oni-link tag reference no one gets Member Oct 25, 2017 17,372 UK And why is the answer obviously Ezio's Family View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSVHx23ByhM The only other piece that I think even comes close is Gusty Garden Galaxy View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6rZkej57cU But even then, it's surely Ezio's Family Are there any other contenders? What do you think, Era?  dom ▲ Legend ▲ Avenger Oct 25, 2017 12,382 Last edited: Today at 5:32 AM RockmanBN Visited by Knack - One Winged Slayer Member Oct 25, 2017 31,941 Cornfields Wii Shop Channel View: https://youtu.be/yyjUmv1gJEg View: https://youtu.be/2gmQYBZPV7g   blueredandgold Member Oct 25, 2017 8,668 This was my ring tone for a properly twelve months I think.  Jubilant Duck Member Oct 21, 2022 9,247 RockmanBN said: Wii Shop Channel Click to expand... Click to shrink... Was gonna be what I said. Truly iconic in a way no single game's song could be.  Exist 2 Inspire Powered by Friendship™ Member Apr 19, 2018 4,680 Germany I take Home in Florence over Ezio's Family personally. Man i love this game so much.  Musiol Member Oct 27, 2017 70 For me probably Maiden's Astrea theme from DS. View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPJUQg_U5HY   Blue_Toad507 Member May 25, 2021 3,807 If you owned a Wii, you knew this song.  Tsaki Member Feb 12, 2019 466 Ezio and Wii Shop like were already said. I'd put Uncharted's theme and probably some Call of Duty main menu soundtrack like Black Ops. - YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. youtu.be - YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. www.youtube.com   Adryuu Master of the Wind Member Oct 27, 2017 6,519 Uncharted Worlds View: https://youtu.be/7ZoFw9uXJwk?feature=shared And while I'm at it, also this one, why not: View: https://youtu.be/kgcq_ZtqbO0?feature=shared  MegaSackman Member Oct 27, 2017 20,706 Argentina Nate's Theme from Uncharted for sure. It started as generic for people, ended up being iconic. View: https://youtu.be/kgcq_ZtqbO0?si=5Co-INQ6d-6sx7Xn Edit: Beaten!  Kotetsu534 Member Dec 31, 2022 545 My first thought was the Uncharted 2 Main Theme, but Gusty Garden Galaxy probably outranks it actually. View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42tMX5UEAS8   ItsOKAY Member Jan 26, 2018 1,779 Frankfurt, Germany 100%  Adryuu Master of the Wind Member Oct 27, 2017 6,519 Tsaki said: Ezio and Wii Shop like were already said. I'd put Uncharted's theme and probably some Call of Duty main menu soundtrack like Black Ops. - YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. youtu.be - YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. www.youtube.com Click to expand... Click to shrink... MegaSackman said: Nate's Theme from Uncharted for sure. It started as generic for people, ended up being iconic. View: https://youtu.be/kgcq_ZtqbO0?si=5Co-INQ6d-6sx7Xn Edit: Beaten! Click to expand... Click to shrink... Kotetsu534 said: My first thought was the Uncharted 2 Main Theme, but Gusty Garden Galaxy probably outranks it actually. View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42tMX5UEAS8 Click to expand... Click to shrink... all right lol  Duncan Member Oct 25, 2017 15,482 HotsauceDragon Member Oct 25, 2017 3,645 ClivePwned Member Oct 27, 2017 4,214 Australia Gusty Garden, Wii Shop, Portal all mentioned, so: Adrenaline from Call of Duty Black Ops 2 View: https://youtu.be/hPR_hKpwXbI?si=Wq3mpSVzka2I5SST or Suicide Mission from Mass Effect 2 View: https://youtu.be/VTsD2FjmLsw?si=NiyXJ3sTV7vgJH-J  GTAce Member Oct 27, 2017 4,615 Bonn, Germany Motorstorm, baby!  OhhEldenRing Member Aug 14, 2024 2,868 It's the Wii Shop music and nothing comes close   Tsaki Member Feb 12, 2019 466 ClivePwned said: Gusty Garden, Wii Shop, Portal all mentioned, so: Adrenaline from Call of Duty Black Ops 2 View: https://youtu.be/hPR_hKpwXbI?si=Wq3mpSVzka2I5SST or Suicide Mission from Mass Effect 2 View: https://youtu.be/VTsD2FjmLsw?si=NiyXJ3sTV7vgJH-J Click to expand... Click to shrink... So good.  ReplacementPelican Member Oct 29, 2017 4,932 oni-link said: And why is the answer obviously Ezio's Family View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSVHx23ByhM Click to expand... Click to shrink... I'm tempted, I suppose, to think of any others. I'd say either the Uncharted theme or Far Horizons from Skyrim do, for me, just live on so strongly and vividly. But, really, I think you've got it in one with Ezio's Family because it feels like the defining track of a franchise that is still going very, very strongly and in almost every game, sometimes arranged a bit differently or interpreted differently but it feels like its become the theme song of the series, really. Its also just an incredible piece of music.  OP OP oni-link tag reference no one gets Member Oct 25, 2017 17,372 UK I made this thread after hearing Ezio's Family for the first time in a while and thinking "damm this slaps", but looking at all the answers so far, I clearly forgot just how many certified bangers there were this generation   BeansBeansBeans Member Jan 14, 2025 1,093 RockmanBN said: Wii Shop Channel Click to expand... Click to shrink... And we're done here.  Z'ard "This guy are sick" Member Mar 5, 2019 1,549 Ukraine Uncharted 2 theme is the first thing that came to my mind.   IMCaprica Member Aug 1, 2019 11,031 It's Wii Shop Channel theme for sure. Probably followed by Wii Sports theme. And then in an incredibly distant third, maybe "Dovahkiin" from Skyrim?   BGBW Member Oct 25, 2017 15,459 Well since the obvious candidates like the Wii themes and Still Alive have been posted I present that track that haunted all your dreams: View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOxqgLUPFHg WAH WAH!  Izanagi89 "This guy are sick" and Corrupted by Vengeance Member Oct 27, 2017 18,842 Gaur Plain defines that era for me, at least on Wii View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDJtsfR51To   Nintenleo XIV Member Nov 9, 2017 5,137 Italy tadaima Member Oct 30, 2017 3,137 Tokyo, Japan Everybody with a Wii was forced through the Mii create flow, so I guess the Mii theme. Which, although not going as hard as the Shop channel theme, is great. View: https://youtu.be/po-0n1BKW2w?si=NBQktoBzY4b06420   Last edited: Today at 6:16 AM Akai Member Oct 25, 2017 6,244 Like always with these threads. Too many great ones to name as the examples already shown. Here's is an other one: View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJq-F51QblI   Last edited: Today at 6:26 AM GMM Member Oct 27, 2017 5,799 Tons of great entries here, I will throw in a dark horse from Deus Ex: View: https://youtu.be/FUy87tpfNe4?si=0DT6_tEJpgNPZWZK   OP OP oni-link tag reference no one gets Member Oct 25, 2017 17,372 UK every time someone posts this I'm compelled to watch the whole thing from start to finish lol  Nakenorm "This guy are sick" The Fallen Oct 26, 2017 27,206 Yeah it's definitely Uncharted for me at least. Probably the Wii channel theme in general tho.   FarSight XR-20 Member Jan 4, 2018 9,511 Squid Icarus Member Jul 11, 2019 370 I think the biggest ones have already been mentioned (I think Ac2 is the winner). Here's a few more memorable highlights: View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99lHz11ElkA View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xHttYIwocY   Nintenleo XIV Member Nov 9, 2017 5,137 Italy I was obsessed with this trailer and its music  StarErik Member Oct 27, 2017 606 The Mii Channel theme is used in so many TikToks, YouTube videos and Instagram reels so that theme is probably the most recognizable and has the biggest reach. My personal favorite is Gusty Garden Galaxy, though.  Transistor The Walnut King Administrator Oct 25, 2017 41,658 Washington, D.C. I'd say this has become pretty iconic (The Last of Us theme) - YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. youtu.be   Last edited: Today at 6:42 AM Sordid Plebeian Member Oct 26, 2017 19,866 Never Forget  SolidSnakex Member Oct 25, 2017 28,046 TLoU main theme - YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. www.youtube.com   JamboGT Vehicle Handling Designer Verified Oct 25, 2017 1,531 Am probably going to be in the minority, but for me it was this, I watched this trailer so much and still unironically love this song. 5oul on D!splay from GT5 View: https://youtu.be/MXh25i7_3Is   Exist 2 Inspire Powered by Friendship™ Member Apr 19, 2018 4,680 Germany GMM said: Tons of great entries here, I will throw in a dark horse from Deus Ex: View: https://youtu.be/FUy87tpfNe4?si=0DT6_tEJpgNPZWZK Click to expand... Click to shrink... Probably my favorite video game track ever, so damn good.  Jawmuncher Crisis Dino Moderator Oct 25, 2017 44,841 Ibis Island If we're talking "truly iconic" as in world view, Halo 3's Menu and anything Wii Sports/Menu related would be at the top.   Bishop89 What Are Ya' Selling? Member Oct 25, 2017 42,778 Melbourne, Australia AstronaughtE Member Nov 26, 2017 13,171 The Barbarian Choir: View: https://youtu.be/AVy7YPNP_zI?si=lNiLhHE40iyby0VE Wet Hands: View: https://youtu.be/MSepOYJxB64?si=NIFMpP7z1VQbAMNd  Doopl Member Oct 25, 2017 287 Ballad of the Goddess (Zelda Skyward Sword) View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4ReyoNpyrM Build That Wall (Bastion) View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3SZee4YZX8  wrowa Member Oct 25, 2017 4,794 Wii Shop Channel is weirdly big on TikTok etc, so it's probably that.   Zyrox One Winged Slayer Corrupted by Vengeance Member Oct 25, 2017 5,182 The first thing that popped into my head reading the thread title was Super Smash Bros. Brawl's main theme (probably because the game really drills the theme into your head with multiple different arrangements) View: https://youtu.be/zeKE0NHUtUw Looking at the thread though there were lots of really memorsble tunes. Some good shouts in here.  Mafro Member Oct 25, 2017 9,118 It's absolutely the Wii Shopping Channel.   Stef Member Oct 28, 2017 7,732 Rome, Italy, Planet Earth This, and not even close. Still listening to it after all these years. (it is the Halo 3 soundtrack, but linking something from Youtube has become a nightmare...) View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0GdEIkGQOk 

Tom Cruise is taking on one last daring adventure in "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning," which pits Ethan Hunt against an evil AI that threatens to destroy the world.The actor has been the face of the franchise since the first movie in 1996, and has starred in eight films in total.The Impossible Mission Force (yes, really) first debuted in the "Mission: Impossible" TV series in 1966, which starred Steven Hill and Peter Graves and ran for six seasons until 1973, before it was revived for another two seasons on ABC in 1988.With the franchise set to end with "The Final Reckoning," here are all the "Mission: Impossible" movies, ranked. 8. "Mission: Impossible 2" (2000) Tom Cruise riding a motorbike in "Mission: Impossible 2." Paramount Pictures "Mission: Impossible 2" should be given way more love than it gets, mainly because the Hong Kong cinema legend John Woo helmed it. Yes, the "Hard Boiled" and "Bullet in the Head" director brought his signature bullet ballet style to the "Mission: Impossible" sequel, with all the slow-motion flair you could ask for.Is it cheesy? Sure. Does the script need some work? Definitely. Is there any smart subtext or meaning underneath all the action? Absolutely not. This is a peak 2000s action movie, and it knows it. "Mission: Impossible 2" is so over the top that once you've made peace with it, it's best to just go along for the ride. Come on, Tom Cruise and Dougray Scott play motorbike chicken with each other before a midair tackle sends them both crashing to the ground. What's not to love? It's the type of vehicular chaos that the "Fast & Furious" franchise's Dominic Toretto would be proud of.Even so, "Mission: Impossible 2" ranks at the bottom of the bunch. 7. "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" (2011) Tom Cruise on the side of the Burj Khalifa in "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol." Paramount Pictures The 2011 film "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" takes the franchise into the modern era. It follows Hunt and his team as they're forced to go on the run when they're framed for bombing the Kremlin.It quickly becomes a race to stop the villainous Kurt Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist), who wants to start a nuclear war so that only the strongest members of humanity will survive. It's this plot that keeps "Ghost Protocol" from ascending the ranking, because, as spy thrillers go, stopping a nuclear war feels predictable, and the film fails to do anything unique with the premise. Plus, there's nothing particularly extraordinary about Hendricks as a baddie.But generic plot devices aside, the film features some brilliant fights and gripping set pieces. The stand-out moment is when Cruise's hero climbs the Burj Khalifa in Dubai with nothing but sticky gloves and rope.One of the most surprising elements of the film is Jeremy Renner's William Brandt, a disgraced former agent who's grappling with the guilt of failing Ethan on a former mission. That sub-plot works very well among the rest of the action, and it's a clever way of injecting a bit of heart into the mission. 6. "Mission: Impossible 3" (2006) Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt and Keri Russell as Lindsey Farris in "Mission: Impossible 3." Paramount Pictures Two words: JJ Abrams. The "Lost" and "Fringe" creator made his big screen debut in 2006 with "Mission: Impossible 3," which takes a mid-noughties approach to the Impossible Mission Force and gives it a brutal edge.The sequel pits Ethan, Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames), Zhen Lei (Maggie Q), and Declan Gormley (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) against a nefarious arms dealer played by the incomparable Phillip Seymour Hoffman.Part of what elevates "Mission: Impossible 3" from previous films is that it never actually explains what Ethan and the gang are chasing. It's known only by its mysterious codename, the Rabbit's Foot. It could be an infectious disease, a computer virus, a hard drive teeming with currency, or nuclear codes — and that's what makes it so compelling. It's also refreshing to see Ethan settled and in love with Michelle Monahan's Julia Meade. What does married life look like for a superspy? How does that complicate his responsibility to save the world? The sequel feels very busy, as Abrams packs a lot into a tight two-hour run time. And some parts don't quite work, like Ethan's dynamic with his young mentee Lindsey Farris (Keri Russell). But there are some stellar sequences throughout, like the ballistic shoot-out on the bridge, which is an eye-popping piece of action choreography. 5. "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" (2025) Tom Cruise in "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning." Skydance/Paramount Pictures "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" is the sequel to 2023's "Dead Reckoning," and sees Hunt race to stop an assassin known as Gabriel (Esai Morales) from controlling a sentient AI called the Entity. Just to raise the stakes, the Entity has already taken control of the world's nuclear weapons and plans to wipe out humanity.While the 2025 movie is billed as the final entry in the franchise, its story doesn't quite live up to the high expectations set by "Dead Reckoning." The first hour is bogged down by lengthy exposition and generic action movie silliness.That being said, as soon as the action picks up and Cruise embraces his adrenaline junkie persona once more, "The Final Reckoning" provides a breathtaking cinematic experience.Whether it's the suspenseful scuba dive into a wrecked submarine or how Hunt climbs between two biplanes in the sky to fight Gabriel, the film's ambitious sequences deserve to be seen on the big screen. 4. "Mission: Impossible" (1996) Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt in "Mission: Impossible." Paramount Pictures Taken from the 1966 TV series of the same name, 1996's "Mission: Impossible" introduces Cruise's Ethan Hunt, a field agent working for Jim Phelps (Jon Voight), the main character from the show. It has audiences instantly on their toes when Ethan's entire team, including Phelps, are assassinated by a double agent in the opening — forcing our hero to go on the run after being framed for their deaths."Mission: Impossible" earned itself a place in cinema history thanks to the brilliantly intense break-in scene, in which Cruise's Hunt hacks into a CIA mainframe computer while suspended on cables.And of course, the high-octane ending on top of a Channel Tunnel train is a pulse-pounding affair set to the iconic theme music. Cruise effortlessly brings Hunt to life alongside top-notch performances from Voight, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Ving Rhames, which really help sell the paranoid atmosphere of the film 3. "Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation" (2015) Rebecca Ferguson as Ilsa Faust in "Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation." Paramount Pictures "Rogue Nation" is where frequent Tom Cruise collaborator Christopher McQuarrie properly put his stamp on the franchise. McQuarrie expands the world in a fascinating way with the introduction of the Syndicate, a vast organization made up of rogue agents from every intelligence agency on the planet.Their mission (should they choose to accept it) is to create disorder and chaos to destabilize the global intelligence community, although their true goals don't become apparent until 2018's "Mission: Impossible - Fallout." Hunt is determined to root out the Syndicate, and its sinister leader, Solomon Lane (Sean Harris)."Rogue Nation" also introduces Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), an enigmatic British agent who has a delicious will-they-won't-they dynamic with Cruise's hero.A brawl in the rigging above an opera stage in Vienna is a stunning highlight, as is Cruise's underwater dive to retrieve a computer chip from a submerged safe. Cruise broke the world record for holding his breath for six minutes while completing that stunt in 2014. 2. "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One" (2023) Esai Morales as Gabriel and Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt in "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One." Paramount Pictures "Dead Reckoning Part One" sees Hunt's IMF team chasing a key that will lead them to an unstoppable AI that could wreak havoc on the world.And, of course, every government agency in the world wants to get their hands on it, so Hunt and his team are effectively on the run from everyone. "Dead Reckoning's" focus on AI gives it a grounding in the real world, but the film also continues to elevate the sheer scale of action that audiences have come to expect from the "Mission: Impossible" franchise. That jaw-dropping mountain jump at the movie's climax has to be seen to be believed, and it only gets more bonkers after that.It's a testament to Cruise and McQuarrie that the film feels fresh and new — even if the script does drag on at points. Then again, audiences are coming to see Cruise throw himself off a mountain, not to hear Oscar-winning dialogue. 1. "Mission: Impossible - Fallout" (2018) Tom Cruise in "Mission: Impossible - Fallout." Paramount There's no question that McQuarrie's "Mission: Impossible - Fallout" is the best movie in the franchise, which is impressive considering it's the sixth outing for Hunt and the gang. It continues the Syndicate storyline from "Rogue Nation" and dives further into Solomon Lane's scheme. He wants to destabilize the world by irradiating the Siachen Glacier, which supplies water to India, Pakistan, and China. This would kill off a third of the world's population and drastically change society in the process.  But most of the story revolves around a CIA and IMF mole who goes by the codename 'John Lark.'The hunt to find this rogue agent crosses the world, introducing the likes of Henry Cavill's CIA agent August Walker and Vanessa Kirby's underworld matriarch, Alanna Mitsopolis. The scope of McQuarrie's movie is massive, and its huge stunts mirror that size. A gobsmacking scene sees Hunt dive with Walker from a plane and parachute into Paris. Cruise shot the stunt alongside a cameraman to properly capture the chaotic dive. Then, of course, there's the film's exhilarating helicopter chase through a New Zealand mountain range — just another example of McQuarrie and Cruise's commitment to filming these stunts in the most jaw-dropping way possible."Fallout" is a thrilling chapter of the "Mission: Impossible" franchise that deepens the audience's understanding of Cruise's hero while delivering a stunning cinematic experience.

Saucycarpdog Member Oct 25, 2017 20,317 On Steam the game is reaching CCU numbers it hasn't gotten in years. Console is harder to see but the game is #22 on Xbox Most Played charts right behind Overwatch 2. It's usually out of the top 50. Crazy to see. I'm guessing it's the Andor effect?  giancarlo123x One Winged Slayer Member Oct 25, 2017 28,002 The game still fucks. The game was in such a great spot with the anniversary update then they pulled the plug on content.   AgentOtaku Member Oct 27, 2017 4,586 Saucycarpdog said: On Steam the game is reaching CCU numbers it hasn't gotten in years. Console is harder to see but the game is #22 on Xbox Most Played charts right behind Overwatch 2. It's usually out of the top 50. Crazy to see. I'm guessing it's the Andor effect? Click to expand... Click to shrink... Yeah, noticed it creeping up the last few weeks. Insane and probably the Andor effect.  ASleepingMonkey The Fallen Oct 26, 2017 4,579 Iowa This game is very, very popular among gen Z in particular. It is hard for me to scroll Instagram or TikTok without seeing a post about it. Younger people adore this game, particularly those who love the prequels.  Hella Member Oct 27, 2017 24,492 Guess it's time to reinstall Battlefront 2. Game is super fun Thank you for the PSA, OP.  HockeyBird Member Oct 27, 2017 13,798 You have friends everywhere when you play Battlefront II.   Neverx Prophet of Truth - One Winged Slayer Member Sep 17, 2020 3,854 Florida It's a perfect storm of the yearly May 4th resurgence, Revenge of the Sith rerelease and Andor S2. Been playing a bit recently and the game is still great, such a shame they pulled the plug. Really excited for Zero Company and Jedi 3 but we really need a new Battlefront.   Fuchsia Member Oct 28, 2017 7,249 It's honestly a fantastic game after all the work that was put into it post launch. It's still a blast to fire up today. Really sad that they basically killed support right when it was starting to become an all timer.  Nocturnowl Member Oct 25, 2017 28,294 It's all fun and games until the god players who have been playing eternally earn a hero like Yoda early on and the rest of the game becomes a slasher sim where your lil trooper or droid lives in constant terror of the unstoppable turbo speed lightsaber spam racing towards you Neat to see it have a resurgence though, not big on star wars these days but I did have a lot of fun playing this messy arse game with friends  JakeNoseIt Catch My Drift Verified Oct 27, 2017 4,751 Woah I don't watch Andor but I randomly redownloaded the game like a week ago and have been having fun poking around   Zebesian-X Member Dec 3, 2018 25,362 great game kneecapped by its monetization strategy. Sad that they abandoned it right as it was hitting its stride. Glad to see people playing! Shame we never got a third one   Prison_mike Banned Oct 26, 2017 1,676 Hell yeah I bet Fortnight is a reason too. I need to renew my online for this, dammit  DrScruffleton Member Oct 26, 2017 14,887 game was killed way too soon. Imagine all the crazy promotional stuff we couldve gotten over the years with show tie ins and stuff.   dodo Member Oct 27, 2017 4,293 I'm part of the wave!   Creed Bratton Member Aug 29, 2019 782 I jumped back in after playing the new Star Wars Fortnite content. It made me want a true SW experience.   Gleethor Member Oct 25, 2017 4,215 Dot Matrix with stereo sound Coulda had so much new content had they stuck with it. Or at least a third game to break the curse.   AgentOtaku Member Oct 27, 2017 4,586 ASleepingMonkey said: This game is very, very popular among gen Z in particular. It is hard for me to scroll Instagram or TikTok without seeing a post about it. Younger people adore this game, particularly those who love the prequels. Click to expand... Click to shrink... Haha, makes sense. Both my sons adored it. We really should have gotten another one :/  Parker Member Feb 5, 2018 698 Also, the people who got it for free on EGS   Lord Vatek Avenger Jan 18, 2018 24,748 Fortnite, May 4th, and Andor all likely play a part. I haven't checked, but I'd wager that Star Wars The Old Republic is seeing a similar bump.  dodo Member Oct 27, 2017 4,293 I'm still not a big fan of the card loadout system and I wish the vehicles were handled differently, but when it's hitting it has that DICE magic. Great visuals, amazing sound, loving attention to detail.   Corv Member Aug 5, 2022 645 Prison_mike said: Hell yeah I bet Fortnight is a reason too. Click to expand... Click to shrink... Yeah the current Fortnite season made me want to boot it up   Forerunner Resetufologist The Fallen Oct 30, 2017 18,835 Dice dropping support of this right when all the new SW content was being released was weird, they could have added so much to it.   Strikerrr Member Oct 25, 2017 2,858 I've seen a big push from Arc Raiders fans who are suffering from tech test withdrawl. Even though they're very different games, there's some aspects about the movement and shooting which feel somewhat similar considering that a lot of the staff at DICE went to Embark after BF1/V. IIRC some devs who were at Motive during Battlefront 2's development commented that the initial Arc Raiders reveal when it was still a PvE game looked similar to some gameplay concepts that were originally pitched from Battlefront 2. View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuftkDxjGT4 I could see this as built from a discarded Battlefront coop mode where you take down AT-ATs  OhhEldenRing Member Aug 14, 2024 2,860 The Jade Raymond effect. It's been in the news that was her last big release.   Santos Member Oct 25, 2017 1,376 Have they addressed hacking on PC? Tried play again on PC a couple of years ago and there were tons of hackers everywhere to the point they were removing map objectives lol.   Jona Basta Member May 13, 2025 27 Santos said: Have they addressed hacking on PC? Tried play again on PC a couple of years ago and there were tons of hackers everywhere to the point they were removing map objectives lol. Click to expand... Click to shrink... There's a New Project Called Kyber that fixes that + introduces a lot of new things, but they keep pushing back the release date on that while pushing their Patreon so I'm not feeling to hot on it personally.   Fuchsia Member Oct 28, 2017 7,249 Now, more than ever, I feel a new Battlefront would be so incredible. The issue is how do you feasibly make a game that would have enough content from each era of Star Wars to do it all justice? It would take so much manpower and time.   OP OP Saucycarpdog Member Oct 25, 2017 20,317 Also, if any of y'all have Insurgency Sandstorm on PC, you can try the new Star Wars Sagas mod. View: https://youtu.be/1qfHDopTd3k?si=W_vKAw-W4NWNK2ic   Cheesy Member Oct 30, 2017 2,564 Saucycarpdog said: Also, if any of y'all have Insurgency Sandstorm on PC, you can try the new Star Wars Sagas mod. View: https://youtu.be/1qfHDopTd3k?si=W_vKAw-W4NWNK2ic Click to expand... Click to shrink... Oh damn I didn't know that game got any mods that weren't just a bunch of really tacticool guns. I'll have to take a look.  Jona Basta Member May 13, 2025 27 Saucycarpdog said: Also, if any of y'all have Insurgency Sandstorm on PC, you can try the new Star Wars Sagas mod. View: https://youtu.be/1qfHDopTd3k?si=W_vKAw-W4NWNK2ic Click to expand... Click to shrink... there's also the fantastic Squad Mod Galactic Contention: View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIgrE5Bhvxs  Prasino95 Member Feb 18, 2025 6 Such a shame they messed up the remaster of the original so bad, bet that would have got a surge too.   Mocha Joe Member Jun 2, 2021 13,433 I should reinstall. I never gave it an honest try after strongly disliking the first one. Spent $40 on basically a tech demo and I was a fucking idiot and bought the season pass. I never have bought a season pass since then   danhz Member Apr 20, 2018 3,539 Hopefully i can play sone games tomorrow, Game was fire 🔥🔥   luca Member Oct 25, 2017 19,417 Never mind. It's the fps Battlefront game. I loved the single player campaign.   tjh282 Member May 29, 2019 1,097 My youngest brother and his friends have this in their MP rotation and they're not even huge SW fans. Marketing campaign killed this on arrival, but I loved both of the new BFs   Dance Inferno Member Oct 29, 2017 2,739 Saucycarpdog said: Also, if any of y'all have Insurgency Sandstorm on PC, you can try the new Star Wars Sagas mod. View: https://youtu.be/1qfHDopTd3k?si=W_vKAw-W4NWNK2ic Click to expand... Click to shrink... Woah WTF how have I never heard of this? This looks dope, downloading this ASAP.  Richietto One Winged Slayer Member Oct 25, 2017 26,052 North Carolina There's also a huge mod called Kyler that'll really bring life to the game.   Man Called Aerodynamics Member Oct 29, 2017 8,327 I'm not a fan of BF2 in particular (that campaign sucked) but it's always nice to see older games get rediscovered or retain popularity.   Papercuts Prophet of Truth Member Oct 25, 2017 12,726 Feel like this happened a few years back too, I remember actually picking it back up and having a surprisingly good time.   panic Member Oct 26, 2024 83 Last time I tried to play this my team was being completely obliterated on spawn by players using starfighters.   thediamondage Member Oct 25, 2017 13,613 i am jonesing hard for Star Wars after Andor so no surprise, rewatching movies now but i'll probably play Star Wars Outlaws next although Battlefront 2 isn't a bad idea, I loved that game in the first year. Its dumb as hell but it can be super fun too if you are just in it for vibes. Publishers should be discounting star wars games heavy right now, its an automatic impulse buy i think  ASleepingMonkey The Fallen Oct 26, 2017 4,579 Iowa AgentOtaku said: Haha, makes sense. Both my sons adored it. We really should have gotten another one :/ Click to expand... Click to shrink... I would like to see DICE give it another go after Battlefield 6. I assume no matter what, they're going to want to shake it up a bit after close to another decade of nothing but Battlefield and so long as Battlefield 6 is good, it can probably sustain itself for a while. Going back to Battlefront would be great. I just want a better campaign this time, taking some cues from Andor and placing you in the shoes of just an ordinary person in this galactic war would be a great starting point.  BrickArts295 GOTY Tracking Thread Master Member Oct 26, 2017 15,642 It's 100% Andor + Fortnite Star Wars Event /recent rerelease of Episode III. I caught the fever and even went back to get the platinum for Jedi Survivor cause I just wanted to play anything Star Wars. It's crazy how cursed Battlefront 3 is. Seems like both times we could have had the ultimate Star Wars game which would built up from their last 2 iterations. EA seems to be fine with working on Star Wars despite their latest stance on license titles, maybe DICE will be given one more go at it.  Javier23 Member Oct 28, 2017 3,230 I for one have been thinking about giving this a try because of Fortnite's current SW season.   wellpapp Member Aug 21, 2018 531 Gothenburg Wasnt the servers 100% broken by all the cheaters?   The Quentulated Mox Corrupted by Vengeance Member Jun 10, 2022 6,566 On the one hand, I love andor in large part because of how much it does different from the rest of the franchise and I think blending it in with all the rest of the stuff risks diluting it On the other hand, imagine a Ferrix map in battlefront. Imagine a Narkina 5 map. Imagine blasting a truck full of troopers on Mina-Rau from your tie avenger. Imagine switching Cassian's gun into sniper configuration. Imagine spinning your Fondor haulcraft a billion times and shredding everything around you. Need  BubbaKrumpz The Fallen Oct 25, 2017 3,849 Yay Area Papercuts said: Feel like this happened a few years back too, I remember actually picking it back up and having a surprisingly good time. Click to expand... Click to shrink... Yeah, I went in with some of my buds and it was a great time. I've enjoyed the game since release though. I hav a friend who only plays battlefront 2 and most recently fortnite  Excelsior Member Oct 28, 2017 1,058 wellpapp said: Wasnt the servers 100% broken by all the cheaters? Click to expand... Click to shrink... This is what I heard too, is it playable?  Chromie Member Dec 4, 2017 5,742 AgentOtaku said: Yeah, noticed it creeping up the last few weeks. Insane and probably the Andor effect. Click to expand... Click to shrink... I will always love Star Wars but man, Andor has made Star Wars chatter online so positive that I jumped back into BF2.   Doctor Shatner The Fallen Oct 25, 2017 252 Lol I literally reinstalled this because of Andor (have had zero content creators mention it outside of watching old Giant Bomb E3 videos). So at least for me it was that! Funny to see such a weird hivemind esque effect going on there. Game is still fun but I have to pretend I'm a literal stormtrooper with my skill level. The number of crazyhigh ranks who fly around as vader/yoda, etc after a couple minutes into the match and insta gib me would drive me mad if I played seriously. 

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Dasvidania Tovarish: Infostealers are a dangerous class of malware built to infiltrate systems and extract sensitive personal or corporate data. Lumma Stealer ranks among the worst offenders, prompting Microsoft and global law enforcement to go after its alleged mastermind. Microsoft says its Digital Crimes Unit (DCU) successfully disrupted the server infrastructure behind Lumma Stealer, a malware-as-a-service (MaaS) operation that infected hundreds of thousands of Windows PCs. Cybercriminals worldwide used LummaC2 to steal passwords and credit cards, drain crypto wallets, disrupt critical services, and more. Microsoft's DCU worked with a federal court in Georgia, the Department of Justice, Europol, and Japan's Cybercrime Control Center to dismantle Lumma's infrastructure. Redmond blocked roughly 2,300 malicious domains that served as the backbone of the operation. Microsoft identified more than 394,000 Windows systems infected by Lumma malware between March 16 and May 16. The seized domains now redirect to Microsoft-controlled sinkholes, which protect users while providing analysts with fresh insights into the malicious operation. With its infrastructure dismantled, the Lumma enterprise has effectively shut down. The malware ring has "rented" Lumma on underground markets since 2022. The malware evolved to offer increasingly advanced features to its criminal customers. Microsoft analysts claim LummaC2 can siphon browser credentials and cookies, locate locally stored cryptocurrency wallets and extensions, and target VPNs along with various internet applications. Furthermore, Lumma collects various document types (PDF, DOCX, RTF) from the local user profile and steals metadata about the infected machine for further exploitation. The malware spreads through multiple channels, including phishing emails, malvertising, drive-by downloads from compromised sites, and fake Captcha challenges. Other malware specimens can also drop Lumma as an additional threat. // Related Stories Microsoft identified the primary developer behind Lumma as a Russian hacker known online as "Shamel." In a recent interview with a cybersecurity researcher, the hacker claimed to have around 400 active customers. That is likely no longer the case, as Windows Defender and other Microsoft endpoint security tools now reliably detect the all-but-defunct malware. Third-party antivirus programs probably flagged it well before authorities dismantled the operation. "Disrupting the tools cybercriminals frequently use can create a significant and lasting impact on cybercrime, as rebuilding malicious infrastructure and sourcing new exploit tools takes time and costs money," Redmond said.

Growing up, dinner table conversations at our house weren’t just about what we learned at school that day. My mom, Jill, was a CEO for my entire life, leading a nonprofit that made meaningful community impact while she simultaneously raised a family. Our dinner conversations included recaps of board meetings, talk of juggling multiple personal and professional roles, and advice for her kid (me!) on how to do right by others.   My mother’s daily examples of leadership showed me that career success and personal fulfillment don’t compete with each other—they’re complementary. Now, as I help lead Guild’s efforts, partnering with companies to invest in employee career development and talent pipelines, those early lessons continue to guide me.  It is possible to find balance  My mom taught me important lessons about balance that I use today. First, she taught me that having a meaningful career and making a positive impact aren’t mutually exclusive. People talk about “doing well by doing good” as an abstract concept, but I saw it firsthand every day. There was never a doubt in my mind that I would pursue the same.  I was also lucky enough to have a role model who showed it was possible to have both a thriving professional and personal life. Being a wife, mother, a (literal) boss, and an engaged community member were identities she wove together. It wasn’t always easy, but watching her showed me that these identities were equally important for fulfillment.  Often people—especially women—are presented with binary choices: Career or children? Devoted partner or independent social life? Many grapple with these decisions, but we don’t have to. There isn’t any shame in prioritizing one thing over another one day, and changing the next. My mom taught me not to feel guilty about this balancing act.   This ripple effect of positive modeling extends beyond the family. I’ve seen it through stories of Guild learners, like Sherry from Oklahoma, who works at Tyson Foods. Sherry finished high school, got promoted to plant manager, and became an advocate for our program among her colleagues. She’s an example of how leaders can effectively balance everything important to them: career, family, community outreach, and learning.   It’s never too late (or early!) to start a second act  My mom grew up in the 1950s and 60s with three brothers and limited resources. She was a natural athlete, but didn’t have the privilege of formal training in her earlier years.   Decades into adulthood, as her career entered its final chapters and she had more free time, she embraced the transition to her next chapter in life. At 50, she started playing senior women’s basketball. Fast forward 25 years, and she’s now a multi-titled senior Olympian at 75. Some of her best friends came through basketball, and she serves as a board member and advocate for senior women’s sports.  My mom taught me that building skills later in life is more than fulfilling—it keeps you young! It increases cognitive function, improves memory, and enhances emotional well-being. There’s urgency here on a global scale, as the half-life of professional skills is less than 5 years (less than 2.5 years in technology fields). The workforce needs people willing to be nimble and adapt to the skills their field requires, just as our personal lives benefit from constant learning. We can take lessons from people who grew to be the best in their field, too. Vera Wang designed her first dress at 40, and Toni Morrison wrote her first novel after a long career in publishing.  I’ve been inspired by people who pivot, learn, and succeed, and my admiration for people with this skill absolutely bleeds into the workplace. I like to bet on potential and give people opportunities beyond what their experience suggests, with faith that lifelong learners can figure things out with the right mindset and support. I believe that most career paths aren’t linear, and I have benefited from this myself, like in a previous role. A cofounder was the first person to really take a chance on me. He truly let me run by giving me a role that, on paper, wasn’t congruent with my experience but leveraged my skills in a meaningful way.   You’re a role model—whether you know it or not  Another lesson I learned from my mom is something I observed from her actions, not something she intended to share. She was, and is, a role model to me and many others without asking for the title. She modeled behavior, like taking initiative on difficult problems, championing innovation, or methodically pursuing ambitious goals, that those around her naturally emulated.  I’m again reminded of Sherry from Tyson, who not only completed her own education and rose through the ranks, but then supported her husband as he continued his education. Her son now works at Tyson too, and is pursuing his degree simultaneously. Her drive to better herself was contagious and positively impacted her family’s trajectory.   Other high-achievers come to mind as natural role models, too. Take four-time Paralympian Matt Stutzman, who competed in the recent Paralympics for archery. He’s using the same drive that took him to Paris to pursue a career transition that will support him and his family post-games. The examples are endless.   It takes courage to take on new challenges or champion change, especially when countering established norms. Whether pitching a fresh approach to customer research or volunteering to test a new platform, lifelong learners blaze trails for others to follow, and we have the power to be those leaders for others.   Your continuous growth will have a ripple effect on others  The most powerful lesson from my mother’s journey—from CEO to senior Olympian—is that our growth journeys create ripples far beyond our own lives. When we commit to continuous learning and development, we become living examples of what’s possible.  For business leaders, this means investing in growth while creating cultures where employee development is prioritized. For professionals at any career stage, it means embracing opportunities that stretch you beyond your comfort zone. For parents, it means focusing your energy where it’s needed most—at the boardroom or dinner table.   The result? More resilient organizations are populated by adaptable individuals who find deeper fulfillment in both personal and professional realms. More importantly, you’ll inspire others along the way—perhaps even your own children, who might someday write about the dinner table lessons that shaped their leadership journey.   Rebecca Biestman is chief marketing officer of Guild. 

Hinge Health, a digital physical therapy company, closed its first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday at $37.56, up about 17% over the $32 IPO price it set the previous day. That’s a good first-day result. But even with the pop, Hinge’s public valuation is significantly less than its last private market one. The 11-year-old company’s approximate market capitalization, excluding employee options, was about $3 billion, which is less than half of the $6.2 billion Hinge attained in its October 2021 Series E funding round, which was led by Tiger Global Management. Until recently, companies went to great lengths to avoid down-round IPOs. However, the stigma associated with going public below the last private valuation has lessened significantly if that valuation was during the heady 2020-2021 era. Companies whose IPOs are priced lower than their last private valuation by VCs include Reddit, which debuted last year at about $5.4 billion, roughly half its $10 billion valuation from 2021. Another example is ServiceTitan, whose IPO valued it at about $6.3 billion, below the $7.6 billion valuation it secured in a Series H round two years earlier. Hinge Health’s IPO raised $437 million, with about $237 million in proceeds going directly to the company and the remainder to its existing investors. The company’s largest outside shareholders are Insight Partners, which holds 19% of all stock, and Atomico, which has 15% of all shares. Other venture capital firms that own approximately 8% of Hinge’s shares include 11.2 Capital, Coatue, Tiger Global, and Bessemer Venture Partners, according to the company’s latest S-1 filing. Co-founders Daniel Perez and Gabriel Mecklenburg own 18.9% and 8.2%, respectively. The company aims to reduce musculoskeletal pain with the help of wearable sensors and computer vision technology remotely monitored by a clinical care team of physical therapists, physicians, and board-certified health coaches. Techcrunch event Join us at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot for our leading AI industry event with speakers from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Cohere. For a limited time, tickets are just $292 for an entire day of expert talks, workshops, and potent networking. Exhibit at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot at TC Sessions: AI and show 1,200+ decision-makers what you’ve built — without the big spend. Available through May 9 or while tables last. Berkeley, CA | June 5 REGISTER NOW Omada Health, another digital health company, filed to go public earlier this month. The 13-year-old startup offers virtual care between doctors’ visits for chronic conditions like diabetes and hypertension, and competes with Hinge Health in the musculoskeletal pain reduction space. Omada’s biggest shareholders include U.S. Venture Partners and Andreessen Horowitz, and was last valued in 2022 at just above $1 billion. Hinge Health’s primary competitor is Sword Health, which was valued at $3 billion about a year ago. At that time, Sword Health’s CEO, Virgilio Bento, told TechCrunch that the company might also pursue an IPO in 2025 if it grows as expected and the macroeconomic environment is favorable. 

Image: RareRare had a heck of a run on the Nintendo 64, and today we're celebrating the anniversary of yet another of the studio's classics — Perfect Dark. Joanna Dark made her debut on Nintendo's 64-bit console on 22nd May 2000 in North America, with a European release following in June. Today, it ranks as the studio's highest-rated game on Metacritic still. While the series has seen its ups and downs over the years (via Game Boy Color and Xbox 360 prequels), the original remains beloved still thanks to its excellent gameplay and multiplayer, brilliant visuals, and healthy challenge. It was, in many ways, a refinement over Rare's previous iconic shooter, GoldenEye 007. Some even Joanna's adventure to Bond's — look, it's a tough call! We won't judge.Subscribe to Nintendo Life on YouTube813kWatch on YouTube Oh, and thanks to Retronauts for reminding us that the events of the game happened... two years ago. How are we still alive? Happy 25th anniversary to Rare's sci-fi follow-up to GoldenEye, Perfect Dark! Bet you forgot the events of that game supposedly transpired two years ago in 2023.— Retronauts (@retronauts.bsky.social) 2025-05-22T12:20:49.962Z While the series has been pretty quiet for a while, you can at least celebrate today's anniversary by booting up the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack release for a quick round of multiplayer with friends. But we are getting a reboot of the game (not on Switch or Switch 2, as of yet) sometime soon from developer The Initiative. Revealed back in 2020 at The Game Awards, Perfect Dark made a reappearance during Microsoft's Showcase at Summer Game Fest 2024. And for an extensive look at the history of Perfect Dark, including interviews with the people who worked on the game, you should check out our feature on the game which we published for its 20th anniversary, written by contributor and friend of the site James Batchelor. Are you a Perfect Dark fan? Are you excited for the reboot? Or do you think it's better than GoldenEye? Vote in our poll below and celebrate this game in the comments. "We had a lot of ideas, and lots of clever people working out how to do them" Three regions, three covers - but why? Suck it, Bond Related Games See Also Share:0 1 Alana has been with Nintendo Life since 2022, and while RPGs are her first love, Nintendo is a close second. She enjoys nothing more than overthinking battle strategies, characters, and stories. She also wishes she was a Sega air pirate. Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment... Related Articles Every Nintendo Switch Online N64 Game Ranked All the N64 games on NSO Poll: Box Art Brawl - Duel: F-Zero X X-treme Poll: Box Art Brawl: Mario Party 3 Let's roll

Users Congress Passed a Sweeping Free-Speech Crackdown—and No One’s Talking About It The TAKE IT DOWN Act passed with bipartisan support and glowing coverage. Experts warn that it threatens the very users it claims to protect. By Nitish Pahwa Enter your email to receive alerts for this author. Sign in or create an account to better manage your email preferences. May 22, 20252:03 PM Donald and Melania Trump during the signing of the TAKE IT DOWN Act at the White House on Monday. Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images Sign up for the Slatest to get the most insightful analysis, criticism, and advice out there, delivered to your inbox daily. Had you scanned any of the latest headlines around the TAKE IT DOWN Act, legislation that President Donald Trump signed into law Monday, you would have come away with a deeply mistaken impression of the bill and its true purpose. The surface-level pitch is that this is a necessary law for addressing nonconsensual intimate images—known more widely as revenge porn. Obfuscating its intent with a classic congressional acronym (Tools to Address Known Exploitation by Immobilizing Technological Deepfakes on Websites and Networks), the TAKE IT DOWN Act purports to help scrub the internet of exploitative, nonconsensual sexual media, whether real or digitally mocked up, at a time when artificial intelligence tools and automated image generators have supercharged its spread. Enforcement is delegated to the Federal Trade Commission, which will give online communities that specialize primarily in user-generated content (e.g., social media, message boards) a heads-up and a 48-hour takedown deadline whenever an appropriate example is reported. These platforms have also been directed to set up on-site reporting systems by May 2026. Penalties for violations include prison sentences of two to three years and steep monetary fines. Public reception has been rapturous. CNN is gushing that “victims of explicit deepfakes will now be able to take legal action against people who create them.” A few local Fox affiliates are taking the government at its word that TAKE IT DOWN is designed to target revenge porn. Other outlets, like the BBC and USA Today, led off by noting first lady Melania Trump’s appearance at the bill signing. Yet these headlines and pieces ignore TAKE IT DOWN’s serious potential for abuse. (Jezebel and Wired were perhaps the only publications to point out in both a headline and subhead that the law merely “claims to offer victims greater protections” and that “free speech advocates warn it could be weaponized to fuel censorship.”) Rarer still, with the exception of sites like the Verge, has there been any acknowledgment of Trump’s own stated motivation for passing the act, as he’d underlined in a joint address to Congress in March: “I’m going to use that bill for myself too, if you don’t mind, because nobody gets treated worse than I do online, nobody.” Sure, it’s typical for this president to make such serious matters about himself. But Trump’s blathering about having it “worse” than revenge-porn survivors, and his quip about “using that bill for myself,” is not a fluke. For a while now, activists who specialize in free speech, digital privacy, and even stopping child sexual abuse have attempted to warn that the bill will not do what it purports to do. Late last month, after TAKE IT DOWN had passed both the House and Senate, the Electronic Frontier Foundation wrote that the bill’s legislative mechanism “lacks critical safeguards against frivolous or bad-faith takedown requests.” For one, the 48-hour takedown deadline means that digital platforms (especially smaller, less-resourced websites) will be forced to use automated filters that often flag legal content—because there won’t be “enough time to verify whether the speech is actually illegal.” The EFF also warns that TAKE IT DOWN requires monitoring that could reach into even encrypted messages between users. If this legislation has the effect of granting law enforcement a means of bypassing encrypted communications, we may as well bid farewell to the very concept of digital privacy. A February letter addressed to the Senate from a wide range of free-expression nonprofits—including Fight for the Future and the Authors Guild—also raised concerns over TAKE IT DOWN’s implications for content moderation and encryption. The groups noted that although the bill makes allowances for legal porn and newsworthy content, “those exceptions are not included in the bill’s takedown system.” They added that private tools like direct messages and cloud storage aren’t protected either, which could leave them open to invasive monitoring with little justification. The Center for Democracy and Technology, a signatory to the letter, later noted in a follow-up statement that the powers granted to the FTC in enforcing such a vague law could lead to politically motivated attacks, undermining progress in tackling actual nonconsensual imagery. Techdirt’s Mike Masnick wrote last month that TAKE IT DOWN is “so badly designed that the people it’s meant to help oppose it,” pointing to public statements from the advocacy group Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, “whose entire existence is based on representing the interests of victims” of nonconsensual intimate imagery. CCRI has long criticized the bill’s takedown provisions and ultimately concluded that the nonprofit “cannot support legislation that risks endangering the very communities it is dedicated to protecting, including LGBTQIA+ individuals, people of color, and other vulnerable groups.” (In a separate statement, the CCRI highlighted other oddities within the bill, like a loophole allowing for nonconsensual sexual media to be posted if the uploader happens to appear in the image, and the explicit inclusion of forums that specialize in “audio files,” despite otherwise focusing on visual materials.) “The concerns are not theoretical,” Masnick continued. “The bill’s vague standards combined with harsh criminal penalties create a perfect storm for censorship and abuse.” Related From Slate Let’s be clear: No one here is at all opposed to sound legislation that tackles the inescapable, undeniable problem of nonconsensual sexual material. All 50 states, along with the District of Columbia, have enacted laws criminalizing exploitative sexual photos and videos to varying degrees. TAKE IT DOWN extends such coverage to deepfake revenge porn, a change that makes the bill a necessary complement to these state laws—but its text is shockingly narrow on the digital front, criminalizing only A.I. imagery that’s deemed to be “indistinguishable from an authentic visual depiction.” This just leads to more vague language that hardly addresses the underlying issue. The CCRI has spent a full decade fighting for laws to address the crisis of nonconsensual sexual imagery, even drafting model legislation—parts of which did make it into TAKE IT DOWN. On Bluesky, CCRI President Mary Anne Franks called this fact “bittersweet,” proclaiming that the long-overdue criminalization of exploitative sexual imagery is undermined by the final law’s “lack of adequate safeguards against false reports.” A few House Democrats looked to the group’s proposed fixes and attempted to pass amendments that would have added such safeguards, only to be obstructed by their Republican colleagues. This should worry everyone. These groups made concerted efforts to inform Congress of the issues with TAKE IT DOWN and to propose solutions, only to be all but ignored. As Masnick wrote in another Techdirt post, the United States already has enough of a problem with the infamous Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the only other American law with a notice-and-takedown measure like TAKE IT DOWN’s, albeit designed to prevent the unauthorized spread of copyright works. Just ask any creatives or platform operators who’ve had to deal with abusive flurries of bad-faith DMCA takedown requests—even though the law includes a clause meant to protect against such weaponization. There’s no reason to believe that TAKE IT DOWN won’t be similarly exploited to go after sex workers and LGBTQ+ users, as well as anyone who posts an image or animation that another user simply doesn’t like and decides to report. It’s not dissimilar to other pieces of proposed legislation, like the Kids Online Safety Act, that purport to protect young netizens via wishy-washy terms that could criminalize all sorts of free expression. Popular in Technology Here’s a hypothetical: A satirical cartoonist comes up with an illustration of Trump as a baby and publishes it on a niche social media platform that they use to showcase their art. A Trump supporter finds this cartoon and decides to report it as abusive pornography, leading to a takedown notice on the cartoonist’s website. The artist and the platform do not comply, and a pissed-off Trump brings the full force of the law against this creator. The process of discovery leads prosecutors to break into the artist’s encrypted communications, revealing drafts of the drawing that the cartoonist had shared with friends. All of this gets the illustrator punished with a brief prison sentence and steep fine, fully sabotaging their bank account and career; the social media platform they used is left bankrupt and shutters. The artists are forced to migrate to another site, whose administrators see what happened to their former home and decide to censor political works. All the while, an underage user finds that their likeness has been used to generate a sexually explicit deepfake that has been spread all over Discord—yet their case is found to have no merit because the deepfake in question is not considered “indistinguishable from an authentic visual depiction,” despite all the Discord-based abusers recognizing exactly whom that deepfake is meant to represent. It’s a hypothetical—but not an unimaginable one. It’s a danger that too few Americans understand, thanks to congressional ignorance and the media’s credulous reporting on TAKE IT DOWN. The result is a law that’s supposedly meant to protect the vulnerable but ends up shielding the powerful—and punishing the very people it promised to help. Get the best of news and politics Sign up for Slate's evening newsletter.