics have finally cracked the code: just throw a classic character into a shiny new format, and voilà! Instant masterpiece. Let's all hold our breath for the inevitable sequel, "Donkey Kong Bananza 2: The Quest for More Bananas." #DonkeyKongBan
    KOTAKU.COM
    Donkey Kong Bananza Reviews Say It's The Blockbuster Exclusive Switch 2 Fans Are Waiting For
    Is Donkey Kong Bananza the Super Mario Odyssey-sized adventure the Switch 2 needs? That’s the question players have been asking ever since the 3D sandbox smasher was first revealed earlier this year. Based on early reviews, it just might be. With rav
    1 Commentarii 0 Distribuiri 0 previzualizare
  • We can reshore American manufacturing

    In my last Fast Company column, I shared my reasons for manufacturing my electric trucks in the U.S. I’m not alone. While near-shoring to North America has been underway for several years, the current tariff shifts and shipping complexities make U.S. manufacturing a higher priority still.

    However, there were 292,825 factories in the U.S. as of 2021. Of those, 846 employ 1,000 people or more. Some of these are my engineering firm’s clients, giving us a front row seat to the complexity of retrofitting an existing factory to full U.S. manufacturing. While building a new factory is expensive and lengthy, these companies’ tasks are more difficult still.

    There are good reasons for making the shift as quickly as possible. Moving to most or fully U.S. manufacturing brings higher visibility, faster response time, and higher resilience to supply chain disruption, as well as greater protection from tariff shifts and geopolitical change.

    But if you’re early in the process, here’s my advice for your transition:

    Determine a priority ranking for the refining and raw materials you shift to in-country and North American sourcing. Give highest ranking to categories including defense, high value items, and consumer safety items.

    Be more strategic in the offshore suppliers you continue using for non-advanced manufacturing by prioritizing closer and more geographic-friendly locations for production and shipment such as Mexico and Argentina.

    Utilize government-backed capital, where possible, for extracting/mining minerals and metals such as lithium, red mud, magnesium, etc.

    Beyond the high-ranking product categories, move to domestic suppliers for primary materials such as steel, aluminum, cement, and plastics. Likewise, reduce offshoring of technical staff as well as raw materials, where possible.

    Use all means possible to become power independent through solar production, micro-grids, and nuclear power production.

    Consider creating a 4-year completion bonus for military vets. Hire vets wherever possible, as they make great workers and entrepreneurs.

    Likewise, we can press for future policy changes that best support Made in America manufacturing, as follows:

    Encourage ship building in the U.S., as well as creating new means of automated freight transit.

    Work towards transformation plans for government-funded R&D to include more attractive loans, rebates, and grants, as well as programs for tax-free status for intellectual property during commercialization, to incent and support organizations making the shift.

    Consider energy rebates to U.S. manufacturers and distributors to make American manufacturing more cost-effective and viable.  

    Create policies to include the cost of offshore staff in tariff calculations. Expand trade relationships with Caribbean nations for products such as sugar, avocados, bananas, etc.

    Avoid or even ban foreign ownership of the food supply chain.

    Create fair competition for government contracting.

    Make health supplements and homeopathic medicines tax deductible, to promote a healthy workforce.

    While it may not be readily evident, these policy changes are related to successful reshoring. In all, we need larger scale, lower costs, and more automated and simplified mechanisms for product manufacturing. These issues, in my experience, are as equally important as the raw materials we require. We need increased support for niche manufacturing. In my opinion, we also need deregulation, and increased access to land.

    I believe we need better education, self-reliance, health, and incentive structures to get the capital, entrepreneurs, and workers for Made in America manufacturing. Who’s with me?

    Matthew Chang is the founding partner of Chang Robotics.
    #can #reshore #american #manufacturing
    We can reshore American manufacturing
    In my last Fast Company column, I shared my reasons for manufacturing my electric trucks in the U.S. I’m not alone. While near-shoring to North America has been underway for several years, the current tariff shifts and shipping complexities make U.S. manufacturing a higher priority still. However, there were 292,825 factories in the U.S. as of 2021. Of those, 846 employ 1,000 people or more. Some of these are my engineering firm’s clients, giving us a front row seat to the complexity of retrofitting an existing factory to full U.S. manufacturing. While building a new factory is expensive and lengthy, these companies’ tasks are more difficult still. There are good reasons for making the shift as quickly as possible. Moving to most or fully U.S. manufacturing brings higher visibility, faster response time, and higher resilience to supply chain disruption, as well as greater protection from tariff shifts and geopolitical change. But if you’re early in the process, here’s my advice for your transition: Determine a priority ranking for the refining and raw materials you shift to in-country and North American sourcing. Give highest ranking to categories including defense, high value items, and consumer safety items. Be more strategic in the offshore suppliers you continue using for non-advanced manufacturing by prioritizing closer and more geographic-friendly locations for production and shipment such as Mexico and Argentina. Utilize government-backed capital, where possible, for extracting/mining minerals and metals such as lithium, red mud, magnesium, etc. Beyond the high-ranking product categories, move to domestic suppliers for primary materials such as steel, aluminum, cement, and plastics. Likewise, reduce offshoring of technical staff as well as raw materials, where possible. Use all means possible to become power independent through solar production, micro-grids, and nuclear power production. Consider creating a 4-year completion bonus for military vets. Hire vets wherever possible, as they make great workers and entrepreneurs. Likewise, we can press for future policy changes that best support Made in America manufacturing, as follows: Encourage ship building in the U.S., as well as creating new means of automated freight transit. Work towards transformation plans for government-funded R&D to include more attractive loans, rebates, and grants, as well as programs for tax-free status for intellectual property during commercialization, to incent and support organizations making the shift. Consider energy rebates to U.S. manufacturers and distributors to make American manufacturing more cost-effective and viable.   Create policies to include the cost of offshore staff in tariff calculations. Expand trade relationships with Caribbean nations for products such as sugar, avocados, bananas, etc. Avoid or even ban foreign ownership of the food supply chain. Create fair competition for government contracting. Make health supplements and homeopathic medicines tax deductible, to promote a healthy workforce. While it may not be readily evident, these policy changes are related to successful reshoring. In all, we need larger scale, lower costs, and more automated and simplified mechanisms for product manufacturing. These issues, in my experience, are as equally important as the raw materials we require. We need increased support for niche manufacturing. In my opinion, we also need deregulation, and increased access to land. I believe we need better education, self-reliance, health, and incentive structures to get the capital, entrepreneurs, and workers for Made in America manufacturing. Who’s with me? Matthew Chang is the founding partner of Chang Robotics. #can #reshore #american #manufacturing
    WWW.FASTCOMPANY.COM
    We can reshore American manufacturing
    In my last Fast Company column, I shared my reasons for manufacturing my electric trucks in the U.S. I’m not alone. While near-shoring to North America has been underway for several years, the current tariff shifts and shipping complexities make U.S. manufacturing a higher priority still. However, there were 292,825 factories in the U.S. as of 2021. Of those, 846 employ 1,000 people or more. Some of these are my engineering firm’s clients, giving us a front row seat to the complexity of retrofitting an existing factory to full U.S. manufacturing. While building a new factory is expensive and lengthy, these companies’ tasks are more difficult still. There are good reasons for making the shift as quickly as possible. Moving to most or fully U.S. manufacturing brings higher visibility, faster response time, and higher resilience to supply chain disruption, as well as greater protection from tariff shifts and geopolitical change. But if you’re early in the process, here’s my advice for your transition: Determine a priority ranking for the refining and raw materials you shift to in-country and North American sourcing. Give highest ranking to categories including defense, high value items (such as steel, aluminum, and rare minerals, etc.), and consumer safety items (such as pharmaceutical components, etc.). Be more strategic in the offshore suppliers you continue using for non-advanced manufacturing by prioritizing closer and more geographic-friendly locations for production and shipment such as Mexico and Argentina. Utilize government-backed capital, where possible, for extracting/mining minerals and metals such as lithium, red mud, magnesium, etc. Beyond the high-ranking product categories, move to domestic suppliers for primary materials such as steel, aluminum, cement, and plastics. Likewise, reduce offshoring of technical staff as well as raw materials, where possible. Use all means possible to become power independent through solar production, micro-grids, and nuclear power production. Consider creating a 4-year completion bonus for military vets. Hire vets wherever possible, as they make great workers and entrepreneurs. Likewise, we can press for future policy changes that best support Made in America manufacturing, as follows: Encourage ship building in the U.S., as well as creating new means of automated freight transit. Work towards transformation plans for government-funded R&D to include more attractive loans, rebates, and grants, as well as programs for tax-free status for intellectual property during commercialization, to incent and support organizations making the shift. Consider energy rebates to U.S. manufacturers and distributors to make American manufacturing more cost-effective and viable.   Create policies to include the cost of offshore staff in tariff calculations. Expand trade relationships with Caribbean nations for products such as sugar, avocados, bananas, etc. Avoid or even ban foreign ownership of the food supply chain. Create fair competition for government contracting. Make health supplements and homeopathic medicines tax deductible, to promote a healthy workforce. While it may not be readily evident, these policy changes are related to successful reshoring. In all, we need larger scale, lower costs, and more automated and simplified mechanisms for product manufacturing. These issues, in my experience, are as equally important as the raw materials we require. We need increased support for niche manufacturing. In my opinion, we also need deregulation, and increased access to land (particularly in the west; the federal government owns great quantities of the available land, which is choking available supply). I believe we need better education, self-reliance, health, and incentive structures to get the capital, entrepreneurs, and workers for Made in America manufacturing. Who’s with me? Matthew Chang is the founding partner of Chang Robotics.
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  • Playdate Season Two, Spray Paint Simulator and other new indie games worth checking out

    One of the many beautiful things about the indie gaming scene is that there's always something to check out. So if you don't fancy playing Elden Ring: Nightreign this weekend, there are plenty of other new options. To help you keep up with what's going on in the space, here's our weekly indie game roundup.
    As a heads up, we won't be publishing an edition of this roundup next week. Not because there won't be enough games to highlight. Quite the opposite: Summer Game Fest kicks off on Friday June 6. There will be literally hundreds of game announcements and updates. There's also the small matter of the Nintendo Switch 2's arrival in a matter of days.
    You can check out what to expect from SGF and find out how to watch the various showcases in our preview. We'll be bringing you news on titles of all shapes and sizes from Summer Game Fest Live, Xbox Games Showcase and other events. We'll also be on the ground in Los Angeles to go hands on with many of the newly announced games. Keep up with our coverage here on Engadget throughout SGF. 
    In the meantime, there are a host of new games to savor, as well as peeks at what's coming your way in the coming weeks and months. Let's get to it.
    Thinky Direct

    This showcase from Thinky Games was jam packed with captivating puzzle and mystery games. Two in particular caught my eye. The first is a very intriguing first-person archery puzzler. In He Who Watches, you'll walk on walls, rotate rooms and use a bow and arrow to solve puzzles. It reminds me of the shrines in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. A demo is out now on Steam and the full game should arrive this fall.

    The other game that really stood out to me was Echo Weaver, a so-called "Metroidbraina." Unlike in many Metroidvanias, where you need to find power ups or new abilities to progress, here you'll move forward by acquiring knowledge, including figuring out your character's special abilities. 
    There aren't any procedurally generated elements here. As with the likes of Outer Wilds, each run is time-based. You can find ways to extend the limit or sacrifice some time to pass through a barrier. Echo Weaver is coming to Steam and Xbox.
    There was lots of other interesting stuff in the first-ever Thinky Direct. I really enjoy the chill train puzzler Railbound and it was neat to find out that there's a level editor available in beta. Kiko's Apple Adventure is an adorable-looking block-pushing game in which the aim is to nudge apples onto rafts. It just arrived on Steam.

    The Button Effect features a museum with a lot of buttons, each with a purpose for you to find out. It seems like a certain Taskmaster task taken to new extremes. The first public demo just hit Steam.

    Nonolith is another compelling game that was featured in the showcase. In this puzzle platformer, you can copy and paste blocks to create openings, bridges and staircases. At first glance, it reminds me a little of Animal Well. Monolith is coming to Steam in 2026.
    New releases
    One thing definitely worth getting excited about this week if you own a particular yellow console with a crank owner is the start of Playdate Season Two. Every Thursday throughout the six-week season, two new games arrive on Panic's diminutive device. 
    The first batch includes the charming-looking Dig! Dig! Dino! and Fulcrum Defender. The latter of those is from FTL: Faster Than Light and Into the Breach studio Subset Games, whose co-founder Jay Ma went through hell to make Fulcrum Defender.

    One of the titles included in the season, Blippo+, is a full-motion video game. It will have weekly episodic updates for 12 weeks, extending far beyond the rest of the Season Two window. The first episode is out now.

    Trails is a lovely puzzle game that just landed on Steam. You'll guide sandships to their destination by drawing a path for them. You can't take a ship through the same square twice, and you'll need to make sure they don't crash into each other. There are obstacles, of course, and you'll sometimes have to collect and deliver cargo.
    I've enjoyed my time with Trails so far. Developer PurpleSloth gradually teaches you how to play through trial and error, and it adds new hazards and mechanics at a nice pace, though the puzzles do become quite tricky.

    You may have spent many pleasant hours cleaning grime off of various objects and iconic landmarks in PowerWash Simulator. It's time to flip the script a bit in Spray Paint Simulator, from North Star Video Games and publisher Whitethorn Games.
    The concept is pretty similar, in that you'll complete jobs for clients by painting certain items or environments. There are no time limits here and a feature that lets you mask an area to ensure you get clean lines is a nice touch. If marking your territory on public or private property with sick, definitely-not-ugly tags is more your thing, there's a free spray mode that you can play alone or with a friend in co-op.
    Spray Paint Simulator is out now on Steam, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. It's on Game Pass too. The game is also coming to Nintendo Switch on June 19.

    Eternal Evil debuted on Steam back in 2022, and two and a half years later, the survival horror game has made the jump to PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. It has mostly positive reviews on Steam and seems very much in the vein of the Resident Evil series. You'll take on vampires that get stronger as they feed in this game from solo developer Honor Games.

    How could I not include a game with a name like Trash Goblin? This is a cozy shopkeeping title from Spilt Milk Studios that just came out of early access on Steam. You'll unearth, restore and upcycle trinkets to sell to customers so you can upgrade your shop. It seems one you might chill out with.
    Elsewhere, To a T, a game we mentioned last week, is out now on Xbox Series X/S, Game Pass, PS5, Steam and the Epic Games Store. Cowboy-themed life sim Cowboy Country just landed on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch as well.
    Upcoming

    I've had my eye on Kingmakers for a while. It's a completely bananas-looking blend of third-person shooting and strategy game from Redemption Road in which you travel back in time to a medieval war, bringing modern weapons and vehicles with you. Publisher tinyBuild revealed during a showcase this week that Kingmakers will debut in early access on Steam on October 8. Really looking forward to that one.

    Beyond the Board is a moody-looking adventure that takes a rook... well, beyond a chess board. It takes inspiration from puzzle games like Limbo and Monument Valley, so it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that the story is told through visual storytelling and soundscapes rather than dialogue. This game from Fragile Shapes Studio doesn't yet have a release window, but you can check out a demo on Steam now.

    An extended demo for a fast-paced, melee-focused dungeon runner called Bloodthief dropped this week. It looks like a lo-fi, medieval spin on Ghostrunnerbut with vampires. So yes, I will be digging into this when I have a chance. The original demo is said to have 20 or so hours of gameplay and there's even more in the extended version, which will be featured in Steam Next Fest. Bloodthief, from developer Blargis, is slated to arrive later this year.

    I'm going to close this edition out with a game you'll probably never be able to play. Developer Kenney says that, a few years back, they helped a young Star Wars fan make a game based on The Mandalorian after a Make-a-Wish connected the pair. It's a heartwarming story, and the game looks quite charming based on the clip that Kenney shared on BlueSky. However, for legal reasons, it'll likely stay under lock and key, sadly.This article originally appeared on Engadget at
    #playdate #season #two #spray #paint
    Playdate Season Two, Spray Paint Simulator and other new indie games worth checking out
    One of the many beautiful things about the indie gaming scene is that there's always something to check out. So if you don't fancy playing Elden Ring: Nightreign this weekend, there are plenty of other new options. To help you keep up with what's going on in the space, here's our weekly indie game roundup. As a heads up, we won't be publishing an edition of this roundup next week. Not because there won't be enough games to highlight. Quite the opposite: Summer Game Fest kicks off on Friday June 6. There will be literally hundreds of game announcements and updates. There's also the small matter of the Nintendo Switch 2's arrival in a matter of days. You can check out what to expect from SGF and find out how to watch the various showcases in our preview. We'll be bringing you news on titles of all shapes and sizes from Summer Game Fest Live, Xbox Games Showcase and other events. We'll also be on the ground in Los Angeles to go hands on with many of the newly announced games. Keep up with our coverage here on Engadget throughout SGF.  In the meantime, there are a host of new games to savor, as well as peeks at what's coming your way in the coming weeks and months. Let's get to it. Thinky Direct This showcase from Thinky Games was jam packed with captivating puzzle and mystery games. Two in particular caught my eye. The first is a very intriguing first-person archery puzzler. In He Who Watches, you'll walk on walls, rotate rooms and use a bow and arrow to solve puzzles. It reminds me of the shrines in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. A demo is out now on Steam and the full game should arrive this fall. The other game that really stood out to me was Echo Weaver, a so-called "Metroidbraina." Unlike in many Metroidvanias, where you need to find power ups or new abilities to progress, here you'll move forward by acquiring knowledge, including figuring out your character's special abilities.  There aren't any procedurally generated elements here. As with the likes of Outer Wilds, each run is time-based. You can find ways to extend the limit or sacrifice some time to pass through a barrier. Echo Weaver is coming to Steam and Xbox. There was lots of other interesting stuff in the first-ever Thinky Direct. I really enjoy the chill train puzzler Railbound and it was neat to find out that there's a level editor available in beta. Kiko's Apple Adventure is an adorable-looking block-pushing game in which the aim is to nudge apples onto rafts. It just arrived on Steam. The Button Effect features a museum with a lot of buttons, each with a purpose for you to find out. It seems like a certain Taskmaster task taken to new extremes. The first public demo just hit Steam. Nonolith is another compelling game that was featured in the showcase. In this puzzle platformer, you can copy and paste blocks to create openings, bridges and staircases. At first glance, it reminds me a little of Animal Well. Monolith is coming to Steam in 2026. New releases One thing definitely worth getting excited about this week if you own a particular yellow console with a crank owner is the start of Playdate Season Two. Every Thursday throughout the six-week season, two new games arrive on Panic's diminutive device.  The first batch includes the charming-looking Dig! Dig! Dino! and Fulcrum Defender. The latter of those is from FTL: Faster Than Light and Into the Breach studio Subset Games, whose co-founder Jay Ma went through hell to make Fulcrum Defender. One of the titles included in the season, Blippo+, is a full-motion video game. It will have weekly episodic updates for 12 weeks, extending far beyond the rest of the Season Two window. The first episode is out now. Trails is a lovely puzzle game that just landed on Steam. You'll guide sandships to their destination by drawing a path for them. You can't take a ship through the same square twice, and you'll need to make sure they don't crash into each other. There are obstacles, of course, and you'll sometimes have to collect and deliver cargo. I've enjoyed my time with Trails so far. Developer PurpleSloth gradually teaches you how to play through trial and error, and it adds new hazards and mechanics at a nice pace, though the puzzles do become quite tricky. You may have spent many pleasant hours cleaning grime off of various objects and iconic landmarks in PowerWash Simulator. It's time to flip the script a bit in Spray Paint Simulator, from North Star Video Games and publisher Whitethorn Games. The concept is pretty similar, in that you'll complete jobs for clients by painting certain items or environments. There are no time limits here and a feature that lets you mask an area to ensure you get clean lines is a nice touch. If marking your territory on public or private property with sick, definitely-not-ugly tags is more your thing, there's a free spray mode that you can play alone or with a friend in co-op. Spray Paint Simulator is out now on Steam, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. It's on Game Pass too. The game is also coming to Nintendo Switch on June 19. Eternal Evil debuted on Steam back in 2022, and two and a half years later, the survival horror game has made the jump to PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. It has mostly positive reviews on Steam and seems very much in the vein of the Resident Evil series. You'll take on vampires that get stronger as they feed in this game from solo developer Honor Games. How could I not include a game with a name like Trash Goblin? This is a cozy shopkeeping title from Spilt Milk Studios that just came out of early access on Steam. You'll unearth, restore and upcycle trinkets to sell to customers so you can upgrade your shop. It seems one you might chill out with. Elsewhere, To a T, a game we mentioned last week, is out now on Xbox Series X/S, Game Pass, PS5, Steam and the Epic Games Store. Cowboy-themed life sim Cowboy Country just landed on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch as well. Upcoming I've had my eye on Kingmakers for a while. It's a completely bananas-looking blend of third-person shooting and strategy game from Redemption Road in which you travel back in time to a medieval war, bringing modern weapons and vehicles with you. Publisher tinyBuild revealed during a showcase this week that Kingmakers will debut in early access on Steam on October 8. Really looking forward to that one. Beyond the Board is a moody-looking adventure that takes a rook... well, beyond a chess board. It takes inspiration from puzzle games like Limbo and Monument Valley, so it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that the story is told through visual storytelling and soundscapes rather than dialogue. This game from Fragile Shapes Studio doesn't yet have a release window, but you can check out a demo on Steam now. An extended demo for a fast-paced, melee-focused dungeon runner called Bloodthief dropped this week. It looks like a lo-fi, medieval spin on Ghostrunnerbut with vampires. So yes, I will be digging into this when I have a chance. The original demo is said to have 20 or so hours of gameplay and there's even more in the extended version, which will be featured in Steam Next Fest. Bloodthief, from developer Blargis, is slated to arrive later this year. I'm going to close this edition out with a game you'll probably never be able to play. Developer Kenney says that, a few years back, they helped a young Star Wars fan make a game based on The Mandalorian after a Make-a-Wish connected the pair. It's a heartwarming story, and the game looks quite charming based on the clip that Kenney shared on BlueSky. However, for legal reasons, it'll likely stay under lock and key, sadly.This article originally appeared on Engadget at #playdate #season #two #spray #paint
    WWW.ENGADGET.COM
    Playdate Season Two, Spray Paint Simulator and other new indie games worth checking out
    One of the many beautiful things about the indie gaming scene is that there's always something to check out. So if you don't fancy playing Elden Ring: Nightreign this weekend, there are plenty of other new options. To help you keep up with what's going on in the space, here's our weekly indie game roundup. As a heads up, we won't be publishing an edition of this roundup next week. Not because there won't be enough games to highlight. Quite the opposite: Summer Game Fest kicks off on Friday June 6. There will be literally hundreds of game announcements and updates. There's also the small matter of the Nintendo Switch 2's arrival in a matter of days. You can check out what to expect from SGF and find out how to watch the various showcases in our preview. We'll be bringing you news on titles of all shapes and sizes from Summer Game Fest Live, Xbox Games Showcase and other events. We'll also be on the ground in Los Angeles to go hands on with many of the newly announced games. Keep up with our coverage here on Engadget throughout SGF.  In the meantime, there are a host of new games to savor, as well as peeks at what's coming your way in the coming weeks and months. Let's get to it. Thinky Direct This showcase from Thinky Games was jam packed with captivating puzzle and mystery games. Two in particular caught my eye. The first is a very intriguing first-person archery puzzler. In He Who Watches, you'll walk on walls, rotate rooms and use a bow and arrow to solve puzzles. It reminds me of the shrines in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. A demo is out now on Steam and the full game should arrive this fall. The other game that really stood out to me was Echo Weaver, a so-called "Metroidbraina." Unlike in many Metroidvanias, where you need to find power ups or new abilities to progress, here you'll move forward by acquiring knowledge, including figuring out your character's special abilities.  There aren't any procedurally generated elements here. As with the likes of Outer Wilds, each run is time-based. You can find ways to extend the limit or sacrifice some time to pass through a barrier. Echo Weaver is coming to Steam and Xbox (including Game Pass). There was lots of other interesting stuff in the first-ever Thinky Direct. I really enjoy the chill train puzzler Railbound and it was neat to find out that there's a level editor available in beta. Kiko's Apple Adventure is an adorable-looking block-pushing game in which the aim is to nudge apples onto rafts. It just arrived on Steam. The Button Effect features a museum with a lot of buttons, each with a purpose for you to find out. It seems like a certain Taskmaster task taken to new extremes. The first public demo just hit Steam. Nonolith is another compelling game that was featured in the showcase. In this puzzle platformer, you can copy and paste blocks to create openings, bridges and staircases. At first glance, it reminds me a little of Animal Well. Monolith is coming to Steam in 2026. New releases One thing definitely worth getting excited about this week if you own a particular yellow console with a crank owner is the start of Playdate Season Two. Every Thursday throughout the six-week season (which costs $39), two new games arrive on Panic's diminutive device.  The first batch includes the charming-looking Dig! Dig! Dino! and Fulcrum Defender. The latter of those is from FTL: Faster Than Light and Into the Breach studio Subset Games, whose co-founder Jay Ma went through hell to make Fulcrum Defender. One of the titles included in the season, Blippo+, is a full-motion video game. It will have weekly episodic updates for 12 weeks, extending far beyond the rest of the Season Two window. The first episode is out now. Trails is a lovely puzzle game that just landed on Steam. You'll guide sandships to their destination by drawing a path for them. You can't take a ship through the same square twice, and you'll need to make sure they don't crash into each other. There are obstacles, of course, and you'll sometimes have to collect and deliver cargo. I've enjoyed my time with Trails so far. Developer PurpleSloth gradually teaches you how to play through trial and error, and it adds new hazards and mechanics at a nice pace, though the puzzles do become quite tricky. You may have spent many pleasant hours cleaning grime off of various objects and iconic landmarks in PowerWash Simulator (which is set to get a sequel later this year). It's time to flip the script a bit in Spray Paint Simulator, from North Star Video Games and publisher Whitethorn Games. The concept is pretty similar, in that you'll complete jobs for clients by painting certain items or environments. There are no time limits here and a feature that lets you mask an area to ensure you get clean lines is a nice touch. If marking your territory on public or private property with sick, definitely-not-ugly tags is more your thing, there's a free spray mode that you can play alone or with a friend in co-op. Spray Paint Simulator is out now on Steam, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. It's on Game Pass too. The game is also coming to Nintendo Switch on June 19. Eternal Evil debuted on Steam back in 2022, and two and a half years later, the survival horror game has made the jump to PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. It has mostly positive reviews on Steam and seems very much in the vein of the Resident Evil series (it even has a dual narrative with two characters to play). You'll take on vampires that get stronger as they feed in this game from solo developer Honor Games. How could I not include a game with a name like Trash Goblin? This is a cozy shopkeeping title from Spilt Milk Studios that just came out of early access on Steam. You'll unearth, restore and upcycle trinkets to sell to customers so you can upgrade your shop. It seems one you might chill out with. Elsewhere, To a T, a game we mentioned last week, is out now on Xbox Series X/S, Game Pass, PS5, Steam and the Epic Games Store. Cowboy-themed life sim Cowboy Country just landed on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch as well. Upcoming I've had my eye on Kingmakers for a while. It's a completely bananas-looking blend of third-person shooting and strategy game from Redemption Road in which you travel back in time to a medieval war, bringing modern weapons and vehicles with you. Publisher tinyBuild revealed during a showcase this week that Kingmakers will debut in early access on Steam on October 8. Really looking forward to that one. Beyond the Board is a moody-looking adventure that takes a rook... well, beyond a chess board. It takes inspiration from puzzle games like Limbo and Monument Valley, so it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that the story is told through visual storytelling and soundscapes rather than dialogue. This game from Fragile Shapes Studio doesn't yet have a release window, but you can check out a demo on Steam now. An extended demo for a fast-paced, melee-focused dungeon runner called Bloodthief dropped this week. It looks like a lo-fi, medieval spin on Ghostrunner (a series I enjoy but am quite bad at) but with vampires. So yes, I will be digging into this when I have a chance. The original demo is said to have 20 or so hours of gameplay and there's even more in the extended version, which will be featured in Steam Next Fest. Bloodthief, from developer Blargis, is slated to arrive later this year. I'm going to close this edition out with a game you'll probably never be able to play. Developer Kenney says that, a few years back, they helped a young Star Wars fan make a game based on The Mandalorian after a Make-a-Wish connected the pair. It's a heartwarming story, and the game looks quite charming based on the clip that Kenney shared on BlueSky. However, for legal reasons, it'll likely stay under lock and key, sadly.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playdate-season-two-spray-paint-simulator-and-other-new-indie-games-worth-checking-out-110035699.html?src=rss
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  • DreamPark raises $1.1M to transform real-world spaces into mixed-reality theme parks

    DreamPark, the creator of what it calls “the world’s largest downloadable mixed realitytheme park,” said it has raised million in seed funding.
    The investment will accelerate DreamPark’s mission to make Earth worth playing again by transforming ordinary spaces into extraordinary adventures through mixed reality technology. I got a demo of the game in Yerba Buena Park in San Francisco and it made me smile. It also made me think it was part of a pretty good plan to convince property owners to get more out of their entertainment venues.
    But we’ll get to that in a bit. Long Journey Ventures led the investment round, with participation from Founders Inc.
    The company is the brainchild of Aidan Wolf, CEO of DreamPark; Kevin Habich, cofounder; and cofounder Brent Bushnell. They came up with the idea while working at Two-Bit Circus, a zany entertainment venue in Los Angeles run by Bushnell. Bushnell encouraged the idea, incubated it and became a cofounder.
    The DreamPark founders: Brent Bushnell, Aidan Wolf and Kevin Habich.
    Positioned at the forefront of mixed reality innovation, DreamPark said it is capturing a significant early advantage in the global XRlive event market, valued at billion in 2024 and projected to surge to billion by 2034 at a 48.7% compound annual growth rate. This explosive growth trajectory presents an opportunity that DreamPark’s technology and business model are uniquely designed to address, the company said.
    “We’re building the world’s largest theme park – one that exists everywhere and is accessible to everyone. We want to make getting out to play worthwhile again,” said Bushnell. “This investment allows us to expand our footprint of access points across the country rapidly, develop partnerships with premium IP holders, and continue enhancing our technology to deliver magical experiences that bring people back to real-world spaces.”
    Bushnell is the eldest son of Atari cofounder Nolan Bushnell. And the younger Bushnell knows the costs of investing in physical properties, as he runs Two-Bit Circus in downtown Los Angeles. It’s built inside a physical warehouse, and Bushnell’s company has to pay for that property — even weathering the pandemic. But with DreamPark, he can reinvigorate a physical venue without investing anything in a new property. By contrast, a new virtual reality entertainment venue can cost more than million to open.
    Hands-on demo
    DreamPark foundes in Yerba Buena Gardens park in San Francisco.
    Wolf and Habich, and Bushnell’s sister Alyssa Bushnell, showed me the DreamPark virtual theme park in San Francisco in the park near the Metreon building. There was a concert going on at the time and it was very noisy. But the game worked fine anyway.
    Looking down at my feet, Wolf said the QR code on the mat on the groun was an “access point.” That’s where you can scan and enter the virtual world. The company is still building a front end for distributing the headsets, but people will be able to bring their mixed-reality headsets from home and play the same content.
    “We’re setting these up all over,” Wolf said. “Once an area is mapped, it’s there and you just show up and play. The big difference here is that DreamParks are places. They exist in the real world.”
    Don’t be surprised if you see people doing this soon.
    The mapped area was around 50,000 square feet in the park, so it was a pretty big game space. Soon, the company will break into 100,000 square feet for the game with another update. That’s about 10 times the restricted size of Meta’s VR headsets.
    “We’re going way past the usual limits,” Wolf said. “I think this fundamentally changes what mixed reality means. Now it’s not this living room experience bound to the couch. It’s an actual world to walk around and explore and touch. Once we get people there, we’re gonna really see that cognitive shift, where now augmented realityis something I can go out and experience, like enjoying a concert.”
    The cofounders gave me a headset to wear. The first one didn’t work, but a second one functioned fine. It was a modified Meta Quest 3 headset that was locked down so it would play just the DreamPark game. It took a short time to load and then I looked through the headset. Thanks to the outward-facing cameras, I was able to see the park in mixed reality. That meant I didn’t trip over anything as I walked around.
    I held the headset to my forehead and looked around. I could see a Mario-like set of bricks floating in the air, and floating virtual coins along the physical path. I started walking around and picking up the coins and tapping the bricks to collect points in the game. I didn’t go where there were people lying on the grass, but I didn’t manage to navigate to some lava pits in the middle of the park. The founders pointed out that far away from me, on the Carnaval concert stage, there was a boss. Normally, if there was no concert, I could have waltzed over to that location and engaged in a boss fight.
    DreamPark overlaid on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, California.
    The graphics were rudimentary, 8-bit style, and yet I didn’t mind it at all due to the novelty of seeing them overlaid on the real world. Still, I was reluctant to go walking in the lava pits, as that was a bad idea in the virtual world and I somehow felt like it would be a bad idea to walk there in the physical world.
    “Our graphics are more cartoonish, but our Wizard theme has a more realistic look,” Wolf said. “We’re creating four theme parks.”
    One of them is a sci-fi Crash Course, which is an obstacle course. And DreamPark is working with a partner as well. There’s one with a psychedelic theme and one that is ambient fun.
    It’s easy to turn the experience into a multiplayer game. You can, for instance, race around the park and complete a timed experience in competition with your friends.
    The appeal of a virtual overlay on the real world
    DreamPark mixes the virtual and real worlds.
    DreamPark transforms physical locations into immersive mixed-reality environments through its network of access points: physical markers, like QR codes, that, when scanned with a Meta Quest 3 headset or mobile device, unlock digital overlays on real-world spaces. The company has already established successful installations at Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade and The LA County Fair, with planned expansions in Seattle, Orange County and several expos and corporate events.
    It’s pretty cheap to create new locations. All they really have to do is scan an area, overlay a digital game filled with simple games, and then drop a mat with a QR code on the property so people can scan it and start playing the game. For property owners, this means they can draw people back to their location, getting them to re-engage with the place because people want to play a digital game at the physical place. It’s a way to enhance the value of a physical property, using virtual entertainment.
    Bushnell pitched the idea for DreamPark on CNBC’s Shark Tank television show. The sharks didn’t go for it, but the publicity from the show helped surface investors, Bushnell said..
    “As a longtime investor, I have seen countless pitches promising to merge the digital and physical worlds, and DreamPark is the first that truly delivers on the real-world metaverse,” said Cyan Banister, cofounder and general partner at Long Journey Ventures, in a statement. “Aidan is a visionary builder of immersive systems, and Brent is a pioneer in playful public spaces, making them the perfect team to make emerging tech feel human, accessible, and unforgettable. They’ve cracked the code on location-based AR, delivering a 10x experience that’s as magical as it’s scalable. This isn’t just immersive entertainment; it’s a whole new category.”
    The funding comes when retail landlords and event venues seek innovative solutions to drive foot traffic and increase engagement. While typical VR venues cost over million to build, DreamPark delivers a fully immersive, multiplayer experience that pays for itself in its first month of revenue.
    DreamPark in Santa Monica.
    “Our capital expense is like one of a hundredth of our competitors, which is amazing. And then this lets us move astronomically faster than everyone else. I kind of believe in a Nintendo philosophy, which is, they take antiquated technology, but they use it in a new way that makes it valuable. We’re using access points,” Wolf said.
    There’s no construction or permanent infrastructure required. It’s a radically more affordable way to turn underused spaces into high-impact destinations.
    “We’re not just creating engaging content, we’re building a platform that revitalizes communities by giving people a reason to gather, play, and connect in physical spaces in real life,” said Wolf. “DreamPark bridges the digital and physical worlds, creating a new category of play where the magic of virtual worlds enhances real-life connections. We’re reimagining what’s possible when the spaces around us become canvases for shared adventure and imagination.”
    The seed funding will support DreamPark’s aggressive expansion plans, including deploying access points across new locations, launching partnerships with major IP holders to create branded theme park experiences, and expanding the company’s fleet of rental Meta Quest 3 headsets units nationwide.
    DreamPark is growing the development team to accelerate content creation and platform capabilities. DreamPark’s leadership team brings deep experience from companies including Two-Bit Circus, Smiley Cap, and SNAP, Inc., positioning them to execute their ambitious vision of creating the infrastructure for worldwide mixed-reality entertainment.
    Where it’s going
    What alien technology is this?
    Bushnell said the team has been working for around two years. But the founders have been involved with AR for more than a decade. They showed up at Two-Bit Circus and started making mixed-reality games, which take into account physical reality as a game space. There are about 10 contractors in the company working on content.
    They found that players are happy to wear the headsets for 30 minutes at a time, particularly when they are playing with friends.
    “We see ourselves more as a tech company than like a location based entertainment company. We hope to stay small as a core team while still reaching millions or billions of people,” Wolf said.The games are in a private alpha testing phase now.
    “I would say that the headset we currently have in our hands is the exact headset we need to bring this to the masses. So the nice part about the company we’re building is we aren’t waiting for some like watershed moment,” Wolf said. “We’re not waiting for anything now. We’re just getting it into lots of places where people already congregate.”DreamPark is coming out with an app that will let users scan their local park and then start using that space as a level, Wolf said. But DreamPark itself will create partnerships with some of the best places itself and get permission to do the game on the properties.
    At Two-Bit Circus, for instance, DreamPark could extend the entertainment into the outdoor parking lot, giving more square footage for entertainment.
    Bushnell had a great moment when he was playing an AR game with drift racing on a racetrack in the Two-Bit Circus parking lot. He noted that mixed reality doesn’t have the Achilles Heel of VR, which is that it makes half the people nauseous.
    “That was really the moment that broke my brain for mixed reality,” he said. “We were on actual drift bikes, pedaling around collecting coins. And I went twice around that thing, chasing after somebody else on a drift bike. And, you know, my heart rate was at 150. And I was just absolutely going bananas. And I took the headset off, and all that world that had motivated me to pedal my ass off was gone. It just really felt like this is not just going to change entertainment. This is going to change therapy and fitness and learning.”
    Bushnell said so many other kinds of entertainment are based on deploying huge amounts of capital. But this kind of theme park could be up and running in a matter of minutes. Bushnell believes people will be happy to buy tickets to get a chance to play. He said his four-year-old kid loves it, as does his 82-year-old father.
    DreamPark is adding virtual entertainment to real venues.
    To me, it felt a bit like the beginning of the world of Cyberpunk 2077, while Bushnell said it reminded him of the Korean drama, The Memories of Alhambra, where people wear contact lenss displays and have an adventure overlaid on real streets.
    “These are beautiful places naturally. Let’s augment them with a little more cool storytelling, and you’re off and running,” Bushnell said. “The world is lonely and isolated, We think of this a path to being social again, getting people out in public. And we want to invite landlords of all stripes to host DreamParks.”

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    #dreampark #raises #11m #transform #realworld
    DreamPark raises $1.1M to transform real-world spaces into mixed-reality theme parks
    DreamPark, the creator of what it calls “the world’s largest downloadable mixed realitytheme park,” said it has raised million in seed funding. The investment will accelerate DreamPark’s mission to make Earth worth playing again by transforming ordinary spaces into extraordinary adventures through mixed reality technology. I got a demo of the game in Yerba Buena Park in San Francisco and it made me smile. It also made me think it was part of a pretty good plan to convince property owners to get more out of their entertainment venues. But we’ll get to that in a bit. Long Journey Ventures led the investment round, with participation from Founders Inc. The company is the brainchild of Aidan Wolf, CEO of DreamPark; Kevin Habich, cofounder; and cofounder Brent Bushnell. They came up with the idea while working at Two-Bit Circus, a zany entertainment venue in Los Angeles run by Bushnell. Bushnell encouraged the idea, incubated it and became a cofounder. The DreamPark founders: Brent Bushnell, Aidan Wolf and Kevin Habich. Positioned at the forefront of mixed reality innovation, DreamPark said it is capturing a significant early advantage in the global XRlive event market, valued at billion in 2024 and projected to surge to billion by 2034 at a 48.7% compound annual growth rate. This explosive growth trajectory presents an opportunity that DreamPark’s technology and business model are uniquely designed to address, the company said. “We’re building the world’s largest theme park – one that exists everywhere and is accessible to everyone. We want to make getting out to play worthwhile again,” said Bushnell. “This investment allows us to expand our footprint of access points across the country rapidly, develop partnerships with premium IP holders, and continue enhancing our technology to deliver magical experiences that bring people back to real-world spaces.” Bushnell is the eldest son of Atari cofounder Nolan Bushnell. And the younger Bushnell knows the costs of investing in physical properties, as he runs Two-Bit Circus in downtown Los Angeles. It’s built inside a physical warehouse, and Bushnell’s company has to pay for that property — even weathering the pandemic. But with DreamPark, he can reinvigorate a physical venue without investing anything in a new property. By contrast, a new virtual reality entertainment venue can cost more than million to open. Hands-on demo DreamPark foundes in Yerba Buena Gardens park in San Francisco. Wolf and Habich, and Bushnell’s sister Alyssa Bushnell, showed me the DreamPark virtual theme park in San Francisco in the park near the Metreon building. There was a concert going on at the time and it was very noisy. But the game worked fine anyway. Looking down at my feet, Wolf said the QR code on the mat on the groun was an “access point.” That’s where you can scan and enter the virtual world. The company is still building a front end for distributing the headsets, but people will be able to bring their mixed-reality headsets from home and play the same content. “We’re setting these up all over,” Wolf said. “Once an area is mapped, it’s there and you just show up and play. The big difference here is that DreamParks are places. They exist in the real world.” Don’t be surprised if you see people doing this soon. The mapped area was around 50,000 square feet in the park, so it was a pretty big game space. Soon, the company will break into 100,000 square feet for the game with another update. That’s about 10 times the restricted size of Meta’s VR headsets. “We’re going way past the usual limits,” Wolf said. “I think this fundamentally changes what mixed reality means. Now it’s not this living room experience bound to the couch. It’s an actual world to walk around and explore and touch. Once we get people there, we’re gonna really see that cognitive shift, where now augmented realityis something I can go out and experience, like enjoying a concert.” The cofounders gave me a headset to wear. The first one didn’t work, but a second one functioned fine. It was a modified Meta Quest 3 headset that was locked down so it would play just the DreamPark game. It took a short time to load and then I looked through the headset. Thanks to the outward-facing cameras, I was able to see the park in mixed reality. That meant I didn’t trip over anything as I walked around. I held the headset to my forehead and looked around. I could see a Mario-like set of bricks floating in the air, and floating virtual coins along the physical path. I started walking around and picking up the coins and tapping the bricks to collect points in the game. I didn’t go where there were people lying on the grass, but I didn’t manage to navigate to some lava pits in the middle of the park. The founders pointed out that far away from me, on the Carnaval concert stage, there was a boss. Normally, if there was no concert, I could have waltzed over to that location and engaged in a boss fight. DreamPark overlaid on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, California. The graphics were rudimentary, 8-bit style, and yet I didn’t mind it at all due to the novelty of seeing them overlaid on the real world. Still, I was reluctant to go walking in the lava pits, as that was a bad idea in the virtual world and I somehow felt like it would be a bad idea to walk there in the physical world. “Our graphics are more cartoonish, but our Wizard theme has a more realistic look,” Wolf said. “We’re creating four theme parks.” One of them is a sci-fi Crash Course, which is an obstacle course. And DreamPark is working with a partner as well. There’s one with a psychedelic theme and one that is ambient fun. It’s easy to turn the experience into a multiplayer game. You can, for instance, race around the park and complete a timed experience in competition with your friends. The appeal of a virtual overlay on the real world DreamPark mixes the virtual and real worlds. DreamPark transforms physical locations into immersive mixed-reality environments through its network of access points: physical markers, like QR codes, that, when scanned with a Meta Quest 3 headset or mobile device, unlock digital overlays on real-world spaces. The company has already established successful installations at Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade and The LA County Fair, with planned expansions in Seattle, Orange County and several expos and corporate events. It’s pretty cheap to create new locations. All they really have to do is scan an area, overlay a digital game filled with simple games, and then drop a mat with a QR code on the property so people can scan it and start playing the game. For property owners, this means they can draw people back to their location, getting them to re-engage with the place because people want to play a digital game at the physical place. It’s a way to enhance the value of a physical property, using virtual entertainment. Bushnell pitched the idea for DreamPark on CNBC’s Shark Tank television show. The sharks didn’t go for it, but the publicity from the show helped surface investors, Bushnell said.. “As a longtime investor, I have seen countless pitches promising to merge the digital and physical worlds, and DreamPark is the first that truly delivers on the real-world metaverse,” said Cyan Banister, cofounder and general partner at Long Journey Ventures, in a statement. “Aidan is a visionary builder of immersive systems, and Brent is a pioneer in playful public spaces, making them the perfect team to make emerging tech feel human, accessible, and unforgettable. They’ve cracked the code on location-based AR, delivering a 10x experience that’s as magical as it’s scalable. This isn’t just immersive entertainment; it’s a whole new category.” The funding comes when retail landlords and event venues seek innovative solutions to drive foot traffic and increase engagement. While typical VR venues cost over million to build, DreamPark delivers a fully immersive, multiplayer experience that pays for itself in its first month of revenue. DreamPark in Santa Monica. “Our capital expense is like one of a hundredth of our competitors, which is amazing. And then this lets us move astronomically faster than everyone else. I kind of believe in a Nintendo philosophy, which is, they take antiquated technology, but they use it in a new way that makes it valuable. We’re using access points,” Wolf said. There’s no construction or permanent infrastructure required. It’s a radically more affordable way to turn underused spaces into high-impact destinations. “We’re not just creating engaging content, we’re building a platform that revitalizes communities by giving people a reason to gather, play, and connect in physical spaces in real life,” said Wolf. “DreamPark bridges the digital and physical worlds, creating a new category of play where the magic of virtual worlds enhances real-life connections. We’re reimagining what’s possible when the spaces around us become canvases for shared adventure and imagination.” The seed funding will support DreamPark’s aggressive expansion plans, including deploying access points across new locations, launching partnerships with major IP holders to create branded theme park experiences, and expanding the company’s fleet of rental Meta Quest 3 headsets units nationwide. DreamPark is growing the development team to accelerate content creation and platform capabilities. DreamPark’s leadership team brings deep experience from companies including Two-Bit Circus, Smiley Cap, and SNAP, Inc., positioning them to execute their ambitious vision of creating the infrastructure for worldwide mixed-reality entertainment. Where it’s going What alien technology is this? Bushnell said the team has been working for around two years. But the founders have been involved with AR for more than a decade. They showed up at Two-Bit Circus and started making mixed-reality games, which take into account physical reality as a game space. There are about 10 contractors in the company working on content. They found that players are happy to wear the headsets for 30 minutes at a time, particularly when they are playing with friends. “We see ourselves more as a tech company than like a location based entertainment company. We hope to stay small as a core team while still reaching millions or billions of people,” Wolf said.The games are in a private alpha testing phase now. “I would say that the headset we currently have in our hands is the exact headset we need to bring this to the masses. So the nice part about the company we’re building is we aren’t waiting for some like watershed moment,” Wolf said. “We’re not waiting for anything now. We’re just getting it into lots of places where people already congregate.”DreamPark is coming out with an app that will let users scan their local park and then start using that space as a level, Wolf said. But DreamPark itself will create partnerships with some of the best places itself and get permission to do the game on the properties. At Two-Bit Circus, for instance, DreamPark could extend the entertainment into the outdoor parking lot, giving more square footage for entertainment. Bushnell had a great moment when he was playing an AR game with drift racing on a racetrack in the Two-Bit Circus parking lot. He noted that mixed reality doesn’t have the Achilles Heel of VR, which is that it makes half the people nauseous. “That was really the moment that broke my brain for mixed reality,” he said. “We were on actual drift bikes, pedaling around collecting coins. And I went twice around that thing, chasing after somebody else on a drift bike. And, you know, my heart rate was at 150. And I was just absolutely going bananas. And I took the headset off, and all that world that had motivated me to pedal my ass off was gone. It just really felt like this is not just going to change entertainment. This is going to change therapy and fitness and learning.” Bushnell said so many other kinds of entertainment are based on deploying huge amounts of capital. But this kind of theme park could be up and running in a matter of minutes. Bushnell believes people will be happy to buy tickets to get a chance to play. He said his four-year-old kid loves it, as does his 82-year-old father. DreamPark is adding virtual entertainment to real venues. To me, it felt a bit like the beginning of the world of Cyberpunk 2077, while Bushnell said it reminded him of the Korean drama, The Memories of Alhambra, where people wear contact lenss displays and have an adventure overlaid on real streets. “These are beautiful places naturally. Let’s augment them with a little more cool storytelling, and you’re off and running,” Bushnell said. “The world is lonely and isolated, We think of this a path to being social again, getting people out in public. And we want to invite landlords of all stripes to host DreamParks.” GB Daily Stay in the know! Get the latest news in your inbox daily Read our Privacy Policy Thanks for subscribing. Check out more VB newsletters here. An error occured. #dreampark #raises #11m #transform #realworld
    VENTUREBEAT.COM
    DreamPark raises $1.1M to transform real-world spaces into mixed-reality theme parks
    DreamPark, the creator of what it calls “the world’s largest downloadable mixed reality (XR) theme park,” said it has raised $1.1 million in seed funding. The investment will accelerate DreamPark’s mission to make Earth worth playing again by transforming ordinary spaces into extraordinary adventures through mixed reality technology. I got a demo of the game in Yerba Buena Park in San Francisco and it made me smile. It also made me think it was part of a pretty good plan to convince property owners to get more out of their entertainment venues. But we’ll get to that in a bit. Long Journey Ventures led the investment round, with participation from Founders Inc. The company is the brainchild of Aidan Wolf, CEO of DreamPark; Kevin Habich, cofounder; and cofounder Brent Bushnell. They came up with the idea while working at Two-Bit Circus, a zany entertainment venue in Los Angeles run by Bushnell. Bushnell encouraged the idea, incubated it and became a cofounder. The DreamPark founders (left to right): Brent Bushnell, Aidan Wolf and Kevin Habich. Positioned at the forefront of mixed reality innovation, DreamPark said it is capturing a significant early advantage in the global XR (extended reality) live event market, valued at $3.6 billion in 2024 and projected to surge to $190.3 billion by 2034 at a 48.7% compound annual growth rate (CAGR). This explosive growth trajectory presents an opportunity that DreamPark’s technology and business model are uniquely designed to address, the company said. “We’re building the world’s largest theme park – one that exists everywhere and is accessible to everyone. We want to make getting out to play worthwhile again,” said Bushnell. “This investment allows us to expand our footprint of access points across the country rapidly, develop partnerships with premium IP holders, and continue enhancing our technology to deliver magical experiences that bring people back to real-world spaces.” Bushnell is the eldest son of Atari cofounder Nolan Bushnell. And the younger Bushnell knows the costs of investing in physical properties, as he runs Two-Bit Circus in downtown Los Angeles. It’s built inside a physical warehouse, and Bushnell’s company has to pay for that property — even weathering the pandemic. But with DreamPark, he can reinvigorate a physical venue without investing anything in a new property. By contrast, a new virtual reality entertainment venue can cost more than $1 million to open. Hands-on demo DreamPark foundes in Yerba Buena Gardens park in San Francisco. Wolf and Habich, and Bushnell’s sister Alyssa Bushnell, showed me the DreamPark virtual theme park in San Francisco in the park near the Metreon building. There was a concert going on at the time and it was very noisy. But the game worked fine anyway. Looking down at my feet, Wolf said the QR code on the mat on the groun was an “access point.” That’s where you can scan and enter the virtual world. The company is still building a front end for distributing the headsets, but people will be able to bring their mixed-reality headsets from home and play the same content. “We’re setting these up all over,” Wolf said. “Once an area is mapped, it’s there and you just show up and play. The big difference here is that DreamParks are places. They exist in the real world.” Don’t be surprised if you see people doing this soon. The mapped area was around 50,000 square feet in the park, so it was a pretty big game space. Soon, the company will break into 100,000 square feet for the game with another update. That’s about 10 times the restricted size of Meta’s VR headsets. “We’re going way past the usual limits,” Wolf said. “I think this fundamentally changes what mixed reality means. Now it’s not this living room experience bound to the couch. It’s an actual world to walk around and explore and touch. Once we get people there, we’re gonna really see that cognitive shift, where now augmented reality (AR) is something I can go out and experience, like enjoying a concert.” The cofounders gave me a headset to wear. The first one didn’t work, but a second one functioned fine. It was a modified Meta Quest 3 headset that was locked down so it would play just the DreamPark game. It took a short time to load and then I looked through the headset. Thanks to the outward-facing cameras, I was able to see the park in mixed reality. That meant I didn’t trip over anything as I walked around. I held the headset to my forehead and looked around. I could see a Mario-like set of bricks floating in the air, and floating virtual coins along the physical path. I started walking around and picking up the coins and tapping the bricks to collect points in the game. I didn’t go where there were people lying on the grass, but I didn’t manage to navigate to some lava pits in the middle of the park. The founders pointed out that far away from me, on the Carnaval concert stage, there was a boss. Normally, if there was no concert, I could have waltzed over to that location and engaged in a boss fight. DreamPark overlaid on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, California. The graphics were rudimentary, 8-bit style, and yet I didn’t mind it at all due to the novelty of seeing them overlaid on the real world. Still, I was reluctant to go walking in the lava pits, as that was a bad idea in the virtual world and I somehow felt like it would be a bad idea to walk there in the physical world. “Our graphics are more cartoonish, but our Wizard theme has a more realistic look,” Wolf said. “We’re creating four theme parks.” One of them is a sci-fi Crash Course, which is an obstacle course. And DreamPark is working with a partner as well. There’s one with a psychedelic theme and one that is ambient fun. It’s easy to turn the experience into a multiplayer game. You can, for instance, race around the park and complete a timed experience in competition with your friends. The appeal of a virtual overlay on the real world DreamPark mixes the virtual and real worlds. DreamPark transforms physical locations into immersive mixed-reality environments through its network of access points: physical markers, like QR codes, that, when scanned with a Meta Quest 3 headset or mobile device, unlock digital overlays on real-world spaces. The company has already established successful installations at Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade and The LA County Fair, with planned expansions in Seattle, Orange County and several expos and corporate events. It’s pretty cheap to create new locations. All they really have to do is scan an area, overlay a digital game filled with simple games, and then drop a mat with a QR code on the property so people can scan it and start playing the game. For property owners, this means they can draw people back to their location, getting them to re-engage with the place because people want to play a digital game at the physical place. It’s a way to enhance the value of a physical property, using virtual entertainment. Bushnell pitched the idea for DreamPark on CNBC’s Shark Tank television show. The sharks didn’t go for it, but the publicity from the show helped surface investors, Bushnell said. (The Bushnell family is going to appear at Augmented World Expo in Long Beach, California, in June). “As a longtime investor, I have seen countless pitches promising to merge the digital and physical worlds, and DreamPark is the first that truly delivers on the real-world metaverse,” said Cyan Banister, cofounder and general partner at Long Journey Ventures, in a statement. “Aidan is a visionary builder of immersive systems, and Brent is a pioneer in playful public spaces, making them the perfect team to make emerging tech feel human, accessible, and unforgettable. They’ve cracked the code on location-based AR, delivering a 10x experience that’s as magical as it’s scalable. This isn’t just immersive entertainment; it’s a whole new category.” The funding comes when retail landlords and event venues seek innovative solutions to drive foot traffic and increase engagement. While typical VR venues cost over $1 million to build, DreamPark delivers a fully immersive, multiplayer experience that pays for itself in its first month of revenue. DreamPark in Santa Monica. “Our capital expense is like one of a hundredth of our competitors, which is amazing. And then this lets us move astronomically faster than everyone else. I kind of believe in a Nintendo philosophy, which is, they take antiquated technology, but they use it in a new way that makes it valuable. We’re using access points,” Wolf said. There’s no construction or permanent infrastructure required. It’s a radically more affordable way to turn underused spaces into high-impact destinations. “We’re not just creating engaging content, we’re building a platform that revitalizes communities by giving people a reason to gather, play, and connect in physical spaces in real life,” said Wolf. “DreamPark bridges the digital and physical worlds, creating a new category of play where the magic of virtual worlds enhances real-life connections. We’re reimagining what’s possible when the spaces around us become canvases for shared adventure and imagination.” The seed funding will support DreamPark’s aggressive expansion plans, including deploying access points across new locations, launching partnerships with major IP holders to create branded theme park experiences, and expanding the company’s fleet of rental Meta Quest 3 headsets units nationwide. DreamPark is growing the development team to accelerate content creation and platform capabilities. DreamPark’s leadership team brings deep experience from companies including Two-Bit Circus, Smiley Cap, and SNAP, Inc., positioning them to execute their ambitious vision of creating the infrastructure for worldwide mixed-reality entertainment. Where it’s going What alien technology is this? Bushnell said the team has been working for around two years. But the founders have been involved with AR for more than a decade. They showed up at Two-Bit Circus and started making mixed-reality games, which take into account physical reality as a game space. There are about 10 contractors in the company working on content. They found that players are happy to wear the headsets for 30 minutes at a time, particularly when they are playing with friends. “We see ourselves more as a tech company than like a location based entertainment company. We hope to stay small as a core team while still reaching millions or billions of people,” Wolf said.The games are in a private alpha testing phase now. “I would say that the headset we currently have in our hands is the exact headset we need to bring this to the masses. So the nice part about the company we’re building is we aren’t waiting for some like watershed moment,” Wolf said. “We’re not waiting for anything now. We’re just getting it into lots of places where people already congregate.”DreamPark is coming out with an app that will let users scan their local park and then start using that space as a level, Wolf said. But DreamPark itself will create partnerships with some of the best places itself and get permission to do the game on the properties. At Two-Bit Circus, for instance, DreamPark could extend the entertainment into the outdoor parking lot, giving more square footage for entertainment. Bushnell had a great moment when he was playing an AR game with drift racing on a racetrack in the Two-Bit Circus parking lot. He noted that mixed reality doesn’t have the Achilles Heel of VR, which is that it makes half the people nauseous. “That was really the moment that broke my brain for mixed reality,” he said. “We were on actual drift bikes, pedaling around collecting coins. And I went twice around that thing, chasing after somebody else on a drift bike. And, you know, my heart rate was at 150. And I was just absolutely going bananas. And I took the headset off, and all that world that had motivated me to pedal my ass off was gone. It just really felt like this is not just going to change entertainment. This is going to change therapy and fitness and learning.” Bushnell said so many other kinds of entertainment are based on deploying huge amounts of capital. But this kind of theme park could be up and running in a matter of minutes. Bushnell believes people will be happy to buy tickets to get a chance to play. He said his four-year-old kid loves it, as does his 82-year-old father. DreamPark is adding virtual entertainment to real venues. To me, it felt a bit like the beginning of the world of Cyberpunk 2077, while Bushnell said it reminded him of the Korean drama, The Memories of Alhambra, where people wear contact lenss displays and have an adventure overlaid on real streets. “These are beautiful places naturally. Let’s augment them with a little more cool storytelling, and you’re off and running,” Bushnell said. “The world is lonely and isolated, We think of this a path to being social again, getting people out in public. And we want to invite landlords of all stripes to host DreamParks.” GB Daily Stay in the know! Get the latest news in your inbox daily Read our Privacy Policy Thanks for subscribing. Check out more VB newsletters here. An error occured.
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  • Crypto billionaire Justin Sun showed off a $100K Trump watch after an exclusive dinner with the president — here's everything you should know about him

    Justin Sun received a Trump-branded watch at an exclusive dinner with President Donald Trump.

    Tyrone Siu/REUTERS

    2025-05-24T20:51:04Z

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    Justin Sun said he received a watch at an exclusive dinner with President Donald Trump.
    Sun, a billionaire and the founder of Tron, is a top backer of Trump's meme coin, $TRUMP.
    Sun is also known for expensive stunts in the art world and his legal troubles with the SEC.

    Crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun now has a Trump-branded watch on his arm, but he's no stranger to the high life.The billionaire was one of 220 top backers of President Donald Trump's meme coin, $TRUMP, who were invited to a special dinner with the president on May 22.At the event, Sun said he was gifted a Trump Tourbillon watch, which sells for — another of the Trump family's private business interests in addition to cryptocurrency.According to Forbes' real-time net worth tracker, the 34-year-old founder of Tron is estimated to be worth around billion.Here's everything to know about Sun — from his legal troubles to his purchase of a duct-taped banana.Sun's early life and educationSun grew up in a rural province of China and left home at a young age to study the strategy game "Go" in Wuhan, The Verge reported.Sun graduated from Peking University with a bachelor's degree in history in 2011. Two years later, he earned a master's degree in political economy from the University of Pennsylvania.Sun then attended Hupan University — a Chinese business school started by Alibaba cofounder Jack Ma in 2015 — where he wrote a thesis on the blockchain industry, titled "The Birth of a Decentralized Internet."Sun was the youngest member of Hupan's inaugural class, which included 30 students whom Ma recruited because he believed they could revolutionize the Chinese business world, the South China Morning Post reported. Sun graduated from Hupan in 2018.Sun's oldest Instagram photo shows him receiving a certificate from Ma. The caption reads, "Inspired by the best to shape the future for the better. "Sun's rise in the crypto worldSun worked at San Francisco-based crypto company, Ripple Labs, a cryptocurrency startup that has received backing from Google Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, and other blue-chip investors.In 2013, Sun founded a social chat room app called Peiwo. The app matched users with each other based on their interests and 10-second audio clips. However, China ultimately kicked Peiwo off the Android and Apple app stores and shut it down for disrupting "socialist values," The Verge reported.In 2017, Sun founded Tron, a blockchain company with its own cryptocurrency that is "dedicated to building the infrastructure for a truly decentralized internet." Tron says its network has over 308 million users on the blockchain and has had over 10.4 billion transactions.Less than a year later, Tron acquired BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file-sharing service, for a reported million.In 2022, Sun joined the Global Advisory Board of cryptocurrency exchange HTX, then known as Huobi Global.Personal life and Warren BuffettSun has amassed more than 3.8 million followers on X and 240,000 Instagram followers, where he has posted pictures of himself posing with celebrities such as Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant.
    Forbes included Sun in its 30 under 30 Asia list for Consumer Technology in 2017, and more recently, the outlet featured Sun as its digital daily cover in March of this year.In 2019, Sun bid million on an eBay-sponsored charity lunch with Warren Buffett. Sun said he planned to use the meal to convert Buffett, a notorious skeptic of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, into a true believer. Buffett has said bitcoin has "no unique value" and will ultimately become worthless, and derided it as a "delusion" and "probably rat poison squared."Sun postponed the dinner with Buffett, citing kidney stones, which sparked conspiracy theories that he was being pressured by China. But months later, Sun finally had his dinner with Buffett in January 2020, inviting eToro founder and CEO Yoni Assia, Litecoin creator Charlie Lee, and other crypto advocates to dine with them.Legal troubles and investment in World Liberty FinancialIn 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed charges against Sun and three of his companies — Tron Foundation, BitTorrent Foundation, and Rainberry.The federal agency accused Sun of offering and selling crypto asset securities without proper registration. Sun is also facing allegations of fraud for manipulating the market price of his cryptocurrency, TRX.Sun was additionally charged with not disclosing how much he compensated celebrities like Lindsay Lohan, Jake Paul, and Soulja Boy to promote his cryptocurrency, which would have violated federal securities laws.In December 2024, Sun purchased million in crypto tokens from World Liberty Financial, making him the largest investor in the new venture backed by Trump and his family. On February 26, the SEC filed a motion to pause its case against Sun and allowed a 60-day period to explore a potential settlement.Since then, Sun has invested an additional million in WLF. On January 22, Sun posted on X that if he "made any money in cryptocurrency, all credit goes to President Trump."A flashy lifestyleIn November 2024, Sun purchased Maurizio Cattelan's conceptual artwork titled Comedian, which consisted of a banana duct-taped to a wall, for million at a Sotheby's auction.The sale of the highly divisive piece significantly exceeded its estimated value of to million.Shortly after the acquisition, Sun consumed the banana during a press event in Hong Kong, stating that "the real value is the concept itself." He said that the act was not about destroying the artwork but about highlighting its ephemeral nature.At the live event, Sun also pledged to purchase 100,000 bananas from the New York street vendor who sold the original fruit used in the artwork."To thank Mr. Shah Alam, I've decided to buy 100,000 bananas from his stand in New York's Upper East Side," Sun wrote on X.This isn't the only time Sun splurged on artwork.In December 2021, he bought a Joker-themed NFT from the Bored Ape Yacht Club Tron collection for million, one of the most expensive NFT purchases.Sun also spent million on Giacometti's cast bronze sculpture Le Nez, adding to his collection of a million Picasso portrait of Marie-Thérese, a triptych of "fright wig" portraits by Andy Warhol for million, and KAWS' Untitledfor Artnet reported.Aside from art, Sun also spent million to secure a seat on a Blue Origin flight to space, which he revealed after winning the bid at auction for the first crewed mission on the New Shepard rocket.Samantha Delouya contributed to an earlier version of this post.
    #crypto #billionaire #justin #sun #showed
    Crypto billionaire Justin Sun showed off a $100K Trump watch after an exclusive dinner with the president — here's everything you should know about him
    Justin Sun received a Trump-branded watch at an exclusive dinner with President Donald Trump. Tyrone Siu/REUTERS 2025-05-24T20:51:04Z d Read in app This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Justin Sun said he received a watch at an exclusive dinner with President Donald Trump. Sun, a billionaire and the founder of Tron, is a top backer of Trump's meme coin, $TRUMP. Sun is also known for expensive stunts in the art world and his legal troubles with the SEC. Crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun now has a Trump-branded watch on his arm, but he's no stranger to the high life.The billionaire was one of 220 top backers of President Donald Trump's meme coin, $TRUMP, who were invited to a special dinner with the president on May 22.At the event, Sun said he was gifted a Trump Tourbillon watch, which sells for — another of the Trump family's private business interests in addition to cryptocurrency.According to Forbes' real-time net worth tracker, the 34-year-old founder of Tron is estimated to be worth around billion.Here's everything to know about Sun — from his legal troubles to his purchase of a duct-taped banana.Sun's early life and educationSun grew up in a rural province of China and left home at a young age to study the strategy game "Go" in Wuhan, The Verge reported.Sun graduated from Peking University with a bachelor's degree in history in 2011. Two years later, he earned a master's degree in political economy from the University of Pennsylvania.Sun then attended Hupan University — a Chinese business school started by Alibaba cofounder Jack Ma in 2015 — where he wrote a thesis on the blockchain industry, titled "The Birth of a Decentralized Internet."Sun was the youngest member of Hupan's inaugural class, which included 30 students whom Ma recruited because he believed they could revolutionize the Chinese business world, the South China Morning Post reported. Sun graduated from Hupan in 2018.Sun's oldest Instagram photo shows him receiving a certificate from Ma. The caption reads, "Inspired by the best to shape the future for the better. "Sun's rise in the crypto worldSun worked at San Francisco-based crypto company, Ripple Labs, a cryptocurrency startup that has received backing from Google Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, and other blue-chip investors.In 2013, Sun founded a social chat room app called Peiwo. The app matched users with each other based on their interests and 10-second audio clips. However, China ultimately kicked Peiwo off the Android and Apple app stores and shut it down for disrupting "socialist values," The Verge reported.In 2017, Sun founded Tron, a blockchain company with its own cryptocurrency that is "dedicated to building the infrastructure for a truly decentralized internet." Tron says its network has over 308 million users on the blockchain and has had over 10.4 billion transactions.Less than a year later, Tron acquired BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file-sharing service, for a reported million.In 2022, Sun joined the Global Advisory Board of cryptocurrency exchange HTX, then known as Huobi Global.Personal life and Warren BuffettSun has amassed more than 3.8 million followers on X and 240,000 Instagram followers, where he has posted pictures of himself posing with celebrities such as Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. Forbes included Sun in its 30 under 30 Asia list for Consumer Technology in 2017, and more recently, the outlet featured Sun as its digital daily cover in March of this year.In 2019, Sun bid million on an eBay-sponsored charity lunch with Warren Buffett. Sun said he planned to use the meal to convert Buffett, a notorious skeptic of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, into a true believer. Buffett has said bitcoin has "no unique value" and will ultimately become worthless, and derided it as a "delusion" and "probably rat poison squared."Sun postponed the dinner with Buffett, citing kidney stones, which sparked conspiracy theories that he was being pressured by China. But months later, Sun finally had his dinner with Buffett in January 2020, inviting eToro founder and CEO Yoni Assia, Litecoin creator Charlie Lee, and other crypto advocates to dine with them.Legal troubles and investment in World Liberty FinancialIn 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed charges against Sun and three of his companies — Tron Foundation, BitTorrent Foundation, and Rainberry.The federal agency accused Sun of offering and selling crypto asset securities without proper registration. Sun is also facing allegations of fraud for manipulating the market price of his cryptocurrency, TRX.Sun was additionally charged with not disclosing how much he compensated celebrities like Lindsay Lohan, Jake Paul, and Soulja Boy to promote his cryptocurrency, which would have violated federal securities laws.In December 2024, Sun purchased million in crypto tokens from World Liberty Financial, making him the largest investor in the new venture backed by Trump and his family. On February 26, the SEC filed a motion to pause its case against Sun and allowed a 60-day period to explore a potential settlement.Since then, Sun has invested an additional million in WLF. On January 22, Sun posted on X that if he "made any money in cryptocurrency, all credit goes to President Trump."A flashy lifestyleIn November 2024, Sun purchased Maurizio Cattelan's conceptual artwork titled Comedian, which consisted of a banana duct-taped to a wall, for million at a Sotheby's auction.The sale of the highly divisive piece significantly exceeded its estimated value of to million.Shortly after the acquisition, Sun consumed the banana during a press event in Hong Kong, stating that "the real value is the concept itself." He said that the act was not about destroying the artwork but about highlighting its ephemeral nature.At the live event, Sun also pledged to purchase 100,000 bananas from the New York street vendor who sold the original fruit used in the artwork."To thank Mr. Shah Alam, I've decided to buy 100,000 bananas from his stand in New York's Upper East Side," Sun wrote on X.This isn't the only time Sun splurged on artwork.In December 2021, he bought a Joker-themed NFT from the Bored Ape Yacht Club Tron collection for million, one of the most expensive NFT purchases.Sun also spent million on Giacometti's cast bronze sculpture Le Nez, adding to his collection of a million Picasso portrait of Marie-Thérese, a triptych of "fright wig" portraits by Andy Warhol for million, and KAWS' Untitledfor Artnet reported.Aside from art, Sun also spent million to secure a seat on a Blue Origin flight to space, which he revealed after winning the bid at auction for the first crewed mission on the New Shepard rocket.Samantha Delouya contributed to an earlier version of this post. #crypto #billionaire #justin #sun #showed
    WWW.BUSINESSINSIDER.COM
    Crypto billionaire Justin Sun showed off a $100K Trump watch after an exclusive dinner with the president — here's everything you should know about him
    Justin Sun received a $100,000 Trump-branded watch at an exclusive dinner with President Donald Trump. Tyrone Siu/REUTERS 2025-05-24T20:51:04Z Save Saved Read in app This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Justin Sun said he received a $100,000 watch at an exclusive dinner with President Donald Trump. Sun, a billionaire and the founder of Tron, is a top backer of Trump's meme coin, $TRUMP. Sun is also known for expensive stunts in the art world and his legal troubles with the SEC. Crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun now has a $100,000 Trump-branded watch on his arm, but he's no stranger to the high life.The billionaire was one of 220 top backers of President Donald Trump's meme coin, $TRUMP, who were invited to a special dinner with the president on May 22.At the event, Sun said he was gifted a Trump Tourbillon watch, which sells for $100,000 — another of the Trump family's private business interests in addition to cryptocurrency.According to Forbes' real-time net worth tracker, the 34-year-old founder of Tron is estimated to be worth around $8.5 billion.Here's everything to know about Sun — from his legal troubles to his purchase of a duct-taped banana.Sun's early life and educationSun grew up in a rural province of China and left home at a young age to study the strategy game "Go" in Wuhan, The Verge reported.Sun graduated from Peking University with a bachelor's degree in history in 2011. Two years later, he earned a master's degree in political economy from the University of Pennsylvania.Sun then attended Hupan University — a Chinese business school started by Alibaba cofounder Jack Ma in 2015 — where he wrote a thesis on the blockchain industry, titled "The Birth of a Decentralized Internet."Sun was the youngest member of Hupan's inaugural class, which included 30 students whom Ma recruited because he believed they could revolutionize the Chinese business world, the South China Morning Post reported. Sun graduated from Hupan in 2018.Sun's oldest Instagram photo shows him receiving a certificate from Ma. The caption reads, "Inspired by the best to shape the future for the better. "Sun's rise in the crypto worldSun worked at San Francisco-based crypto company, Ripple Labs, a cryptocurrency startup that has received backing from Google Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, and other blue-chip investors.In 2013, Sun founded a social chat room app called Peiwo. The app matched users with each other based on their interests and 10-second audio clips. However, China ultimately kicked Peiwo off the Android and Apple app stores and shut it down for disrupting "socialist values," The Verge reported.In 2017, Sun founded Tron, a blockchain company with its own cryptocurrency that is "dedicated to building the infrastructure for a truly decentralized internet." Tron says its network has over 308 million users on the blockchain and has had over 10.4 billion transactions.Less than a year later, Tron acquired BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file-sharing service, for a reported $126 million.In 2022, Sun joined the Global Advisory Board of cryptocurrency exchange HTX, then known as Huobi Global.Personal life and Warren BuffettSun has amassed more than 3.8 million followers on X and 240,000 Instagram followers, where he has posted pictures of himself posing with celebrities such as Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. Forbes included Sun in its 30 under 30 Asia list for Consumer Technology in 2017, and more recently, the outlet featured Sun as its digital daily cover in March of this year.In 2019, Sun bid $4.57 million on an eBay-sponsored charity lunch with Warren Buffett. Sun said he planned to use the meal to convert Buffett, a notorious skeptic of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, into a true believer. Buffett has said bitcoin has "no unique value" and will ultimately become worthless, and derided it as a "delusion" and "probably rat poison squared."Sun postponed the dinner with Buffett, citing kidney stones, which sparked conspiracy theories that he was being pressured by China. But months later, Sun finally had his dinner with Buffett in January 2020, inviting eToro founder and CEO Yoni Assia, Litecoin creator Charlie Lee, and other crypto advocates to dine with them.Legal troubles and investment in World Liberty FinancialIn 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed charges against Sun and three of his companies — Tron Foundation, BitTorrent Foundation, and Rainberry.The federal agency accused Sun of offering and selling crypto asset securities without proper registration. Sun is also facing allegations of fraud for manipulating the market price of his cryptocurrency, TRX.Sun was additionally charged with not disclosing how much he compensated celebrities like Lindsay Lohan, Jake Paul, and Soulja Boy to promote his cryptocurrency, which would have violated federal securities laws.In December 2024, Sun purchased $30 million in crypto tokens from World Liberty Financial, making him the largest investor in the new venture backed by Trump and his family. On February 26, the SEC filed a motion to pause its case against Sun and allowed a 60-day period to explore a potential settlement.Since then, Sun has invested an additional $45 million in WLF. On January 22, Sun posted on X that if he "made any money in cryptocurrency, all credit goes to President Trump."A flashy lifestyleIn November 2024, Sun purchased Maurizio Cattelan's conceptual artwork titled Comedian, which consisted of a banana duct-taped to a wall, for $6.2 million at a Sotheby's auction.The sale of the highly divisive piece significantly exceeded its estimated value of $1 to $1.5 million.Shortly after the acquisition, Sun consumed the banana during a press event in Hong Kong, stating that "the real value is the concept itself." He said that the act was not about destroying the artwork but about highlighting its ephemeral nature.At the live event, Sun also pledged to purchase 100,000 bananas from the New York street vendor who sold the original fruit used in the artwork."To thank Mr. Shah Alam, I've decided to buy 100,000 bananas from his stand in New York's Upper East Side," Sun wrote on X.This isn't the only time Sun splurged on artwork.In December 2021, he bought a Joker-themed NFT from the Bored Ape Yacht Club Tron collection for $15 million, one of the most expensive NFT purchases.Sun also spent $78.4 million on Giacometti's cast bronze sculpture Le Nez, adding to his collection of a $20 million Picasso portrait of Marie-Thérese, a triptych of "fright wig" portraits by Andy Warhol for $2 million, and KAWS' Untitled (Kimpsons) for $323,647, Artnet reported.Aside from art, Sun also spent $28 million to secure a seat on a Blue Origin flight to space, which he revealed after winning the bid at auction for the first crewed mission on the New Shepard rocket.Samantha Delouya contributed to an earlier version of this post.
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  • Doctor Who Series 15 Episode 7 Review: Wish World

    Warning: contains spoilers for Doctor Who episode “Wish World”.
    In the penultimate episode of this season, John Smith and his loving wife Belinda live a picture-perfect life in suburbia with their very real daughter Poppy. Conrad Clark promises beautiful weather and tells light-hearted, very not-portentous stories on the TV, giant bone creatures stride across London, and everything is very normal. But Ruby Sunday is having doubts…
    How many ideas are too many?

    It’s a question that has nagged while watching this season of Doctor Who. While it’s arguably indecorous to snipe at previous eras of the show, it did sometimes feel like the Chibnall administration struggled to rustle up one killer idea per episode. That’s not been the problem with the second Russell T Davies epoch – quite the opposite, in fact. Granted, complaining about Doctor Who taking big swings is kind of like complaining about water being wet, but I’m not sure you can build a TV show on big swings alone. There are tons of ideas at play, and energy to spare, but the connective tissue isn’t always there to tie it all together.

    “Wish World”so much going on in this episode – we have to get to grips with an entirely new alternate reality, and our familiar characters’ new roles within it. We have the two Ranis, another new member of the Pantheon, Shirley’s ragtag crew of dispossessed freedom fighters, shots at reactionary conservatism, ableism, homophobia and tradwife aesthetics. The Seal of Rassilon is there. And then the climactic revelation that all this is merely a means to an end, as the Rani’strue objective becomes clear – to burrow beneath the surface of reality and find Omega, an all-powerful figure from ancient Time Lord history.
    It would be overstating it to say that the episode falls apart round about the time that Rani Primestarts monologuing to a confused Doctor about her dastardly scheme, but it’s where the cracks really start to show. It’s not the most elegant exposition that Davies has ever written, even if he does hang a cheeky lampshade on it by having the Rani explicitly refer to it as such, and making it part of her scheme. Steven Moffat tended to excel at these sorts of whirling expository scenes where everything falls into place, whereas here it very much feels like a rushed info dump connecting a bunch of disparate elements that haven’t all been adequately set up.
    It’s also here that the structure of ‘lots of ideas carried along with manic energy and high production values’ really creaks. Spending time in the wish world is great fun, with all the joys of mirror universe style stories, seeing everybody forced into perversely inappropriate roles and trying to work out exactly how this world works – or doesn’t work, as the case may be. There are lots of little grace notes, like Colonel Ibrahim’s horrified reaction when the Doctor unthinkingly reassures him that he’s “a beautiful man”, or the fascinating scene between Conrad and Mrs Flood, showing us the strain that keeping the wish alive is having on Conrad, and his uneasy relationship with the creepily chuckling god baby.
    But then the Rani starts monologuing, and it’s revealed that all of this – two years of Mrs Flood hints, the Pantheon, Conrad, the vindicators, the destruction of Earth, the wish world – is in service of reaching back into the dim and distant past of Gallifrey and finding an ancient Time Lord. A character who, if memory serves, hasn’t appeared on TV since the 1980s, apart from a blink-and-you-miss-it cameo in 2020’s “The Timeless Children”.
    It’s impossible to properly judge this reveal until we’ve seen next week’s “The Reality War”, but based on first impressions, it’s hard to feel terribly excited about the return of Omega. For an episode that’s generally so weird and spiky, and full of wonderfully unsettling imagery, finding out that it’s all building towards the reveal of a figure who really belongs in the Wilderness Years does feel a tad anticlimactic. More than that, it feels fundamentally backwards-looking, which is a bizarre thing to be saying in a review of an episode that features a giggling god baby who grants wishes. Terrifying god babies that grant wishes are not something we’ve explored much in Doctor Who, whereas ancient Time Lord history really feels like it’s been done to death.
    Of course, it could all be a feint. Perhaps the twist will be that it was about the terrifying god baby all along, and Omega will remain in the dustbin of history. But, as with last season’s reveal of Sutekh, it almost feels as though Russell T Davies – who was so careful with how he rationed out classic series characters and references during his first run – is making up for lost time by playing with as much Doctor Who lore as he can get his hands on while he has the budget to visualise it, whether it’s the most dramatically compelling choice or not. And it contributes to the uneasy feeling that, while there are plenty of new ideas being introduced in this era, the inexorable gravity of Doctor Who’s mythos is always going to overpower them, so even something as bananas as a wish-granting god baby ultimately plays second fiddle.

    Admittedly, fans do like to see stuff they recognise. I am a fan. I like to see stuff I recognise. But we should not be indulged!

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    As underwhelming as the Omega reveal is, it doesn’t scupper the episode, which is full of great little moments. Belinda rushing off into the countryside to scream is chilling – Varada Sethu is brilliant throughout, convincingly embodying a different character while still being recognisable, and her gradual horrified realisations are very well played. Ncuti Gatwa is arguably the version of the Doctor who looks the most ill at ease wearing a boring suit and doing normal domestic stuff, so that’s all compellingly off-kilter – even if it would be nice if he woke up from the illusion a bit earlier. Conrad’s sneering and the Rani’s monologuing don’t have quite the same dramatic impact when triumphantly directed at a guy who barely knows who or where he is.
    The dynamic between Mrs Flood and Rani Prime is also a lot of fun, and the design of Wish World is brilliant, from the Tim Burton-esque identikit suburbia, the bone creatures and the weird cyber-bondage drone things, down to Connor’s sharp white suit. As ever, in terms of production design and visuals, the show is firing on all cylinders. And while Davies is far from subtle when writing about social issues, the idea of the ignored and dispossessed rising up to save a society that has forsaken them is the kind of radical undercurrent that feels appropriately Doctor Who.
    But will they stick the landing? Will the Doctor escape the mother of all cliffhangers? Will we find out what’s going on with Poppy? Will we see more of Rogue? Where is Susan?
    And will Conrad get to finish his sandwich?
    Reservations aside, I’m excited to find out.

    Doctor Who series 15 concludes with “The Reality War” on Saturday May 31 on BBC One in the UK and Disney+ around the world.
    #doctor #who #series #episode #review
    Doctor Who Series 15 Episode 7 Review: Wish World
    Warning: contains spoilers for Doctor Who episode “Wish World”. In the penultimate episode of this season, John Smith and his loving wife Belinda live a picture-perfect life in suburbia with their very real daughter Poppy. Conrad Clark promises beautiful weather and tells light-hearted, very not-portentous stories on the TV, giant bone creatures stride across London, and everything is very normal. But Ruby Sunday is having doubts… How many ideas are too many? It’s a question that has nagged while watching this season of Doctor Who. While it’s arguably indecorous to snipe at previous eras of the show, it did sometimes feel like the Chibnall administration struggled to rustle up one killer idea per episode. That’s not been the problem with the second Russell T Davies epoch – quite the opposite, in fact. Granted, complaining about Doctor Who taking big swings is kind of like complaining about water being wet, but I’m not sure you can build a TV show on big swings alone. There are tons of ideas at play, and energy to spare, but the connective tissue isn’t always there to tie it all together. “Wish World”so much going on in this episode – we have to get to grips with an entirely new alternate reality, and our familiar characters’ new roles within it. We have the two Ranis, another new member of the Pantheon, Shirley’s ragtag crew of dispossessed freedom fighters, shots at reactionary conservatism, ableism, homophobia and tradwife aesthetics. The Seal of Rassilon is there. And then the climactic revelation that all this is merely a means to an end, as the Rani’strue objective becomes clear – to burrow beneath the surface of reality and find Omega, an all-powerful figure from ancient Time Lord history. It would be overstating it to say that the episode falls apart round about the time that Rani Primestarts monologuing to a confused Doctor about her dastardly scheme, but it’s where the cracks really start to show. It’s not the most elegant exposition that Davies has ever written, even if he does hang a cheeky lampshade on it by having the Rani explicitly refer to it as such, and making it part of her scheme. Steven Moffat tended to excel at these sorts of whirling expository scenes where everything falls into place, whereas here it very much feels like a rushed info dump connecting a bunch of disparate elements that haven’t all been adequately set up. It’s also here that the structure of ‘lots of ideas carried along with manic energy and high production values’ really creaks. Spending time in the wish world is great fun, with all the joys of mirror universe style stories, seeing everybody forced into perversely inappropriate roles and trying to work out exactly how this world works – or doesn’t work, as the case may be. There are lots of little grace notes, like Colonel Ibrahim’s horrified reaction when the Doctor unthinkingly reassures him that he’s “a beautiful man”, or the fascinating scene between Conrad and Mrs Flood, showing us the strain that keeping the wish alive is having on Conrad, and his uneasy relationship with the creepily chuckling god baby. But then the Rani starts monologuing, and it’s revealed that all of this – two years of Mrs Flood hints, the Pantheon, Conrad, the vindicators, the destruction of Earth, the wish world – is in service of reaching back into the dim and distant past of Gallifrey and finding an ancient Time Lord. A character who, if memory serves, hasn’t appeared on TV since the 1980s, apart from a blink-and-you-miss-it cameo in 2020’s “The Timeless Children”. It’s impossible to properly judge this reveal until we’ve seen next week’s “The Reality War”, but based on first impressions, it’s hard to feel terribly excited about the return of Omega. For an episode that’s generally so weird and spiky, and full of wonderfully unsettling imagery, finding out that it’s all building towards the reveal of a figure who really belongs in the Wilderness Years does feel a tad anticlimactic. More than that, it feels fundamentally backwards-looking, which is a bizarre thing to be saying in a review of an episode that features a giggling god baby who grants wishes. Terrifying god babies that grant wishes are not something we’ve explored much in Doctor Who, whereas ancient Time Lord history really feels like it’s been done to death. Of course, it could all be a feint. Perhaps the twist will be that it was about the terrifying god baby all along, and Omega will remain in the dustbin of history. But, as with last season’s reveal of Sutekh, it almost feels as though Russell T Davies – who was so careful with how he rationed out classic series characters and references during his first run – is making up for lost time by playing with as much Doctor Who lore as he can get his hands on while he has the budget to visualise it, whether it’s the most dramatically compelling choice or not. And it contributes to the uneasy feeling that, while there are plenty of new ideas being introduced in this era, the inexorable gravity of Doctor Who’s mythos is always going to overpower them, so even something as bananas as a wish-granting god baby ultimately plays second fiddle. Admittedly, fans do like to see stuff they recognise. I am a fan. I like to see stuff I recognise. But we should not be indulged! Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! As underwhelming as the Omega reveal is, it doesn’t scupper the episode, which is full of great little moments. Belinda rushing off into the countryside to scream is chilling – Varada Sethu is brilliant throughout, convincingly embodying a different character while still being recognisable, and her gradual horrified realisations are very well played. Ncuti Gatwa is arguably the version of the Doctor who looks the most ill at ease wearing a boring suit and doing normal domestic stuff, so that’s all compellingly off-kilter – even if it would be nice if he woke up from the illusion a bit earlier. Conrad’s sneering and the Rani’s monologuing don’t have quite the same dramatic impact when triumphantly directed at a guy who barely knows who or where he is. The dynamic between Mrs Flood and Rani Prime is also a lot of fun, and the design of Wish World is brilliant, from the Tim Burton-esque identikit suburbia, the bone creatures and the weird cyber-bondage drone things, down to Connor’s sharp white suit. As ever, in terms of production design and visuals, the show is firing on all cylinders. And while Davies is far from subtle when writing about social issues, the idea of the ignored and dispossessed rising up to save a society that has forsaken them is the kind of radical undercurrent that feels appropriately Doctor Who. But will they stick the landing? Will the Doctor escape the mother of all cliffhangers? Will we find out what’s going on with Poppy? Will we see more of Rogue? Where is Susan? And will Conrad get to finish his sandwich? Reservations aside, I’m excited to find out. Doctor Who series 15 concludes with “The Reality War” on Saturday May 31 on BBC One in the UK and Disney+ around the world. #doctor #who #series #episode #review
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    Doctor Who Series 15 Episode 7 Review: Wish World
    Warning: contains spoilers for Doctor Who episode “Wish World”. In the penultimate episode of this season, John Smith and his loving wife Belinda live a picture-perfect life in suburbia with their very real daughter Poppy. Conrad Clark promises beautiful weather and tells light-hearted, very not-portentous stories on the TV, giant bone creatures stride across London, and everything is very normal. But Ruby Sunday is having doubts… How many ideas are too many? It’s a question that has nagged while watching this season of Doctor Who. While it’s arguably indecorous to snipe at previous eras of the show, it did sometimes feel like the Chibnall administration struggled to rustle up one killer idea per episode. That’s not been the problem with the second Russell T Davies epoch – quite the opposite, in fact. Granted, complaining about Doctor Who taking big swings is kind of like complaining about water being wet, but I’m not sure you can build a TV show on big swings alone. There are tons of ideas at play, and energy to spare (something the Chibnall era also often lacked), but the connective tissue isn’t always there to tie it all together. “Wish World”so much going on in this episode – we have to get to grips with an entirely new alternate reality, and our familiar characters’ new roles within it. We have the two Ranis, another new member of the Pantheon (a “terrifying” mystical baby with the power to grant wishes), Shirley’s ragtag crew of dispossessed freedom fighters, shots at reactionary conservatism, ableism, homophobia and tradwife aesthetics. The Seal of Rassilon is there. And then the climactic revelation that all this is merely a means to an end, as the Rani’s (Ranis’?) true objective becomes clear – to burrow beneath the surface of reality and find Omega, an all-powerful figure from ancient Time Lord history. It would be overstating it to say that the episode falls apart round about the time that Rani Prime (Archie Panjabi, having great fun chewing the appropriate quantity of scenery) starts monologuing to a confused Doctor about her dastardly scheme, but it’s where the cracks really start to show. It’s not the most elegant exposition that Davies has ever written, even if he does hang a cheeky lampshade on it by having the Rani explicitly refer to it as such, and making it part of her scheme. Steven Moffat tended to excel at these sorts of whirling expository scenes where everything falls into place, whereas here it very much feels like a rushed info dump connecting a bunch of disparate elements that haven’t all been adequately set up. It’s also here that the structure of ‘lots of ideas carried along with manic energy and high production values’ really creaks. Spending time in the wish world is great fun, with all the joys of mirror universe style stories, seeing everybody forced into perversely inappropriate roles and trying to work out exactly how this world works – or doesn’t work, as the case may be. There are lots of little grace notes, like Colonel Ibrahim’s horrified reaction when the Doctor unthinkingly reassures him that he’s “a beautiful man”, or the fascinating scene between Conrad and Mrs Flood, showing us the strain that keeping the wish alive is having on Conrad, and his uneasy relationship with the creepily chuckling god baby. But then the Rani starts monologuing, and it’s revealed that all of this – two years of Mrs Flood hints, the Pantheon, Conrad, the vindicators, the destruction of Earth, the wish world – is in service of reaching back into the dim and distant past of Gallifrey and finding an ancient Time Lord. A character who, if memory serves, hasn’t appeared on TV since the 1980s, apart from a blink-and-you-miss-it cameo in 2020’s “The Timeless Children”. It’s impossible to properly judge this reveal until we’ve seen next week’s “The Reality War”, but based on first impressions, it’s hard to feel terribly excited about the return of Omega. For an episode that’s generally so weird and spiky, and full of wonderfully unsettling imagery (like the baby’s mother gently collapsing into a pile of flowers), finding out that it’s all building towards the reveal of a figure who really belongs in the Wilderness Years does feel a tad anticlimactic. More than that, it feels fundamentally backwards-looking, which is a bizarre thing to be saying in a review of an episode that features a giggling god baby who grants wishes. Terrifying god babies that grant wishes are not something we’ve explored much in Doctor Who, whereas ancient Time Lord history really feels like it’s been done to death. Of course, it could all be a feint. Perhaps the twist will be that it was about the terrifying god baby all along, and Omega will remain in the dustbin of history. But, as with last season’s reveal of Sutekh, it almost feels as though Russell T Davies – who was so careful with how he rationed out classic series characters and references during his first run – is making up for lost time by playing with as much Doctor Who lore as he can get his hands on while he has the budget to visualise it, whether it’s the most dramatically compelling choice or not. And it contributes to the uneasy feeling that, while there are plenty of new ideas being introduced in this era, the inexorable gravity of Doctor Who’s mythos is always going to overpower them, so even something as bananas as a wish-granting god baby ultimately plays second fiddle. Admittedly, fans do like to see stuff they recognise. I am a fan. I like to see stuff I recognise. But we should not be indulged! Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! As underwhelming as the Omega reveal is, it doesn’t scupper the episode, which is full of great little moments. Belinda rushing off into the countryside to scream is chilling – Varada Sethu is brilliant throughout, convincingly embodying a different character while still being recognisable, and her gradual horrified realisations are very well played. Ncuti Gatwa is arguably the version of the Doctor who looks the most ill at ease wearing a boring suit and doing normal domestic stuff, so that’s all compellingly off-kilter – even if it would be nice if he woke up from the illusion a bit earlier. Conrad’s sneering and the Rani’s monologuing don’t have quite the same dramatic impact when triumphantly directed at a guy who barely knows who or where he is. The dynamic between Mrs Flood and Rani Prime is also a lot of fun, and the design of Wish World is brilliant, from the Tim Burton-esque identikit suburbia, the bone creatures and the weird cyber-bondage drone things, down to Connor’s sharp white suit. As ever, in terms of production design and visuals, the show is firing on all cylinders. And while Davies is far from subtle when writing about social issues (did we really need two instances of Ruby being clumsily steered into making ableist microaggressions just so the others could chastise her for them?), the idea of the ignored and dispossessed rising up to save a society that has forsaken them is the kind of radical undercurrent that feels appropriately Doctor Who. But will they stick the landing? Will the Doctor escape the mother of all cliffhangers? Will we find out what’s going on with Poppy? Will we see more of Rogue? Where is Susan? And will Conrad get to finish his sandwich? Reservations aside, I’m excited to find out. Doctor Who series 15 concludes with “The Reality War” on Saturday May 31 on BBC One in the UK and Disney+ around the world.
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