The best roguelike games offer a serious but rewarding commitment, inviting you to lose time and time again until you reach new heights. And then you get to repeat the process while retaining knowledge that shapes your future sessions, improving your skills with each subsequent run.The best roguelike games follow the philosophy of randomizing existing game elements and providing a different experience every time you start a new run, with the condition that a game over screen means restarting from scratch. The roguelite distinction is similar, but it involves permanent progression, be it in the form of story, unlockable paths, items, and so on.Our selection of the best roguelike games has something for every player, regardless of platform and subgenre of choice. Our picks intersect with rhythm, deckbuilding, platforming, puzzle, and shooter games, to name a few. The roguelike and roguelite genres keep gaining more ground as pillars for design choices, meaning that some of the games on this list will ring familiar with the selections in our best PS5 games and best PC game lists. You'll also find some overlap with our recommendations for the best indie games to play right now.As the middle of 2025 draws near, choosing the best roguelike games becomes tougher with each passing day. The likes of Nuclear Throne, The Binding of Isaac, and Enter the Gungeon progressively marked their place in the genre years ago. Now, roguelikes and roguelites are in abundance, with game developers coming up with novel spins and pushing the genre forward.Whether you're looking for something more traditional or a unique take on a genre that is brimming with creativity, our best roguelike games list is bound to add a few new experiences to have on your radar. BalatroDeveloper: LocalThunkRelease Date: February 20, 2024Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCIf you've seen your loved ones spending way too much time on their phones during the past year, it's likely due to LocalThunk's engrossing take on poker. Balatro is deceptively simple: Look at your hand, think of the combination that will net you the most points, and see the numbers go up.As you slowly make your way to tougher levels, gaining additional cards that multiply said score while granting an array of often absurd bonuses, you'll immediately understand the appeal. Balatro is not about poker, nor is it just a roguelike. It's a numbers game where you can rig the rules in your favor. Its challenges are hypnotizing, but once you achieve victory for the first time, it'll take you a while to play anything else. See at Amazon Pacific DriveDeveloper: Ironwood StudiosRelease Date: February 22, 2024Platforms: PlayStation 5, PCPacific Drive is not technically a roguelite, even if it shares quite a few similarities in how you navigate its world, picking up key items and tackling objectives as you escape from weather anomalies from the inside of your car. The Endless Expeditions update, however, does push the game toward that direction.Released on April 3 of this year, Expeditions takes you outside of the campaign and into a randomized map with modifiers and rewards, the latter including cosmetics and unique tools. The trick is that you won't be able to stock up on resources, as you're forced to scavenge and build your inventory from scratch each time.Expeditions only end once you've collected enough anchors on a map. The longer this takes, however, the harder the task will become, with anomalies gearing up in difficulty. If you're looking for an extra challenge or an interesting twist on the Pacific Drive formula, Expeditions is the answer.Fanatical and GameSpot are both owned by Fandom. See at Fanatical Dead CellsDeveloper: Motion TwinRelease Date: August 6, 2018Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCDead Cells is one of the pioneers of the new wave of roguelites of the past few years. Ever since its conception, developer Motion Twin set out to build an ambitious foundation--prioritizing a breakneck rhythm and flow in movement and attacks, rewarding fast reflexes and improvisation on the spot.The team continued to work on the game over the years, delivering a total of 35 major updates, expanding and ironing out possibly every element inside out. If at some point you think the base game doesn't have enough to offer, there are five DLCs (one of them free), including the Return to Castlevania expansion. As it stands, there might never be another game like Dead Cells, and that's okay. We'll still be playing it for years to come, while also witnessing the team trying out new ideas, such as the co-op roguelite Windblown, which is an early access game to watch. See at Fanatical Deep Rock Galactic: SurvivorDeveloper: Funday GamesRelease Date: February 14, 2024Platforms: PCIf you're a Left 4 Dead 2 fan, chances are that you've heard of Deep Rock Galactic, which takes the structure of the zombie-driven shooter and takes it in a different direction, featuring dwarves in space, alien monsters, and destructible environments. Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor, however, takes things even further.Released in Steam early access back on February 14, 2024, you're taken onto increasingly harder levels where your dwarf of choice attacks automatically. The Survivor-like is presented in a top-down perspective, with the mining mechanic taking center stage to unlock upgrades during runs and improve your chances.There have been four sizable updates, but even in its infancy, developer Funday Games struck gold when mining for resources. The combination of its existing setting with the roguelike genre is an enticing one. See at Steam Hades 2Developer: Supergiant GamesRelease Date: May 6, 2024Platforms: PCDeveloper Supergiant Games has famously never done sequels before--until Hades 2. The sequel follows the events of the first game, in which Zagreus, son of the Greek god of the underworld, fought his way to the surface. Now, his sister Melinöe is tasked with defeating Chronos, the god of time itself, who's posing a threat unknown to everyone to this point.The roguelite is similar in nature to its predecessor, advancing the story with each victorious or failed run, gradually uncovering layer upon layer of new characters, powers to combine and grow stronger with, and even more features to further customize your experience. Hades 2 is still in early access, but there's a ridiculous amount of story and challenges to go through. Plus, the sequel is one of the first games confirmed for the Nintendo Switch 2. The 1.0 release date is yet to be confirmed, but Supergiant is targeting 2025. See at Steam Darkest Dungeon 2Developer: Red Hook StudiosRelease Date: May 8, 2024Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCDarkest Dungeon 2 entered early access in October 2021, with the full launch taking place on May 8. It had a tall order--surpassing the inimitable Darkest Dungeon, a tough roguelike centered around stress as a mechanic, with characters being driven mad or, on occasion, becoming inspired by the embrace of darkness and presence of heinous monsters.The sequel moves away from the structure of its predecessor, where you explored different biomes while managing resources and upgrading a home base. Now, it follows a structure similar to modern roguelite conventions, where you choose from different paths that are labeled with the rewards and challenges awaiting on the roads.While the combat shares some similarities, many new features shake up previous foundations, from playable origin stories for each hero to the affinity system, which takes the stress mechanic of the first game and adds a communal element to it by leading to different relationship archetypes between party members. Despite the change in presentation with more bells and whistles, Darkest Dungeon 2 retains the spirit of the first game--it's a visceral, tough-as-nails adventure that demands patience to overcome. See at Fanatical Rogue Legacy 2Developer: Cellar Door GamesRelease Date: April 28, 2022Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCWhen the original Rogue Legacy launched in 2013, its combination of metroidvania with roguelite elements was already promising. Yet, it pushed things further with a genius feature where, each time you die, one of your children succeeds you. The trick? Everybody has unique traits, from gigantism and baldness to color blindness and dyslexia, which would have gameplay impacts from the beneficial to the hilarious.Rogue Legacy 2 pushes the novelty with even more traits and classes, including a bard and a dragon lancer. The metroidvania aspect has also been improved with the addition of unique items that permanently unlock abilities to further explore the world and unveil its secrets. It's a sequel that successfully ticks every box a sequel must, and does so with a familiar grace and humor that still has a lot to offer over a decade later. See at Steam Spelunky 2Developer: Mossmouth and BlitWorksRelease Date: September 29, 2020Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCSpelunky is the classic go-to recommendation for a roguelike with ironclad design. The platformer with an Indiana Jones spirit made for one of the most challenging roguelites out there, requiring patience and the willingness to study every possible enemy pattern, trap, and miscalculation that can end your run, and then memorize it all for the next attempt.Spelunky 2 is a showcase of refinement upon refinement. Sure, it's touted with a bigger world with new areas to study, multiple routes to find and take advantage of, and an assortment of features meant to subvert long-standing fans' expectations. The sequel's greatest trick, however, is once again proving that meticulously thought design can elevate good ideas to admirable heights. The only way to improve is to keep trying, over and over, until surpassing the obstacles in your way becomes second nature. And then you get to do it all over again in the following area. See at Steam Slay the SpireDeveloper: Mega CritRelease Date: January 23, 2019Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCDeck-building has become a popular marriage candidate for roguelites, and Slay the Spire might be one of the games responsible for its popularity. The premise is simple: You pick a character who has a predefined card deck and jump into a procedurally generated run. The rewards, obstacles, and challenges roaming your chosen paths are always different, demanding different strategies.As you make your way through a game session, you'll collect more cards for your deck, slowly customizing the options available to fit different playstyles and adapt yourself to the danger at hand. Do you invest in dealing as much damage as possible, neglecting your defense? Do you try to come up with different synergies to create a jack-of-all-trades card deck? There's always something to learn and discover, and the number of combinations available to experiment with is seducingly daunting. The best part? There's a sequel in the works, slated for 2025. See at Steam Risk of Rain 2Developer: Hopoo GamesRelease Date: August 11, 2020Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCRisk of Rain 2 is one of the few roguelites that explored the idea of taking the often pixel art, 2D-driven presentations of the genre and experimenting with 3D instead. Taking the elements that made its predecessor great, from enemy design to the different survivors you control, the change of perspective led to a breath of fresh air in the genre, and one of the most entertaining online games out there.The 1.0 release on August 11, 2020 has been followed up with hefty updates and paid DLC since. You can spend hours just fooling around with friends and seeing how far you can go. Once you get invested in the game's most intricate secrets and mechanics, however, you'll find out that the thrill comes down to becoming an unstoppable force challenged by a dynamic difficulty meter that's constantly keeping you on your toes. The use of 3D, then, isn't a mere novelty--it literally shines a new light on what roguelites can achieve when looked at from a different perspective, adding a different sense of movement and scale to the usual roguelite chaos. See at Steam Crypt of the NecrodancerDeveloper: Brace Yourself GamesRelease Date: April 23, 2015Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCCrypt of the Necrodancer might be one of the oldest picks of our best roguelike games list, but the reason is simple: No other roguelite has managed to combine the genre conventions with the mechanics of a rhythm game to such success. Every movement and action in the game is tied to the beat of the soundtrack blasting in the background.Enemies have different patterns that you must learn, all while carefully moving on tiles as if you were tapping the floor with your foot following a song. Even if you're not rhythm game savvy, the mix of both genres is accommodating enough to make you a believer--right until you meet a dragon for the first time, that is. After the original release, Cadence of Hyrule followed up on the concept, with the studio collaborating with Nintendo for a different take on The Legend of Zelda. But Crypt of the Necrodancer remains a worthy rogue classic. See at Steam Into the BreachDeveloper: Subset GamesRelease Date: February 27, 2018Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCThe alien invasion grows in numbers. You must assemble a squad of a handful of units and try to beat the odds. When you inevitably meet your demise, the last person standing creates a rift and travels to a different timeline. Time to start again.Into the Breach has a steep learning curve. Its design conventions, however, make it worth the effort to learn how to best use the space given to you and how your units can counterattack the alien push. The game is clear about the consequences of your movements on each map grid--whether or not you'll be able to land an attack, if one of your mechs will be caught in a tidal wave or an enemy projectile, and so on.Often, playing the strategy roguelike feels like a series of elaborate board games, where you carefully move pieces and spend your time thinking of the best possible plan. When it all comes together, the satisfaction is unparalleled. But even when you fail and you're sent to another timeline to commence anew, there's a thrill in knowing that next time might be the one if you take the time to analyze your movements and execute with care.Into the Breach is also the rare game to receive a 10/10 from GameSpot. See at Steam Loop HeroDeveloper: Four QuartersRelease Date: March 4, 2021Platforms: Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCThe concept of loops and the repetitive nature of roguelites are a natural pairing. Loop Hero not only understands it, but extends it further by turning you into a dungeon master of sorts. You're given the choice of a hero and a map layout, as well as a deck of cards. You can place different types of terrain and structures, each having its own pros and cons. But you also need to place enemies, slowly making each loop--where the character walks a full cycle of the map--more intricate to navigate.The randomized nature of roguelites is heightened by giving you agency over the dangers that your hero will have to overcome. With a large number of unlockables to pursue after each session, as well as a captivating presentation, Loop Hero is one of the most inventive roguelites out there. See at Fanatical ReturnalDeveloper: HousemarqueRelease Date: April 30, 2021Platforms: PlayStation 5, PCHousemarque's expertise lies in games with an arcade nature, from Resogun to Nex Machina. At first glance, Returnal seems different--its presentation is powered by a level of production that screams AAA game. Initially introduced as a PlayStation 5 exclusive, the third-person shooter makes an interesting use of the roguelite concept, intertwining story events with each death. Similarly to Hades, meeting your demise rarely means taking a step back.Don't let its prestigious look deceive you, though--Returnal is the living proof of a modern arcade game, taking cues from the bullet hell genre. This means that you must be in constant movement, carefully timing dodges and narrow jumps to avoid a barrage of projectiles coming your way from all directions. A sequel is slated for 2026, but the first game deserves all of your attention. It's one of the best games in the PlayStation catalog, and a thrilling showcase of how a roguelite structure can inform a story, blending into one coexisting vehicle for a narrative that wouldn't work elsewhere. See at Fanatical Shogun ShowdownDeveloper: RoboatinoRelease Date: September 5, 2024Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCDeveloper Roboatino saw the synergy of roguelike and deck-building elements and decided to add turn-based combat to the mix. You command a lone hero who must take positioning and time into consideration to defeat multiple enemies and make it out unscathed.Using an inventive mechanic regarding the tiles you set foot on, Shogun Showdown hides a surprising level of depth, which you gradually uncover the more time you spend with it. You can upgrade and sacrifice different movements and skills in between battles, and as you die, you'll unlock new characters and attacks to experiment with. If you want to test the game's combat by yourself, there's a free prologue available on PC. See at Fanatical Blue PrinceDeveloper: DogubombRelease Date: April 10, 2025Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PCIn Blue Prince, you're a fourteen-year-old boy next in line for an inheritance. The catch is that you first need to explore a manor that changes its inner structure each day, hiding access to the elusive room 46 somewhere within its bowels. Dogubomb's title is part puzzle game, part roguelite, part investigative game.When you start a new day, you're given a number of steps that you can take inside the manor. Upon interacting with a door, the game grants you a random selection of rooms, each containing a puzzle, resource items, or a clue to a larger mystery. Sometimes all three of them. The deeper you plunge into Blue Prince, the higher the chances of becoming engrossed by the sheer amount of layers upon layers of puzzles to solve. See at Fanatical Caves of QudDeveloper: Freehold GamesRelease Date: December 5, 2024Platforms: PCDevelopment for Caves of Qud began back in 2007, with the first public beta being released to the world in 2010. Then, after almost a decade in Steam early access, the game was fully launched on December 5, 2024. The science-fantasy roguelike is brimming with emergent stories, offering a deeply simulated world where you can shape the environment as you see fit, join one of over 70 factions, or simply get lost in the overwhelming number of possible actions and outcomes available.In Caves of Qud, every NPC and monster is as fully simulated as you, meaning that they all have their own skills, equipment, body parts, and levels. The body parts are important, as there are multiple mutations at play, from two heads to the power of cloning oneself. The sandbox nature and painstaking level of detail have added an unmatched identity to the roguelike over its long lifespan. Now, there's never been a better time to take a plunge and become a part of its labyrinthine systems and intricate synergies that are happening in the game without your input. See at Steam FTL: Faster Than LightDeveloper: Subset GamesRelease Date: September 14, 2021Platforms: iOS, PCCommanding a party is a classic go-to for roguelites. Being the captain of a spaceship where you must attend to your crew and rooms individually, however, is an idea that is still novel to this day. Before Into the Breach, developer Subset Games came up with a different adventure in outer space.Presented with randomly generated galaxies, you must pick different paths to warp to, taking care and managing your spaceship in your ventures. Everything from the state of the hull to the level of oxygen must be accounted for. While you might be lucky with the galaxy destinations you pick, your crew will inevitably have to confront other ships.It's during these moments that FTL: Faster Than Light showcases its exhilarating mix of mechanics, forcing you to act fast by putting up fires, deciding which rooms to open and which ones to close, and sending crew members to repair the ship, all while using similar strategies on the enemy at hand. There's no other game like FTL. See at Steam InscryptionDeveloper: Daniel Mullins GamesRelease Date: October 19, 2021Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCThe creator of the eerie Pony Island took a stab at the roguelike genre in 2021 with Inscryption. At first, you don't know where you are--all you can see is the inside of a dark cabin, and a strange figure that invites you to play a card game. The creepiness sets in more and more over time, as you use cards depicting animals that seem to be alive, trying to make progress in the game while also looking for an opportunity to try and figure out how to escape the cabin.Inscription has multiple twists that are best left as a secret. If you want a general indication of what to expect, however, this roguelike pulls you into an obscure setting that becomes darker the more time you spend with it, subverting existing genre conventions and familiar mechanics with a horror twist. See at Fanatical Dome KeeperDeveloper: BippinbitsRelease Date: September 27, 2022Platforms: PCDome Keeper is a great game for people who enjoy multitasking. As the name implies, you must protect a dome from enemy attacks. In order to do so, you must dig underneath the surface to search for resources and artifacts, which are used to choose upgrades and different ways to defend your base.Enemies won't just sit and wait, however. You only have a limited time to dig in between attack waves. Picking your upgrades carefully will make or break your chances of survival to gain another chance at plunging through the surface and build better defenses. Dome Keeper is an ambitious survival game that takes cue from roguelikes and tower defense games to create a different kind of challenge to overcome. See at Fanatical Monster TrainDeveloper: Shiny ShoeRelease Date: May 20, 2020Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, iOS, PCMonster Train is the distant cousin of Slay the Spire. You're given a deck of cards that you slowly grow during runs, as well as different paths to choose from. The twist is how combat encounters are structured, turning elements like positioning and card strategies on their head.Whenever you face enemies, you're presented with a large vertical structure that has three play fields. You must carefully plan where to place your cards to defend the train's core. It's an idea that's pushed to its limit time and time again with the cards available and the ways in which enemies can also strategize around your defenses. Monster Train is a prime example of how much innovation is still in the genre. See at Fanatical Vampire SurvivorsDeveloper: PoncleRelease Date: October 20, 2022Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCTaking inspiration from a mobile game called Magic Survival, in which the main character attacked automatically without the player's input, developer Poncle leaned on a fascination for Castlevania's aesthetic to iterate on the concept. The simple idea led to an absurd amount of characters, levels, and items to unlock--including, of course, an official collaboration with Konami to include more than just indirect references to the Castlevania series.Playing a Vampire Survivors stage can last anything from 15 to 20 or 30 minutes--if you can survive long enough with the items you've acquired. Even if you fail, however, you're constantly unlocking items, characters, and stages to explore in subsequent runs. It's a game that's best described as a Pandora's Box equivalent. Especially considering the chaos that it will likely inflict on your schedule. See at Steam Hitman World of Assassination: Freelancer ModeDeveloper: IO InteractiveRelease Date: January 26, 2023Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PCThe Hitman series has always excelled in presenting puzzle boxes that double down as playgrounds to blend in, follow your target, and take them down in increasingly ridiculous ways. Freelancer Mode, introduced to Hitman World of Assassination on January 26, 2023, adds a different spin to the premise with a persistent and highly replayable experience.In this mode, targets are always random, and you're given access to different bonus objectives. Making use of a hub exclusive to Freelancer, Agent 47 must choose a crime syndicate to pursue, which sets the mood of the campaign, and then get started without any equipment or weapons. If you've already mastered the classic Hitman levels or you just want a different, ridiculously polished roguelike experience, Freelancer Mode is a distinct and ambitious take on the genre. Worth mentioning that Hitman World of Assassination is also slated to launch on Nintendo Switch 2. See at Steam InkboundDeveloper: Shiny ShoeRelease Date: April 9, 2024Platforms: PCFrom the makers of Monster Train comes Inkbound, a turn-based tactical roguelike that offers co-op, and synergies that are heightened by coordinating with others online. Players can move freely and act simultaneously in multiplayer, picking from eight different classes to try out different combinations.There's also a deck-building element of sorts involved in the vein of draftable abilities, upgrades, and an array of items to use in-game. It's an intriguing blend of genres that might take some time to get used to. Once things click, however, you and the rest of the party will be working in tandem to see how far you can push your strategies. See at Steam God of War Ragnarok: ValhallaDeveloper: Santa Monica StudiosRelease Date: December 12, 2023Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PCGod of War Ragnarok is a behemoth of an action-RPG, featuring a lengthy campaign across open areas with side quests, collectibles, and dozens of corners to explore. If you're looking for a break from the main story or just want to try a new roguelite that elevates some of the game's strengths in a different structure, the free Valhalla DLC is a must play.Taking place after the events of the main story (although you can jump into it at any point from the main menu without worrying about spoilers of the main campaign), Valhalla has Kratos going through a series of punishing trials, which slowly serve as a therapy session of sorts as he reminiscences of the events that happened during the original trilogy of God of War games.The bite-sized rendition of combat encounters shines a different light on combat mechanics that you may already be familiar with. And, taking cues from the likes of Hades and Returnal, each death pushes the story forward in meaningful ways. Valhalla is a rare combination of genres that shouldn't work as well as they do, and it deserves your time before the next adventure of Kratos inevitably rolls in. See at Fanatical NoitaDeveloper: Nolla GamesRelease Date: October 15, 2020Platforms: PCAfter a short early access period in 2019, Noita was fully released in October 2020, and provided an escape from the horrors of that year with, well, more horrors. Its punishing difficulty and procedurally-generated worlds provide deep and engaging gameplay. Noita places you in the shoes of a wand-wielding alchemist navigating a deadly, destructible world. The seemingly simple pixel art style leads to complexity where water flows, acid burns, fire spreads, and cave-ins can be triggered by a single misplaced explosive.Unlike many roguelikes that focus on stat-based progression, Noita appeals to player creativity and experimentation. The game's wand crafting system is a particular highlight, allowing you to mix and match spells, modifiers, and triggers to create devastating effects or strange contraptions that alter the way the game plays with every decision. The fun of Noita is learning how to break it in delightfully chaotic ways. This customization means each run feels unique, not just because of the randomized levels, but because the tools at your disposal and the way you choose to implement them define each playthrough. Noita is deeper than it first appears, with plenty of secrets and mysteries to uncover. Its expansive hidden world and lore begs to be uncovered, and the community engagement and conversation around it continues even half a decade on from its release. Experiment with fire, mess around with slime, and Noita will reward your curiosity. You'll find that, most of the time, death in Noita stems from your own creation, giving the game a cruel sense of irony and punishment. Despite that, or perhaps even because of that, Noita is a beautiful experience. See at Steam

Germany and NVIDIA are building possibly the most ambitious European tech project of the decade: the continent’s first industrial AI cloud.NVIDIA has been on a European tour over the past month with CEO Jensen Huang charming audiences at London Tech Week before dazzling the crowds at Paris’s VivaTech. But it was his meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz that might prove the most consequential stop.The resulting partnership between NVIDIA and Deutsche Telekom isn’t just another corporate handshake; it’s potentially a turning point for European technological sovereignty.An “AI factory” (as they’re calling it) will be created with a focus on manufacturing, which is hardly surprising given Germany’s renowned industrial heritage. The facility aims to give European industrial players the computational firepower to revolutionise everything from design to robotics.“In the era of AI, every manufacturer needs two factories: one for making things, and one for creating the intelligence that powers them,” said Huang. “By building Europe’s first industrial AI infrastructure, we’re enabling the region’s leading industrial companies to advance simulation-first, AI-driven manufacturing.”It’s rare to hear such urgency from a telecoms CEO, but Deutsche Telekom’s Timotheus Höttges added: “Europe’s technological future needs a sprint, not a stroll. We must seize the opportunities of artificial intelligence now, revolutionise our industry, and secure a leading position in the global technology competition. Our economic success depends on quick decisions and collaborative innovations.”The first phase alone will deploy 10,000 NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs spread across various high-performance systems. That makes this Germany’s largest AI deployment ever; a statement the country isn’t content to watch from the sidelines as AI transforms global industry.A Deloitte study recently highlighted the critical importance of AI technology development to Germany’s future competitiveness, particularly noting the need for expanded data centre capacity. When you consider that demand is expected to triple within just five years, this investment seems less like ambition and more like necessity.Robots teaching robotsOne of the early adopters is NEURA Robotics, a German firm that specialises in cognitive robotics. They’re using this computational muscle to power something called the Neuraverse which is essentially a connected network where robots can learn from each other.Think of it as a robotic hive mind for skills ranging from precision welding to household ironing, with each machine contributing its learnings to a collective intelligence.“Physical AI is the electricity of the future—it will power every machine on the planet,” said David Reger, Founder and CEO of NEURA Robotics. “Through this initiative, we’re helping build the sovereign infrastructure Europe needs to lead in intelligent robotics and stay in control of its future.”The implications of this AI project for manufacturing in Germany could be profound. This isn’t just about making existing factories slightly more efficient; it’s about reimagining what manufacturing can be in an age of intelligent machines.AI for more than just Germany’s industrial titansWhat’s particularly promising about this project is its potential reach beyond Germany’s industrial titans. The famed Mittelstand – the network of specialised small and medium-sized businesses that forms the backbone of the German economy – stands to benefit.These companies often lack the resources to build their own AI infrastructure but possess the specialised knowledge that makes them perfect candidates for AI-enhanced innovation. Democratising access to cutting-edge AI could help preserve their competitive edge in a challenging global market.Academic and research institutions will also gain access, potentially accelerating innovation across numerous fields. The approximately 900 Germany-based startups in NVIDIA’s Inception program will be eligible to use these resources, potentially unleashing a wave of entrepreneurial AI applications.However impressive this massive project is, it’s viewed merely as a stepping stone towards something even more ambitious: Europe’s AI gigafactory. This planned 100,000 GPU-powered initiative backed by the EU and Germany won’t come online until 2027, but it represents Europe’s determination to carve out its own technological future.As other European telecom providers follow suit with their own AI infrastructure projects, we may be witnessing the beginning of a concerted effort to establish technological sovereignty across the continent.For a region that has often found itself caught between American tech dominance and Chinese ambitions, building indigenous AI capability represents more than economic opportunity. Whether this bold project in Germany will succeed remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: Europe is no longer content to be a passive consumer of AI technology developed elsewhere.(Photo by Maheshkumar Painam)Want to learn more about AI and big data from industry leaders? Check out AI & Big Data Expo taking place in Amsterdam, California, and London. The comprehensive event is co-located with other leading events including Intelligent Automation Conference, BlockX, Digital Transformation Week, and Cyber Security & Cloud Expo.Explore other upcoming enterprise technology events and webinars powered by TechForge here.

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We know that diverse perspectives and experiences make us stronger, and we want you to be part of our journey. Inside Sales Representative (ISR) at PTR is a friendly, people-oriented, and persuasive steward of the sales process. This role will support our Territory Managers with their sales pipeline while also prospecting and cross-selling PTR products themselves. This support includes driving results by enrolling the commitment and buy-in of other internal departments to achieve sales initiatives. The Inside Sales Representative will also represent PTRs commitment to being our customers easy button by serving as the main point of contact. They will be the front-line hero by assisting them in making informed decisions, providing guidance on our rentals, and resolving any issues they might face. We are seeking someone eager to develop their sales skills and grow within our organization. This role is designed as a stepping stone to a Territory Sales Manager (TSM) position, providing hands-on experience with customer interactions, lead qualification, and sales process execution. Ideal candidates will demonstrate a strong drive for results, the ability to build relationships, and a proactive approach to learning and development. High-performing ISRs will have the opportunity to be mentored, trained, and considered for promotion into a TSM role as part of their career path at PTR. COMPENSATION This position offers a competitive compensation package of base salary ($50,000/yr) plus uncapped commissions =OTE $85,000 annually. RESPONSIBILITIES Offer top-notch customer service and respond with a sense of urgency for goal achievement in a fast-paced sales environment. Build a strong pipeline of customers by qualifying potential leads in your territory. This includes strategic prospecting and sourcing. Develop creative ways to engage and build rapport with prospective customers by pitching the Premier Truck Rental value proposition. Partner with assigned Territory Managers by assisting with scheduling customer visits, trade shows, new customer hand-offs, and any other travel requested. Facilitate in-person meetings and set appointments with prospective customers. Qualify and quote inquiries for your prospective territories both online and from the Territory Manager. Input data into the system with accuracy and follow up in a timely fashion. Facilitate the onboarding of new customers through the credit process. Drive collaboration between customers, Territory Managers, Logistics, and internal teams to coordinate On-Rent and Off-Rent notices with excellent attention to detail. Identify and arrange the swap of equipment from customers meeting the PTR de-fleeting criteria. Manage the sales tools to organize, compile, and analyze data with accuracy for a variety of activities and multiple projects occurring simultaneously.Building and developing a new 3-4 state territory! REQUIREMENTS MUST HAVE2+ years of strategic prospecting or account manager/sales experience; or an advanced degree or equivalent experience converting prospects into closed sales. Tech-forward approach to sales strategy. Excellent prospecting, follow-up, and follow-through skills. Committed to seeing deals through completion. Accountability and ownership of the sales process and a strong commitment to results. Comfortable with a job that has a variety of tasks and is dynamic and changing. Proactive prospecting skills and can overcome objections; driven to establish relationships with new customers. Ability to communicate in a clear, logical manner in formal and informal situations. Proficiency in CRMs and sales tracking systems Hunters mindsetsomeone who thrives on pursuing new business, driving outbound sales, and generating qualified opportunities. Prospecting: Going on LinkedIn, Looking at Competitor data, grabbing contacts for the TM, may use technology like Apollo and LinkedIn Sales Navigator Partner closely with the Territory Manager to ensure a unified approach in managing customer relationships, pipeline development, and revenue growth. Maintain clear and consistent communication to align on sales strategies, customer needs, and market opportunities, fostering a seamless and collaborative partnership with the Territory Manager. Consistently meet and exceed key performance indicators (KPIs), including rental revenue, upfit revenue, and conversion rates, by actively managing customer accounts and identifying growth opportunities. Support the saturation and maturation of the customer base through strategic outreach, relationship management, and alignment with the Territory Manager to drive long-term success. Remote in the United States with some travel to trade shows, quarterly travel up to a week at a time, and sales meetingsNICE TO HAVE Rental and/or sales experience in the industry. Proficiency in , Apollo.io , LinkedIn Sales Navigator, Power BI, MS Dynamics, Chat GPT. Established relationships within the marketplace or territory. Motivated to grow into outside territory management position with relocation On Target Earnings: ($85,000)EMPLOYEE BENEFITSWellness & Fitness: Take advantage of our on-site CrossFit-style gym, featuring a full-time personal trainer dedicated to helping you reach your fitness goals. Whether you're into group classes, virtual personal training, personalized workout plans, or nutrition coaching, weve got you covered!Exclusive Employee Perks: PTR Swag & a Uniform/Boot Allowance, On-site Micro-Markets stocked with snacks & essentials, discounts on phone plans, supplier vehicles, mobile detailing, tools, & equipmentand much more!Profit SharingYour Success, rewarded: At PTR, we believe in sharing success. Our Profit-SharingComprehensive BenefitsStarting Day One:Premium healthcare coverage (medical, dental, vision, mental health & virtual healthcare)401(k) matching & long-term financial planning Paid time off that lets you recharge Life, accidental death, and disability coverage Ongoing learning & development opportunitiesTraining, Growth & RecognitionWe partner with Predictive Index to better understand your strengths, ensuring tailored coaching, structured training, and career development. Performance and attitude evaluations every 6 months keep you on track for growth.Culture & ConnectionMore Than Just a JobAt PTR, we dont just build relationships with our customerswe build them with each other. Our tech-forward, highly collaborative culture is rooted in our core values. Connect and engage through:PTR Field Days & Team EventsThe Extra Mile Recognition ProgramPTR Text Alerts & Open CommunicationPremier Truck Rental Is an Equal Opportunity Employer We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. If you need support or accommodation due to a disability, contact us at PI6e547fa1c5-

To this day, Jaws remains the best example of Steven Spielberg‘s genius as a filmmaker. He somehow took a middling pulp novel about a killer shark and turned it into a thrilling adventure about masculinity and economic desperation. And to the surprise of no one, the massive success of Jaws spawned a lot of knockoffs, a glut of movies about animals terrorizing communities. None of these reach the majesty of Jaws, of course. But here’s the thing—none of them had to be Jaws. Sure, it’s nice that Spielberg’s film has impeccably designed set pieces and compelling characters, but that’s not the main reason people go to animal attack movies. We really just want to watch people get attacked. And eaten. With such standards duly lowered, let’s take a look at the best animal attack movies that came out in the past half-century since Jaws first scared us out of the water. Of course this list doesn’t cover every movie inspired by Jaws ( for example Godzilla Minus One, which devotes its middle act to a wonderful Jaws riff), and some can argue that these movies were less inspired by Jaws than other nature revolts features, such as Alfred Hitchcock‘s The Birds. But every one of these flicks owes a debt to Jaws, either in inspiration or simply getting people interested in movies about animals eating people. Those warning aside, lets make like drunken revelers on Amity Island and dive right in! 20. Sharknado (2013) Sharknado almost doesn’t belong on this list because it’s less a movie and more of a meme, a precursor to Vines and TikTok trends. Yes, many fantastic movies have been made off of an incredibly high concept and a painfully low budget. Heck, that approach made Roger Corman’s career. But Sharknado‘s high concept—a tornado sweeps over the ocean and launches ravenous sharks into the mainland—comes with a self-satisfied smirk. Somehow, Sharknado managed to capture the imagination of the public, making it popular enough to launch five sequels. At the time, viewers defended it as a so bad it’s good-style movie like The Room. But today Sharknado‘s obvious attempts to be wacky are just bad, making the franchise one more embarrassing trend, ready to be forgotten. 19. Orca (1977) For a long time, Orca had a reputation for being the most obvious Jaws ripoff, and with good reason—Italian producer Dino De Laurentiis, who would go on to support Flash Gordon, Manhunter, and truly launch David Lynch‘s career with Blue Velvet, wanted his own version of the Spielberg hit. On paper he had all the right ingredients, including a great cast with Richard Harris and Charlotte Rampling, and another oceanic threat, this time a killer whale. Orca boasts some impressive underwater cinematography, something that even Jaws largely lacks. But that’s the one thing Orca does better than Jaws. Everything else—character-building, suspense and scare scenes, basic plotting and storytelling—is done in such a haphazard manner that Orca plays more like an early mockbuster from the Asylum production company (makers of Sharknado) than it does a product from a future Hollywood player. 18. Tentacles (1977) Another Italian cheapie riding off the success of Jaws, Tentacles at least manages to be fun in its ineptitude. A giant octopus feature, Tentacles is directed by Ovidio G. Assonitis, a man whose greatest claim to fame is that he annoyed first-time director James Cameron so much on Piranha II: The Spawning that he activated the future legend’s infamous refusal to compromise with studios and producers. Tentacles somehow has a pretty impressive cast, including John Huston, Shelly Winters, and Henry Fonda all picking up paychecks. None of them really do any hard work in Tentacles, but there’s something fun about watching these greats shake the the octopus limbs that are supposed to be attacking them, as if they’re in an Ed Wood picture. 17. Kingdom of the Spiders (1977) Spielberg famously couldn’t get his mechanical shark to work, a happy accident that he overcame with incredibly tense scenes that merely suggested the monster’s presence. For his arachnids on the forgotten movie Kingdom of the Spiders, director John “Bud” Cardos has an even more formative tool to make up for the lack of effects magic: William Shatner. Shatner plays Rack Hansen, a veterinarian who discovers that the overuse of pesticides has killed off smaller insects and forced the tarantula population to seek larger prey, including humans. These types of ecological messages are common among creature features of the late ’70s, and they usually clang with hollow self-righteousness. But in Kingdom of the Spiders, Shatner delivers his lines with such blown out conviction that we enjoy his bluster, even if we don’t quite buy it. 16. The Meg (2018) The idea of Jason Statham fighting a giant prehistoric shark is an idea so awesome, it’s shocking that his character from Spy didn’t already pitch it. And The Meg certainly does deliver when Statham’s character does commit to battle with the creature in the movie’s climax. The problem is that moment of absurd heroism comes only after a lot of long sappy nonsense. Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! It’s hard to figure out who is to blame for The Meg‘s failure. Director Jon Turteltaub hails from well-remembered Disney classics Cool Runnings and National Treasure. But too often he forgets how to pace an adventure film and gives into his most saccharine instincts here. One of the many Chinese/Hollywood co-produced blockbusters of the 2010s, The Meg also suffers from trying to innocuously please too wide an audience. Whatever the source, The Meg only fleetingly delivers on the promise of big time peril, wasting too much time on thin character beats. 15. Lake Placid (1999) I know already some people reading this are taking exception to Lake Placid‘s low ranking, complaining that this list isn’t showing enough respect to what they consider a zippy, irreverent take on a creature feature, one written by Ally McBeal creator David E. Kelley and co-starring Betty White. To those people, I can only say, “Please rewatch Lake Placid and then consider its ranking.” Lake Placid certainly has its fun moments, helped along by White as a kindly grandmother who keeps feeding a giant croc, Bill Pullman as a dumbfounded simple sheriff, and Oliver Platt as a rich adventurer. Their various one-liners are a pleasure to remember. But within the context of a movie stuffed with late ’90s irony, the constant snark gets tiresome, sapping out all the fun of a killer crocodile film. 14. Open Water (2003) Like Sharknado, Open Water had its fans for a few years but has fallen in most moviegoers’ esteem. Unlike Sharknado, Open Water is a real movie, just one that can’t sustain its premise for its entire runtime. Writer and director Chris Kentis draws inspiration from a real-life story about a husband and wife who were accidentally abandoned in the middle of the ocean by their scuba excursion group. The same thing happens to the movie’s Susan Watkins (Blanchard Ryan) and Daniel Travis (Daniel Kintner), who respond to their predicament by airing out their relationship grievances, even as sharks start to surround them. Kentis commits to the reality of the couple’s bleak situation, which sets Open Water apart from the thrill-a-minute movies that mostly make up this list. But even with some shocking set pieces, Open Water feels too much like being stuck in car with a couple who hates each other and not enough like a shark attack thriller. 13. Eaten Alive (1976) Spielberg’s artful execution of Jaws led many of the filmmakers who followed to attempt some semblance of character development and prestige, even if done without enthusiasm (see: Orca). Not so with Tobe Hooper, who followed up the genre-defining The Texas Chainsaw Massacre with Eaten Alive. Then again, Hooper draws just as much from Psycho as he does Jaws. Neville Brand plays Judd, the proprietor of a sleazy hotel on the bayou where slimy yokels do horrible things to one another. Amity Island, this is not. But when one of the visitors annoy Judd, he feeds them to the pet croc kept in the back. Eaten Alive is a nasty bit of work, but like most of Hooper’s oeuvre, it’s a lot of fun. 12. Prophecy (1979) Directed by John Frankenheimer of The Manchurian Candidate and Grand Prix fame, Prophecy is easily the best of the more high-minded animal attack movies that followed Jaws. This landlocked film, written by David Seltzer, stars Robert Foxworth as Dr. Robert Verne, a veterinarian hired by the EPA to investigate bear attacks against loggers on a mountain in Maine. Along with his wife Maggie (Talia Shire), Verne finds himself thrown into a conflict between the mining company and the local Indigenous population who resist them. Prophecy drips with an American hippy mentality that reads as pretty conservative today (“your body, your choice” one of Maggie’s friends tells her… to urge her against getting an abortion), making its depictions of Native people, including the leader played by Italian American actor Armand Assante, pretty embarrassing. But there is a mutant bear on the loose and Frankenheimer knows how to stage an exciting sequence, which makes Prophecy a worthwhile watch. 11. Piranha 3D (2010) Piranha 3D begins with a denim-wearing fisherman named Matt, played by Richard Dreyfuss no less, falling into the water and immediately getting devoured by the titular flesh-eaters. This weird nod to Matt Hooper and Jaws instead of Joe Dante’s Piranha, the movie Piranha 3D is supposed to be remaking, is just one of the many oddities at play yhere. Screenwriters Pete Goldfinger and Josh Stolberg have some of the wacky energy and social satire of the original film, but director Alexandre Aja, a veteran of the French Extreme movement, includes so much nastiness in Piranha 3D that we’re not sure if we want to laugh or throw up. Still, there’s no denying the power of Piranha 3D‘s set pieces, including a shocking sequence in which the titular beasties attack an MTV/Girls Gone Wild Spring Break party and chaos ensues. Furthermore, Piranha 3D benefits from a strong cast, which includes Elizabeth Shue, Adam Scott, and Ving Rhames. 10. Anaconda (1997) With its many scenes involving an animal attacking a ragtag group on a boat, Anaconda clearly owes a debt to Jaws. However, with its corny characters and shoddy late ’90s CGI, Anaconda feels today less like a Jaws knockoff and more like a forerunner to Sharknado and the boom of lazy Syfy and Redbox horror movies that followed. Whatever its influences and legacy, there’s no denying that Anaconda is, itself, a pretty fun movie. Giant snakes make for good movie monsters, and the special effects have become dated in a way that feels charming. Moreover, Anaconda boasts a enjoyably unlikely cast, including Eric Stoltz as a scientist, Owen Wilson and Ice Cube as members of a documentary crew, and Jon Voight as what might be the most unhinged character of his career, second only to his crossbow enthusiast from Megalopolis. 9. The Shallows (2016) The Shallows isn’t the highest-ranking shark attack movie on this list but it’s definitely the most frightening shark attack thriller since Jaws. That’s high praise, indeed, but The Shallows benefits from a lean and mean premise and clear direction by Jaume Collet-Serra, who has made some solid modern thrillers. The Shallows focuses almost entirely on med student Nancy Adams (Blake Lively), who gets caught far from shore after the tide comes in and is hunted by a shark. A lot of the pleasure of The Shallows comes from seeing how Collet-Serra and screenwriter Anthony Jaswinski avoid the problems that plague many of the movies on this list. Adams is an incredibly competent character, and we pull for her even after the mistake that leaves her stranded. Moreover, The Shallows perfectly balances thrill sequences with character moments, making for one of the more well-rounded creature features of the past decade. 8. Razorback (1984) Jaws, of course, has a fantastic opening scene, a thrilling sequence in which the shark kills a drunken skinny dipper. Of the movies on this list, only Razorback comes close to matching the original’s power, and it does so because director Russell Mulcahy, who would make Highlander next, goes for glossy absurdity. In the Razorback‘s first three minutes, a hulking wild boar smashes through the rural home of an elderly man in the Australian outback, carrying away his young grandson. Over the sounds of a synth score, the old man stumbles away from his now-burning house, screaming up into the sky. Sadly, the rest of Razorback cannot top that moment. Mulcahy directs the picture with lots of glossy style, while retaining the grit of the Australian New Wave movement. But budget restrictions keep the titular beast from really looking as cool as one would hope, and the movie’s loud, crazy tone can’t rely on Jaws-like power of suggestion. 7. Crawl (2019) Alexandre Aja’s second movie on this list earns its high rank precisely because it does away with the tonal inconsistencies that plagued Piranha 3D and leans into what the French filmmaker does so well: slicked down and mean horror. Set in the middle of a Florida hurricane, Crawl stars Kaya Scodelario as competitive swimmer Haley and always-welcome character actor Barry Pepper as her father Dave, who get trapped in a flooding basement that’s menaced by alligators. Yet as grimy as Crawl can get, Aja also executes the strong character work in the script by Michael Rasmussen and Shawn Rasmussen. Dave and Haley are real people, not just gator-bait, making their peril feel all the more real, and their triumphs all the sweeter. 6. Piranha (1978) Piranha is the only entry on this list to get a seal of approval from Stephen Spielberg himself, who not only praised the movie, even as Universal Pictures planned to sue the production, but also got director Joe Dante to later helm Gremlins. It’s not hard to see why Piranha charmed Spielberg, a man who loves wacky comedy. Dante’s Looney Tunes approach is on full display in some of the movie’s best set pieces. But Piranha is special because it also comes from legendary screenwriter John Sayles, who infuses the story with social satire and cynicism that somehow blends with Dante’s approach. The result is a film about piranha developed by the U.S. military to kill the Vietnamese getting unleashed into an American river and making their way to a children’s summer camp, a horrifying idea that Dante turns into good clean fun. 5. Slugs (1988) If we’re talking about well-made movies, then Slugs belongs way below any of the movies on this list, somewhere around the killer earthworm picture Squirm. But if we’re thinking about pure enjoyable spectacle, it’s hard to top Slugs, a movie about, yes, flesh-eating slugs. Yes, it’s very funny to think about people getting terrorized by creatures that are famous for moving very, very slowly. But Spanish director Juan Piquer Simón, perhaps best known for his equally bugnuts giallo Pieces (1982), pays as little attention to realism as he does to good taste. Slugs is filled with insane and ghastly sequences of killer slugs ending up in unlikely places, swarming the floor of someone’s bedroom or inside a fancy restaurant, and then devouring people, one methodical bite at a time. 4. Deep Blue Sea (1999) When it comes to goofy ’90s CGI action, it’s hard to top Deep Blue Sea, directed by Renny Harlin and featuring sharks with genetically enhanced brains. Deep Blue Sea doesn’t have a strong sense of pacing, it lacks any sort of believable character development, and the effects looked terrible even in 1999. But it’s also the only movie on this list that features LL Cool J as a cool chef who recites a violent version of the 23rd Psalm and almost gets cooked alive in an oven by a genius-level shark. It’s scenes like the oven sequence that makes Deep Blue Sea such a delight, despite its many, many flaws. The movie tries to do the most at every turn, whether that’s clearly reediting the movie in postproduction so that LL Cool J’s chef becomes a central character, stealing the spotlight form intended star Saffron Burrows, or a ridiculous Samuel L. Jackson monologue with a delightfully unexpected climax. 3. Alligator (1980) In many ways, Alligator feels like screenwriter John Sayles’ rejoinder to Piranha. If Joe Dante sanded down Piranha‘s sharp edges with his goofy humor, then Alligator is so filled with mean-spiritedness that no director could dilute it. Not that Lewis Teague, a solid action helmer who we’ll talk about again shortly, would do that. Alligator transports the old adage about gators in the sewers from New York to Chicago where the titular beast, the subject of experiments to increase its size, begins preying on the innocent. And on the not so innocent. Alligator shows no respect for the good or the bad, and the film is filled with scenes of people getting devoured, whether it’s a young boy who becomes a snack during a birthday party prank or an elderly mafioso who tries to abandon his family during the gator’s rampage. 2. Grizzly (1976) Grizzly stands as the greatest of the movies obviously ripping off Jaws precisely because it understands its limitations. It takes what it can from Spielberg’s masterpiece, including the general premise of an animal hunting in a tourist location, and ignores what it can’t pull off, namely three-dimensional characters. This clear-eyed understanding of everyone’s abilities makes Grizzly a lean, mean, and satisfying thriller. Directed by blaxploitation vet William Girdler and written by Harvey Flaxman and David Sheldon, Grizzly stars ’70s low-budget king Christopher George as a park ranger investigating unusually vicious bear attacks on campers. That’s not the richest concept in the world, but Girdler and co. execute their ideas with such precision, and George plays his character with just the right amount of machismo, that Grizzly manages to deliver on everything you want from an animal attack. 1. Cujo (1983) To some modern readers, it might seem absurd to put Cujo on a list of Jaws knockoffs. After all, Stephen King is a franchise unto himself and he certainly doesn’t need another movie’s success to get a greenlight for any of his projects. But you have to remember that Cujo came out in 1983 and was just the third of his works to get adapted theatrically, which makes its Jaws connection more valid. After all, the main section of the film—in which mom (Dee Wallace) and her son Tad (Danny Pintauro) are trapped in their car and menaced by the titular St. Bernard—replicates the isolation on Quint’s fishing vessel, the Orca, better than any other film on this list. However, it’s not just director Lewis Teague’s ability to create tension that puts Cujo at the top. Writers Don Carlos Dunaway and Lauren Currier key into the complicated familial dynamics of King’s story, giving the characters surprising depth. It’s no wonder that Spielberg would cast Wallace as another overwhelmed mom for E.T. The Extraterrestrial the very next year, proving that he still has a soft spot for animal attack movies—even if none of them came close to matching the power of Jaws.

Two different groups of Americans are expected to march through the streets today. As thousands of troops march and dozens of tanks roll through Washington, D.C., for a military parade celebrating the Army’s 250th anniversary on President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday, millions of Americans nationwide are expected to protest against his administration, in what organizers believe will be the largest turnout yet since Trump took office in January for a second term. Here’s what to know about the “No Kings Day” protests: Why are people protesting? The No Kings Day protest movement builds on this spring’s massive May Day and Hands Off! rallies. They come after days of nationwide demonstrations against controversial federal immigration raids and deportations in Los Angeles and a number of other U.S. cities, which are part of the Trump administration’s ramped-up enforcement efforts. How big will the rallies be and where will they take place? Organizers expect 2,000 rallies to take place on Saturday in all 50 states and most major cities, “from city blocks to small towns, from courthouse steps to community parks.” Protesters say they are “taking action to reject authoritarianism—and show the world what democracy really looks like.” To avoid clashes with the Army’s anniversary celebrations, protest gatherings will bypass the nation’s capital. (Trump has threatened to use “heavy force” against any protesters at the parade, comments the White House later attempted to clarify by asserting that the president supports “peaceful” protests.) The No Kings groups have created an extensive interactive map that includes the protest locations and times. The map is embedded on the No Kings website and is searchable by zip code. Who is behind the protest movement? Indivisible is the lead organizer of Saturday’s No Kings protests, along with a broad coalition of 180-plus partner organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Common Cause, Greenpeace, Physicians for Social Responsibility, and Standing Up for Science. A number of labor unions, including the Communication Workers of America and teacher federations, are also involved in the effort. Who will be speaking? The group 50501, another organizer of the protests, told Fast Company that some of the major speakers planned nationwide include former Democratic VP candidate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, in St. Paul; Martin Luther King Jr.’s son, Martin Luther King III, and his wife, Arndrea Waters King, in Philadelphia; No Kings Indivisible’s Leah Greenberg and Ezra Levin, also in Philadelphia; Democratic Representative Rashida Tlaib in Detroit; former Republican Representative Joe Walsh (who became a registered Democrat last week) in Charleston; and progressive political commentator Brian Tyler Cohen in downtown Los Angeles. What else is there to know? In addition to rallies around the U.S., protests are also expected in several other countries, including the U.K., Mexico, and Germany.

By TREVOR HOGG Images courtesy of Pixar. The character design of Glordon is based on a tardigrade, which is a microscopic water bear. Rather than look at the unknown as something to be feared, Pixar has decided to do some wish fulfillment with Elio, where a lonely adolescent astrophile gets abducted by aliens and is mistaken as the leader of Earth. Originally conceived and directed by Adrian Molina, the coming-of-age science fiction adventure was shepherded by Domee Shi and Madeline Sharafian, who had previously worked together on Turning Red. “Space is often seen as dark, mysterious and scary, but there is also so much hope, wonder and curiosity,” notes Shi, director of Elio. “It’s like anything is ‘out there.’ Elio captures how a lot of us feel at different points of our lives, when we were kids like him, or even now wanting to be off of this current planet because it’s just too much. For Elio, it’s a rescue. I feel that there’s something so universal about that feeling of wanting to be taken away and taken care of. To know that you’re not alone and somebody chose you and picked you up.” The character design of Glordon is based on a tardigrade, which is a microscopic water bear. There is a stark contrast between how Earth and the alien world, known as the Communiverse, are portrayed. “The more we worked with the animators on Glordon and Helix, they began to realize that Domee and I respond positively when those [alien] characters are exaggerated, made cute, round and chubby,” states Sharafian, director of Elio. “That automatically started to differentiate the way the Earth and space feel.” A certain question had to be answered when designing the United Nations-inspired Communiverse. “It was coming from a place of this lonely kid who feels like no one wants him on Earth,” Shi explains. “What would be heaven and paradise for him? The Communiverse was built around that idea.” A sense of belonging is an important theme. “It’s also inspired by Adrian Molina’s backstory, and our backstories too, of going to animation college,” Sharafian remarks. “For the first time, we said, ‘This is where everybody like me is!’” Green is the thematic color for Elio. Visual effects are an important storytelling tool. “Especially, for our movie, which is about this boy going to this crazy incredible world of the Communiverse,” Shi observes. “It has to be dazzling and look spectacular on the big screen and feel like paradise. Elio is such a visual feast, and you do feel like, ‘I want to stay here no matter what. I can’t believe that this place even exists.’ Visual effects are a powerful tool to help you feel what the characters are feeling.” A wishlist became a reality for the directors. “Claudia Chung Sanii [Visual Effects Supervisor] gave Domee and me carte blanche for wish fulfillment for ourselves,” Sharafian remarks. “What do you want Elio’s outfit in space to look like? It was a difficult costume, but now when we watch the movie, we’re all so proud of it. Elio looks fabulous, and he’s so happy to be wearing that outfit. Who would want to take that off?” The Communiverse was meant to feel like a place that a child would love to visit and explore. Methodology rather than technology went through the biggest change for the production. “The Communiverse is super complex and has lots of moving pieces. But there’s not much CG can’t do anymore,” notes Claudia Chung Sanii. “Elemental did effects characters. We did long curly hair, dresses, capes, water and fire. What we hadn’t done before was be a part of that design process. How do we get lighting into layout? How do we see the shaders in animation in layout? The tools department was working on a software called Luna which does that. I went to the tools department and asked, ‘Can I play around with it?’ They were like, ‘Okay. But it’s not ready yet.’ Tools will basically be bringing RenderMan and an interactive lighting workflow to the pipeline across all of these DCCs. Because we light in Katana, you can’t get back upstream. The conceit that we were dipping our toe in on Elio was, ‘Whatever you do in lighting, anyone on the pipeline can see it.’” The influence of microscopic forms and macro photography grounded the Communiverse in natural phenomena. The variety in the Communiverse is a contrast to the regimented world on the military base. There were no departmental borders, in particular with cinematography. “We had our layout and lighting DPs start on the same day. Derek Williams wouldn’t shoot anything without Jordan Rempel, our lighting DP, seeing it,” Sanii states. “Jordan would drop in lighting and start doing key lighting as Derek’s team was laying out. It wasn’t like you had to hit the render button, wait for the render to come up and go, ‘Oh, my god, it’s dark! I didn’t know that it was nighttime.’” A new term was adopted. “Meredith Hom [Production Manager] and I pulled the entire crew and leadership into this mental concept that we called the ‘college project.’ For some of us, college was a time when we didn’t have titles and crafts. You begged, borrowed and stole to hit that deadline. So much of our world has become linear in our process that I wanted to break that down to, ‘No. We’re all working together. The scope of this film is too large for us to wait for each other to finish our piece. If this person is slammed, fine. Figure out a different idea to do it with what tools you have.’” Directors Domee Shi and Madeline Sharafian are drawn to chubby, exaggerated and cute characters. Forgoing the word ‘no’ led to the technology breaking down. “I remember times when crowds [department] is dressing all of the aliens and because of forgetting to constrain it to the Communiverse, they all show up at the origin, and you’re going, ‘Why is there a whole party going on over there?’” Sanii laughs. “On Elio, it was always forward. There were no rules about locking things down or not installing over the weekend. It was always like, ‘Put it all in, and we’ll deal with it on Monday.’ There would be some funny stuff. We never QC’d something before walking it into the room. Everyone saw how the sausage was made. It was fun and not fun for Harley Jessup [Production Designer] because sometimes there would be a big thing in the middle screen, and he would say, ‘Is that finished?’ There was no way we could get through this film if we kept trying to fix the thing that broke.” An aerial image of Elio as he attempts to get abducted by aliens. Part of the design of the Coummuniverse was inspired by Chinese puzzle balls. A former visual effects art director at ILM, Harley Jessup found his previous experiences on projects like Innerspace to be helpful on Elio. “I liked that the directors wanted to build on the effects films from the 1980s and early 1990s,” reflects Jessup. “I was there and part of that. It was fun to look back. At the time, the techniques were all practical, matte paintings and miniatures, which are fun to work with, but without the safety net of CG. One thing Dennis Muren [VES] was keen on, was how people see things like the natural phenomenon you might see in a microscopic or macro photography form. We were using that. I was looking at the mothership of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, which Dennis shot when he was a young artist. It was nice to be able to bring all of that history to this film.” Earth was impacted by a comment made by Pete Docter (CCO, Pixar). “He said, ‘The military base should feel like a parking lot,” Jessup reveals. “You should know why Elio wants to be anywhere else. And the Communiverse needs to be inviting. We built a lot of contrast into those two worlds. The brutalist architecture on the military base, with its hard edges and heavy horizontal forms close to the earth, needed to be harsh but beautiful in its own way, so we tried for that. The Communiverse would be in contrast and be all curves, translucent surfaces and stained-glass backlit effects. Things were wide open about what it could be because each of the aliens are from a different climate and gravity. There are some buildings that are actually upside down on it, and the whole thing is rotating inside like clockwork. It is hopefully an appealing, fun world. It’s not a dystopian outer space.” Exploring various facial expressions for Elio. A tough character to get right was Aunt Olga, who struggles to be the guardian of her nephew. Character designs of Elio and Glordon. which shows them interacting with each other. Architecture was devised to reflect the desired tone for scenes. “In the Grand Assembly Hall where each alien has a desk and booth, the booth is shaped like an eyelid that can close or open,” Jessup explains. “It increases the feeling that they’re evaluating and observing Elio and each of the candidates that have come to join the Communiverse.” A couple of iconic cinematic franchises were avoided for aesthetic reasons. “As much as I love Star Wars and Star Trek, we wanted to be different from those kinds of aliens that are often more humanoid.” Ooooo was the first alien to be designed. “We did Ooooo in collaboration with the effects team, which was small at that time. She was described as a liquid supercomputer. We actually used the wireframe that was turning up and asked, what if it ended up being this network of little lights that are moving around and can express how much she was thinking? Ooooo is Elio’s guide to the Communiverse; her body would deform, so she could become a big screen or reach out and pluck things. Ooooo has an ability like an amoeba to stretch.” Flexibility is important when figuring out shot design. “On Elio, we provided the layout department with a rudimentary version of our environments,” states David Luoh, Sets Supervisor. “It might be simple geometry. We’re not worried necessarily about shading, color and material yet. Things are roughly in place but also built in a way that is flexible. As they’re sorting out the camera and testing out staging, they can move elements of the set around. Maybe this architectural piece needs to be shifted or larger or smaller. There was a variation on what was typically expected of set deliveries of environments to our layout department. That bar was lowered to give the layout department something to work with sooner and also with more flexibility. From their work we get context as to how we partner with our art and design department to build and finalize those environments.” Regional biomes known as disks are part of the Communiverse. “There are aquatic, lush forest, snow and ice, and hot lava disks,” Luoh remarks. “The hot disk is grounded in the desert, volcanic rock and lava, while for the lush disk we looked at interesting plant life found in the world around us.” The Communiverse is a complex geometric form. “We wanted these natural arrangements of alien districts, and that was all happening on this twisting and curving terrain in a way that made traditional dressing approaches clunky. Oftentimes, you’re putting something on the ground or mounted, and the ground is always facing upward. But if you have to dress the wall or ceiling, it becomes a lot more difficult to manipulate and place on something with that dynamic and shape. You have stuff that casts light, is see-through and shifting over time. Ooooo is a living character that looks like electronic circuitry that is constantly moving, and we also have that element in the walls, floors and bubble transport that carry the characters around.” Sets were adjusted throughout the production. “We try to anticipate situations that might come up,” Luoh states. “What if we have a series of shots where you’re getting closer and closer to the Communiverse and you have to bridge the distance between your hero and set extension background? There is a partnership with story, but certainly with our layout camera staging department. As we see shots come out of their work, we know where we need to spend the time to figure out, are we going to see the distant hills in this way? We’re not going to build it until we know because it can be labor-intensive. There is a responsiveness to what we are starting to see as shots get made.” Combining the familiar into something unfamiliar was a process. “There was this curation of being inspired by existing alien sci-fi depictions, but also reaching back into biological phenomena or interesting material because we wanted to ground a lot of those visual elements and ideas in something that people could intuitively grasp on to, even if they were combined or arranged in a way that is surprising, strange and delightful.”