Sid Meier’s Civilization VII Revolutionizes the Strategy Classic by Building History in Layers
Summary
Sid Meier’s Civilization VIItakes player on a new type of journey, one through distinct historical chapters called Ages.
Build a unique cultural lineage as your empire is represented by unique Civs across each Age.
Launching on February 11, 2025, with support for cross-play and cross-progression.
From everyone at Firaxis Games, we’re thrilled to finally reveal gameplay and share that Sid Meier’s Civilization VII is launching on February 11, 2025.
In Civilization VII, we invite you to go on a journey never experienced before in the franchise – one through the Ages of human advancement. Ages divide history into distinct playable chapters, each designed to immerse the player in the essence of these time periods. We have three Ages for you to experience:
Antiquity Age: When agricultural societies began to cluster into urban centers, forming the foundations of the very first civilizations.
Exploration Age: When the desire for precious commodities from distant lands spurred empires to stretch across the great oceans.
Modern Age: A period of incredible technological growth and global conflict, where mankind goes from development of the steam engine to the splitting of the atom.
What’s particularly interesting about Ages, and separates it from previous Civilization features like Eras, is that for the first time you aren’t just playing as a single civilization. Instead, you build a unique cultural lineage in Civilization VII, where your empire is represented by different civilizations during each Age. You’ll be able to carry forward your past civilization’s legacy, while also playing as a new Civ in the new Age – one with refreshed abilities, unique units, buildings and more!
This idea is a revolutionary one for Civilization, and merits some more detail. To explain, let me take you back to the original foundational idea for Civilization VII – a design mantra we call “History is Built in Layers.”
History is Built in Layers
A few years after we shipped the last Civ game, the design team at Firaxis Games sat down to begin planning out what we wanted to see in Civilization VII. Designing a new Civ game is a unique challenge and we take feedback from all areas. We think about what we’d like to improve on, we hear what the community is asking for, and we look at what players are doing in our games to see how we can make that experience even better.
One area of inspiration for us is, as you might guess, history itself. So I took a trip to London – a big, sprawling modern city, and thought about its past. London was originally an ancient Roman settlement called Londinium, established on the far reaches of the Roman Empire. Back then, it looked very much like any other Roman town, with a forum, bathhouses, and temples.
After the collapse of the Roman Empire, Londinium was largely abandoned. Eventually, the Normans, following their conquest in the 11th century, established what would become Medieval London. On top of the old Roman ruins, new buildings were constructed, including fortifications, churches, and markets. However, Medieval London also faced hardships, such as the devastation of the Black Death.
Fast forward a few centuries, and the Industrial Revolution ushered in what would be Victorian London. This era saw the transformation of the city with new constructions like factories, railways, and commercial buildings, replacing or repurposing many older medieval structures.
This sparked an idea for us – what if you could build your empire in the same way? Where you could experience the same type of journey that London went through: going through different Ages, the identity of your empire represented by different civilizations from that time period. And as a video game, what if you could determine which direction your empire evolved? Imagine if, instead of the Normans, the Spanish had taken control of London? How would that change the future?
Forge Your Path Through the Ages
That’s the unique journey we want you to experience in Civilization VII. During each Age, you’ll select a historical civilization relevant to that time. You’ll compete and cooperate with rival civilizations and face the unique challenges of that Age. As you progress from one Age to the next, you’ll choose a new civilization to represent your empire—determined not just by historical connections, but also by the actions you can take as a player. Over the course of a campaign, as you carry your legacy forward from one Age to the next, you’ll build a unique cultural lineage for your empire – one that may even stand the test of time.
Civilization VII promises to be a revolutionary new chapter for the franchise, and today is just the first step in our journey to February 11, 2025. You can watch our official gameplay showcase for more details; for the latest information on Civilization VII, visit www.civilization.com and follow the game across YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok.
At today’s gamescom Opening Night Live, fans were treated to a bevy of new game reveals and amazing trailers that gave a glimpse of what’s in store from Xbox. This included big news like the release date of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, gameplay from the Call of Duty: Black Ops 6campaign, and the announcement of early access starting soon for Towerborne. But that’s not all! Fans were also given more details on Diablo IV, Starfield: Shattered Space, and more!
With Opening Night Live 2024 complete, gamescom is officially underway, and Xbox will be on the ground floor with one of its most dramatic-looking booths ever – we can’t wait for you to see it! Not only will we have many of the games mentioned here on display, but many titles for both Xbox and Windows PC will be playable, like Ara: History Untold andAge of Mythology Retold, as well as games from our partners like Genshin Impact, Star Wars: Outlaws, and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, giving you the chance to explore all the different ways you can play your favorite games across Cloud, Console, and PC.
Catch up on all of today’s news and reveals from Xbox below:
Age of Mythology: Retold Heads for Launch with Brand New Trailer
Coming September 4, 2024, for Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, Steam, or play it day one with Game Pass.
During Opening Night Live fans around the world were treated to a new Age of Mythology: Retold trailer. Focusing on Arkantos, the hero of the game’s 50+ campaign missions, we hear the voice of Athena, coaxing Arkantos to adventure. Showcasing stunning graphics and mythological magic, the trailer gives us another taste of how much players have to be excited about. The trailer also showed the bacchanal of chaos that comes in the final Wonder Age, a new addition to Retold.
Embark on a gaming journey of first-class offerings with the Age of Mythology: Retold Premium Edition. Curated to offer an elevated gaming experience at launch and beyond.
The Premium Edition includes the full game, up to 7-day advanced access, New Gods Pack: “Freyr”, Legacy Deity Portrait Pack, Expansion 1 (all-new Chinese pantheon expansion) and Expansion 2 (additional new pantheon). *
Standard Game: the complete Age of Mythology: Retold experience
Up to 7-day Advanced Access: Step into the divine realm before time itself with exclusive early unlock to the game available on Xbox, Steam and PC. *
New Gods Pack: “Freyr”: Age of Mythology: Retold Premium Edition adds Freyr to the Norse pantheon. Unleash the power of the Norse god of prosperity and fertility with the Freyr God Pack. The blessings of Freyr will elevate your reign to unprecedented heights.
Legacy Deity Portrait Pack: a nostalgic journey back to the origins of gaming greatness. Relive the glory days of gaming with this special pack, which offers players the option to use iconic deity portraits from the classic game that captivated audiences worldwide.
(2) Upcoming Expansions: Prepare to embark on new epic sagas yet untold with two yet to be revealed and highly anticipated upcoming expansions. *
Expansion 1: All-New Chinese pantheon expansion
Expansion 2: additional new pantheon expansion
Ara: History Untold Debuts Launch Trailer Ahead of September 24 Release
Windows PC, Steam, or play it day one with Game Pass.
Ara: History Untold helped kick off gamescom 2024 with the world premiere of its launch trailer at Opening Night Live. The trailer, featuring a combination of live action and gameplay, puts the player in focus, inviting you to explore, create, rule, and conquer in the world of your imagination. Ara: History Untold is an upcoming grand strategy game where you build a nation and lead your citizens throughout history as you compete head-to-head with rivals to prove you are the greatest ruler ever known. Create your own story of history when Ara: History Untold launches on September 24, 2024. Pre-order and pre-install today! It’s your world now.
Ara: History Untold Deluxe Edition Preorder Bundle
Build a nation and lead your people throughout history to the pinnacles of human achievement as you explore new lands, develop arts and culture, conduct diplomacy, and go head-to-head with your rivals to prove you are the greatest ruler ever known. It's Your World Now.
The Deluxe Edition Includes
• Ara: History Untold Base Game
• Exclusive Leader Collection – featuring five exclusive leaders not included in the base game including: Charlemagne, Genghis Khan, Yoo Gwan Soon, Hildegard and Boudicca.
• Modern Leader Skin Set – enhance five Ara: History Untold leaders (Elizabeth I, Genghis Khan, Nefertiti, Sappho and George Washington) with the Modern Leader Skin Set, featuring modern versions of their in-game costumes.
With your pre-order of the Deluxe Edition receive the Gilded Leader Skin Set.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Shows Off the Action-Packed “Most Wanted” Campaign Mission
Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows PC, Steam, Battle.net, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, or play it day one with Game Pass
We got a look at highlights from one of Black Ops 6’s signature Campaign missions, “Most Wanted”, as Frank Woods’ team attempts to locate and retrieve legendary operative Russell Adler. Beginning with a covert infiltration of a political fundraiser (with a cameo from Governor of Arkansas, Bill Clinton no less), we then see a descent into a CIA Black Site, and a bike riding escape sequence worthy of a classic action movie.
Along the way, we see how Campaign developer Raven is innovating – while this is a classic set piece-driven CoD mission, player choice is at the forefront. There are multiple options for how to get access to the Black Site, and you can choose to go loud or quiet as you infiltrate – it’s your mission. This is just a taste – we’ll learn much more about Black Ops 6 MultiplayerandZombies when the Call of Duty NEXT event kicks off on August 28, before Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 launches on October 25.
Never Fight Alone – Mercenaries are Coming to Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred
Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows PC, PC via Battle.net, Steam, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4
The first expansion for Diablo IV releases worldwide on October 8, and game director Brent Gibson took to the gamescom stage to introduce the Mercenaries – a new feature coming to Vessel of Hatred. Mercenaries are your companions in battle, who grow in strength and can be customized to support your playstyle. Each mercenary is unique in the role they serve, so no matter your class or build, you’ll find a mercenary that’s right for you!
The team also introduced the Dark Citadel, a new co-op PvE experience that will put everything you know about combat to the test through a gauntlet of cooperative puzzles and mechanics, as well as the Kurast Undercity – an intense new multistage, time-attack dungeon that gives you the control over the challenge as well as the loot you will find!
There’s a lot to uncover with these new upcoming features, as well as across the Diablo universe, so Diablo general manager Rod Fergusson, lead game designer Rex Dickson, systems designer Aislyn Hall, and Diablo Immortal’s executive producer Peiwen Yao will be joining us on the Xbox broadcast live at gamescom to share more about what’s to come.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Coming December 9, 2024
Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, Steam, or play it day one on Game Pass
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is coming to Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and Steam on December 9, 2024. Step into the shoes of the legendary archaeologist as he sets off on his latest global adventure. Play it on day one with Game Pass, or up to three days early by pre-ordering the Premium Edition, Premium Edition Upgrade, or Collector’s Edition.
The release date was revealed alongside a brand-new trailer. Get a new look at Indy’s journey around the world and the tools at his disposal as he faces off against sinister forces. From the whip and revolver to his trusty journal and camera, you’ll need everything he’s got to unravel the mystery of the Great Circle. Learn more here on Xbox Wire.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle: Digital Premium Edition
Pre-order now or Play on Game Pass* to receive The Last Crusade Pack with the Traveling Suit Outfit and Lion Tamer Whip, as seen in The Last Crusade.
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Live the adventure with the Premium Edition of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle!
INCLUDES:
• Base Game (digital code)
• Up to 3-Day Early Access**
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle: The Order of Giants Story DLC†
• Digital Artbook
• Temple of Doom Outfit
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Uncover one of history’s greatest mysteries in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, a first-person, single-player adventure set between the events of Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade. The year is 1937, sinister forces are scouring the globe for the secret to an ancient power connected to the Great Circle, and only one person can stop them – Indiana Jones. You’ll become the legendary archaeologist in this cinematic action-adventure game from MachineGames, the award-winning studio behind the recent Wolfenstein series, and executive produced by Hall of Fame game designer Todd Howard.
YOU ARE INDIANA JONES
Live the adventure as Indy in a thrilling story full of exploration, immersive action, and intriguing puzzles. As the brilliant archaeologist – famed for his keen intellect, cunning resourcefulness, and trademark humor – you will travel the world in a race against enemy forces to discover the secrets to one of the greatest mysteries of all time.
A WORLD OF MYSTERY AWAITS
Travel from the halls of Marshall College to the heart of the Vatican, the pyramids of Egypt, the sunken temples of Sukhothai, and beyond. When a break-in in the dead of night ends in a confrontation with a mysterious colossal man, you must set out to discover the world-shattering secret behind the theft of a seemingly unimportant artifact. Forging new alliances and facing familiar enemies, you’ll engage with intriguing characters, use guile and wits to solve ancient riddles, and survive intense set-pieces.
WHIP-CRACKING ACTION
Indiana’s trademark whip remains at the heart of his gear and can be used to distract, disarm, and attack enemies. But the whip isn’t just a weapon, it’s Indy’s most valuable tool for navigating the environment. Swing over unsuspecting patrols and scale walls as you make your way through a striking world. Combine stealth infiltration, melee combat, and gunplay to combat the enemy threat and unravel the mystery.
THE SPIRIT OF DISCOVERY
Venture through a dynamic mix of linear, narrative-driven gameplay and open-area maps. Indulge your inner explorer and unearth a world of fascinating secrets, deadly traps and fiendish puzzles, where anything could potentially hide the next piece of the mystery – or snakes. Why did it have to be snakes?
*Game Pass members get access to all pre-order content as long as Game Pass subscription is active.
**Actual play time depends on purchase date and applicable time zone differences, subject to possible outages.
†DLC availability to be provided at a later date.
Starfield’s Shattered Space Arrives on September 30, and the REV-8 Land Vehicle Is Available Today
Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, Steam.
To the people of the Settled Systems, House Va’ruun is a mystery. Some call them fanatics. Zealots, even. They are seen as violent aggressors. But there’s so much more to this secretive faction. In Shattered Space, the first major expansion for Starfield, you will visit the homeworld of House Va’ruun, hear their story, and make choices that will determine their future. Shattered Space launches on September 30.
In addition to the Shattered Space release date reveal, Opening Night Live also showed off the new REV-8 land vehicle that’s landing in Starfield in the latest update. The update goes live just a few short hours after Opening Night Live and will be available to all Starfield players. Just visit a ship technician and add the REV-8 module to your ship to start touring planets in a new way.
Starfield is the first new universe in over 25 years from Bethesda Game Studios, the award-winning creators of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Fallout 4. In this next generation role-playing game set amongst the stars, create any character you want and explore with unparalleled freedom as you embark on an epic journey to answer humanity’s greatest mystery.
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Premium Edition includes:
– Starfield Base Game
– Shattered Space Story Expansion (upon release)
– 1,000 Creation Credits
– Constellation Skin Pack: Equinox Laser Rifle, Spacesuit, Helmet and Boost Pack
– Access to Starfield Digital Artbook & Original Soundtrack
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In the year 2330, humanity has ventured beyond our solar system, settling new planets, and living as a spacefaring people. You will join Constellation – the last group of space explorers seeking rare artifacts throughout the galaxy – and navigate the vast expanse of space in Bethesda Game Studios’ biggest and most ambitious game.
TELL YOUR STORY
In Starfield the most important story is the one you tell with your character. Start your journey by customizing your appearance and deciding your Background and Traits. Will you be an experienced explorer, a charming diplomat, a stealthy cyber runner, or something else entirely? The choice is yours. Decide who you will be and what you will become.
EXPLORE OUTER SPACE
Venture through the stars and explore more than 1000 planets. Navigate bustling cities, explore dangerous bases, and traverse wild landscapes. Meet and recruit a memorable cast of characters, join in the adventures of various factions, and embark on quests across the Settled Systems. A new story or experience is always waiting to be discovered.
CAPTAIN THE SHIP OF YOUR DREAMS
Pilot and command the ship of your dreams. Personalize the look of your ship, modify critical systems including weapons and shields, and assign crew members to provide unique bonuses. In deep space you will engage in high-stakes dogfights, encounter random missions, dock at star stations, and even board and commandeer enemy ships to add to your collection.
DISCOVER, COLLECT, BUILD
Explore planets and discover the fauna, flora, and resources needed to craft everything from medicine and food to equipment and weapons. Build outposts and hire a crew to passively extract materials and establish cargo links to transfer resources between them. Invest these raw materials into research projects to unlock unique crafting recipes.
LOCK AND LOAD
Space can be a dangerous place. A refined combat system gives you the tools to deal with any situation. Whether you prefer long-range rifles, laser weapons, or demolitions, each weapon type can be modified to complement your playstyle. Zero G environments add a chaotic spectacle to combat, while boost packs give players freedom to maneuver like never before.
Towerborne Announces Early Access Begins September 10
Early Access begins September 10 on Steam. Coming 2025 to Xbox Game Preview on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and Game Pass.
Towerborne showcased a brand-new trailer during Opening Night Live that gave us a fresh look at its striking, vibrant world and crisp, action-packed gameplay. The latest game from Stoic (Banner Saga Trilogy), Towerborne seamlessly blends the best parts of side-scrolling brawlers and action RPGs to create a unique adventure where you take on the role of an Ace, a hero who must protect humanity’s last sanctuary from malevolent forces that lurk outside the tower walls.
The Belfry stands as a beacon of hope and safety amongst the ruins of humanity and the City of Numbers, with monsters lurking right outside the tower’s walls. You are an Ace, born anew from the spirit realm with the skills, the grit, and the determination to protect the people of the Belfry. With spirit companions fighting by your side, you are destined for battle.
Can you become the Ace humanity needs to survive? Find out in Towerborne, the newest action-adventure game created by Stoic, the studio that brought you the award-winning Banner Saga trilogy.
Adventure Together – Venture out of The Belfry solo or with up to three other Aces* to vanquish the looming terror that surrounds the tower. Either way, you won’t be alone. Aces can recruit Umbra companions to join them in battle, gaining access to enhanced skills and unique abilities tied to each spirit. After fighting your way through enemies, return to The Belfry to turn in quests, reforge gear, and more.
Brave the Wilds – Towerborne is designed with player choice in mind. Create your Ace with options to customize your looks, gear and weapons. Switch up your overall gameplay experience at any time by changing your danger level as you venture into the wilds. Find and wield powerful weapons with unique special moves from one of four styles: War Clubs, Gauntlets, Dual Daggers, and Swords & Shields. Mix and match to make your Ace your own!
Continue the Fight – With an evolving world map and seasonal content, your Ace will never run out of areas to explore and enemies to defeat. Seasons of Towerborne continue the story of The Belfry by introducing new enemies to battle, regions to discover, abilities to master, and lore to uncover (available as released).
*Online console multiplayer requires Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or Game Pass Core (subscriptions sold separately).
The Worldsoul Saga begins August 26 with World of Warcraft: The War Within
PC via Battle.net
2024 is a year of anniversaries for the Warcraft universe, which is turning 30 in the same year. Hearthstone celebrates 10 years, Warcraft Rumble approaches one year, and of course, World of Warcraft… which turns 20 years old in November! Feel old yet?
World of Warcraft: The War Within launches globally on August 26 and is the first installment of The Worldsoul Saga—the most ambitious story arc in WoW history. With four new zones to explore, as well as ongoing gameplay and system updates to support players of all types, this is the perfect time to celebrate the last 20 years of WoW as Blizzard prepares for the next 20 years and beyond!
Overwatch 2 is also getting in on the celebrations, revealing their new in-game collaboration with World of Warcraft. In mid-September, skins featuring some of the most iconic World of Warcraft characters will be made available, including Widowmaker as Sylvanas Windrunner.
Keep an eye on the Warcraft X account for more information about how you can celebrate Warcraft’s anniversaries alongside Blizzard, and join the Xbox broadcast live from the show floor at gamescom where we’ll be speaking to senior game director Ion Hazzikostas and associate art director Tina Wang about all things World of Warcraft!
Hey Insiders, let’s talk Game Pass! Starting today, we’re offering Xbox Insiders the option to try out and provide feedback on our new membership, Xbox Game Pass Standard.
We created a new membership option in the Game Pass family to give players more choice in how they discover and play games and provide different prices and plans so players can find what works best for them. For those looking for a larger library with hundreds of games to play on your console, plus all the benefits of Game Pass Core including multiplayer access, Game Pass Standard may be the option for you. Game Pass Standard also includes select member deals and discounts, including up to 50% off select games.
Hundreds of great games will be available with Game Pass Standard at launch. Players will get access to select titles as part of the new Game Pass Standard library, with more games being added throughout the preview period. Once you join the preview, you can look up the Game Pass Standard library to find your next favorite game.
During this Xbox Insiders preview, you can sign up for just $1. Any renewals during the preview period will also be $1 per month. At launch, Game Pass Standard will be available for $14.99 USD per month (pricing varies by market).
If you’re looking for other console membership options, Game Pass Core has a select collection of over 25 Game Pass games, online multiplayer access, and select member deals and discounts. Game Pass Standard includes everything available in Game Pass Core, plus hundreds of great games. If you are looking for those benefits plus day one titles, specific entries to Game Pass Ultimate library, access to EA Play, cloud gaming, Perks, Quests, and additional discounts for games in the Game Pass library, Game Pass Ultimate might be the best option for you.
Some games coming to Game Pass Ultimate (day one games or other game entries) will not be immediately available with Game Pass Standard and may be added to the library at a future date (can be up to 12 months or more and will vary by title). We’ll continue to share with all Game Pass members when games are being added and available to play for each plan.
If you’re interested in joining the Insiders preview, please go to the Xbox Insider app located in the Microsoft Store. Terms and Conditions are located there. Game Pass Core members with less than 2-months stacked onto their account, Game Pass for Console and PC Game Pass players who are a part of the Xbox Insiders program can participate and share their feedback.
As always, huge thank you to all our Insiders – you are a wonderful community, and we appreciate all your feedback. If you’re an Xbox Insider looking for support, please join our community on the Xbox Insider subreddit. Official Xbox staff, moderators, and fellow Xbox Insiders are there to help.
We’re excited to hear from those that join Game Pass Standard during the preview, and we’ll have more to share on availability for all players coming soon!
Coming to Game Pass: Atlas Fallen, Core Keeper, and Star Trucker
Megan Spurr, Senior Community Lead, Xbox Game Pass
Welcome back, friends! We have more games for you, new Perks, and a limited time beta to talk about! Available to those who pre-order Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, as well as Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass members, the Early Access Open Beta will be downloadable for Black Ops 6 on Xbox consoles, the Xbox app on PC, or Battle.net starting August 28. Now let’s get to all the games!
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Early Access Open Beta Starting August 30
Get your first taste of the next-level action coming to Black Ops 6. You can start downloading the Beta on August 28, 2024, before the early access open beta kicks off on August 30, 2024. Feel Omnimovement for yourself, explore several brand-new core 6v6 maps, and try out new weapons and gadgets. Earn in-game rewards playable in the Beta and in Black Ops 6 once the full game launches on day one with PC Game Pass and Game Pass Ultimate.
Coming Soon
Atlas Fallen (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S) – August 22 Unleash the storm in this open world action-RPG adventure, enriched by the recently released major free update, Reign of Sand! Enjoy new voice acting, a reworked campaign, and face even more formidable creatures armed with new Essence Stones. Challenge the gods with the long-awaited “New Game +” difficulty mode.
Core Keeper (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S) – August 27 Dive into Core Keeper, an underground adventure where you shape your journey. Craft, build, and explore in a dynamic world. Develop your character, uncover ancient secrets, and engage in thrilling co-op or competitive play. Embrace the challenge and unearth the mysteries that await!
Star Trucker (Cloud, Console, and PC) – September 3 Available on day one with Game Pass! Hop into the driver’s seat of your rocket-powered big rig as you haul cargo, scavenge for salvage, and interact with an eclectic cast of star-hopping truckers in this Americana-infused journey on the ultimate open road – space!
More Games Coming to Game Pass Core on August 21
Game Pass Core members can look forward to three more games coming to the library on August 21! Build the city of your dreams in Cities: Skylines, experience the award-winning third-person action-adventure in Control: Ultimate Edition, and jump into the driver seat to conquer extreme open environments in SnowRunner.
DLC / Game Updates
Vampire Survivors Darkasso Update – Available now With this update, Vampire Survivors are getting Darkanas! Like Arcanas, but Dark. There’s five to unlock and just like Arcanas, these modifiers can change the outcome of your run significantly. This update also includes Room 1665, a new stage made of 16 rooms that will challenge players to fight their way through all the floors of this devilish room.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Perks
New perks are being added every week! Check them out in the Game Pass section of your console, Xbox app for PC, or the Xbox Game Pass mobile app.
Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realm: Five Champions – Available now Unlock 5 Champions, 80 Gold Champion Chests, a Familiar, and a Skin for Lae’zel to use in Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realm, a strategy management game uniting characters from throughout the Dungeons & Dragons multiverse into a grand adventure.
XDefiant: Crimson Pack – Available now This combo will have you seeing red! The Crimson Pack includes the Deep Red Samir Character Skin, Deep Red MP5 Weapon Skin, Ember M870 Weapon Skin, Pelagic ACR 6.8 Weapon Skin, and Amber M9 Weapon Skin.
The Elder Scrolls Online: 10-Year Anniversary Pack #3 – Available now Celebrate 10 years of the Elder Scrolls Online with the 10-Year Anniversary Pack #3! This bundle includes 1x Attribute Respecification Scroll and 3x Gold Coast Experience Scrolls.
Leaving August 31
The following games will be leaving the Game Pass library soon, so don’t forget to jump back in before they go. Remember to save 20% on your purchase to keep them in your library if you want to keep the fun going!
Atomic Heart (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Guilty Gear -Strive- (Cloud, Console, and PC)
NBA 2K24 (Cloud and Console)
We’ll be back with more games, but until then be sure to stay tuned to @XboxGamePass, @XboxGamePassPC, and @Xbox for updates when these games are available! Catch you next time.
Summer Spotlight: Celebrating the More Than 200 New Games Released on Xbox This Season
Meredith Ingersoll, Xbox Games Marketing
Summer may be starting to cool down but that doesn’t mean we’re done celebrating all the amazing games launched this season on console and PC.
There have been more than 200 games launched this summer like Pizza Bar Tycoon, Sam & Max: The Devils Playhouse, Just Crow Things, and the releases just keep on coming – with many having launched day one with Game Pass!
We’re highlighted a few of the more recently released titles for you below, and a few that are on the way, so be sure to check back every Tuesday on your Xbox console, Store on Windows, and the Xbox app on PC to see the latest summer releases as we head into fall.
Pizza Bar Tycoon – Lookout! This pizzeria will soon become the talk of the town! Well… at least that’s the plan. Your customers are already queuing up, so you’ll have to serve them as quickly as possible. However, that’s easier said than done! Everyone’s in a hurry and you’ll have to prepare each order correctly, or else your customers are going to get crossed! Give it your all and you’ll come out on top!
Sam & Max: The Devils Playhouse – The final game in Telltale’s Sam & Max trilogy, beautifully remastered! Explore odd locales, meet eccentric characters, and solve brain-tickling puzzles in this bizarre paranormal adventure with a surprise around every corner. Jump into Max’s brain and use the Toys of Power to see the future, teleport, and read minds.
Just Crow Things – You’re a little crow trying to prove herself to the world. Make new animal friends, poop on unsuspecting hoomans, and steal all the shiny trinkets! Each level is a little sandbox full of fun items to discover and puzzles to solve, while leaving a bit of chaos behind. Why? Just caws!
Here are a few titles in pre-order that are coming soon:
Visions of Mana– A new adventure begins in Visions of Mana – the first mainline title in the Mana series in over 15 years! Immerse yourself in the vibrant graphics of this beautiful world, where the powers of nature blend with the elemental aspects of mana to create a rich tapestry of life. Journey through enchanting locations with near-seamless transitions in a semi-open field that’s yours to discover. Brace yourself for fast-paced, multi-dimensional actions in battle to enrich your fighting experience. Use the magic of the Elementals to explore this vast world to your heart’s content!
Casting of Frank Stone– The storytelling prowess of Supermassive Games meets the Dead by Daylight universe in a haunting horror game that won’t soon be forgotten. The shadow of Frank Stone looms over Cedar Hills, a town forever altered by his violent past. As a group of young friends are about to discover, Stone’s blood-soaked legacy cuts deep, leaving scars across families, generations, and the very fabric of reality itself.
Perks for Ultimate Game Pass Members.
MultiVersus – The MultiVersus MVP Pack offers in-game content to further customize and boost your play for subscription members. MVP Pack 2 includes a Legendary Leave me Alone Ringout and an Epic Respects Sticker Emote.
Stampede: Racing Royale– Join the herd in style! Kit out your kart with the Xbox KartCore 3000 Wrap, update your avatar with the Xbox Pic and get a head start with 25,000 coins! This Perk content requires Stampede Racing Royale to use.
The First Descendant– Play a next-generation looter shooter, The First Descendant now and claim an exclusive launch edition bundle: Elevate your weapon with a stunning weapon skin and customize your Descendants with vibrant paints and a stylish back accessory!
Newer Games That Launched Day One with Game Pass
Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn – The Door to the Great Below has been opened unleashing the Gods and their armies of the Dead. The lands of Kian are besieged, the city of Dawn is on the brink of destruction. It’s time for the Coalition army to fight back. Embrace vengeance, gunpowder and magic as you embark on an epic journey to defeat the Gods, close the door and retake the world. Your battle begins now.
Still Wakes the Deep – Return to the first-person narrative horror genre for The Chinese Room, creator of critically acclaimed games such as Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture, and Dear Esther. You are an offshore oil rig worker, fighting for your life through a vicious storm, perilous surroundings, and the dark, freezing North Sea waters. All lines of communication have been severed. All exits are gone. All that remains is to face the unknowable horror that’s come aboard.
Palworld – In this game, you can peacefully live alongside mysterious creatures known as Pals or risk your life to drive off a ruthless poaching syndicate. Pals can be used to fight and breed, or they can be made to work on farms or factories. You can even sell them or eat them. Collect all kinds of exciting Pals to fight, farm, build, and work for you in this completely new multiplayer, open world survival and crafting game! In the Sakurajima update you can find new pals, features, and map. The update also introduced Xbox dedicated servers, a new building and level cap, new subspecies, a new raid, faction, boss, and more.
This is just a small taste of the over 200 new games on Xbox this summer. Make sure you check your Xbox console, Store on Windows, and the Xbox app on PC every Tuesday to discover the new titles to play. Perks offers vary by region and game, so make sure you check the Perks gallery on your Xbox console or the Xbox app for more details.
I’ve spent several days reviewing all of the posts here.
This is not something I want to continue. It is, mainly, all wrong.
If there’s ever another blog, I’ll pay WordPress the damn US$48/US$84 (1 yr/2 yr) fee to get rid of the damn ads. Looking at this site as a reader, I’m disgusted by all the ads WordPress has defaced it with. And I think most people think I want the ads there and am making money from them. Not so!
Farewell, readers. And thanks for your attention.
And again, go read the posts at iPeople. I am pleased with it and hope to get back to it.
The new material is so effective that it could be used to provide energy for sensors or even small computer processors. Instead of connecting small electrical devices to cables, they could generate their own electricity from temperature differences. The new material has now been presented in the journal “Nature”.
How does that fit into Alt-Wheels? AirTags and other such location devices.
Lithium-ion batteries are notorious for developing internal electrical shorts that can ignite a battery’s liquid electrolytes, leading to explosions and fires.
Engineers at the University of Illinois, however, have developed a solid polymer-based electrolyte that can self-heal after damage—and the material can also be recycled without the use of harsh chemicals or high temperatures.
Whereas it takes some 4,000 workers to assemble a million gasoline-powered engines per year, just 1,840 are needed to build the same number of electric motors, the study claims. And a battery factory requires only a fifth of the workforce when compared with an engine plant.
Long supporters of government mpg mandates to force a transition to EVs, the UAW has gotten cold feet as studies — including one from its own research department — show battery-powered vehicle production takes less labor to manufacture.
It takes even less labor to manufacture Alt-Wheels so there’s no hope for transitioning to employment there — besides which China has that all sewn up (Future Motion’s American-based Onewheel factory notwithstanding).
Here’s a good take on the politics of the Alt-Wheels bills being vetoed by the hand-wringing Governor of NY State. This is particularly welcome as it’s from someone outside of the bike-advocacy echo chamber:
That’s not the first time for a design like that. But it makes me wonder if we might see it adopted by Harley-Davidson, Honda, and other motorcycle makers as an alternative to their conventional offerings.
From Russia with love (with a bit of Queen thrown in!):
Imus was loved or hated for his caustic loudmouth. Outspoken in an age of political correctness, his often coarse satire offended sensibilities. Yet his listeners included those whom he often ridiculed. His call-in guests included President Clinton, Dan Rather, Tim Russert, Bill Bradley, David Dinkins, Rudy Giuliani and political analyst Jeff Greenfield, who once remarked, “He’s out there talking the way most of us talk when we’re not in public.”
Whether you liked him or not, you can’t deny he wasn’t an original.
Location and surveillance technology permeates the driving experience. Setting aside external technology like license plate readers, there is some form of internet-connected service or surveillance capability built into or on many cars, from GPS tracking to oil-change notices. This is already a dangerous situation for many drivers and passengers, and a bill in California requiring GPS-tracking in digital license plates would put us further down this troubling path.
In 2022, EFF fought along with other privacy groups, domestic violence organizations, and LGBTQ+ rights organizations to prevent the use of GPS-enabled technology in digital license plates. A.B. 984, authored by State Assemblymember Lori Wilson and sponsored by digital license plate company Reviver, originally would have allowed for GPS trackers to be placed in the digital license plates of personal vehicles. As we have said many times, location data is very sensitive information, because where we go can also reveal things we’d rather keep private even from others in our household. Ultimately, advocates struck a deal with the author to prohibit location tracking in passenger cars, and this troubling flaw was removed. Governor Newsom signed A.B. 984 into law.
Now, not even two years later, the state’s digital license plate vendor, Reviver, and Assemblymember Wilson have filed A.B. 3138, which directly undoes the deal from 2022 and explicitly calls for location tracking in digital license plates for passenger cars.
To best protect consumers, EFF urges the legislature to not approve A.B. 3138.
Consumers Could Face Serious Concerns If A.B. 3138 Becomes Law
In fact, our concerns about trackers in digital plates are stronger than ever. Recent developments have made location data even more ripe for misuse.
People traveling to California from a state that criminalizes abortions may be unaware that the rideshare car they are in is tracking their trip to a Planned Parenthood via its digital license plate. This trip may generate location data that can be used against them in a state where abortion is criminalized.
Unsupportive parents of queer youth could use GPS-loaded plates to monitor or track whether teens are going to local support centers or events.
There are also serious implications in domestic violence situations, where GPS tracking has been investigated and found to be used as a tool of abuse and coercion by abusive partners. Most recently, two Kansas City families are jointly suing the company Spytec GPS after its technology was used in a double-murder suicide, in which a man used GPS trackers to find and kill his ex-girlfriend, her current boyfriend, and then himself. The families say the lawsuit is, in part, to raise awareness about the danger of making this technology and location information more easily available. There’s no reason to make tracking any easier by embedding it in state-issued plates.
We Urge the Legislature to Reject A.B. 3138
Shortly after California approved Reviver to provide digital license plates to commercial vehicles under A.B. 984, the company experienced a security breach where it was possible for hackers to use GPS in real time to track vehicles with a Reviver digital license plate. Privacy issues aside, this summer, the state of Michigan also terminated their two-year old contract with Reviver for the company’s failure to follow state law and its contractual obligations. This has forced 1,700 Michigan drivers to go back to a traditional metal license plate.
Reviver is the only company that currently has state authorization to sell digital plates in California, and is the primary advocate for allowing tracking in passenger vehicle plates. The company says its goal is to modernize personalization and safety with digital license plate technology for passenger vehicles. But they haven’t proven themselves up to the responsibility of protecting this data.
A.B. 3138 functionally gives drivers one choice for a digital license plate vendor, and that vendor failed once to competently secure the location data collected by its products. It has now failed to meet basic contractual obligations with a state agency. California lawmakers should think carefully about the clear dangers of vehicle location tracking, and whether we can trust this company to protect the sensitive location information for vulnerable populations, or for any Californian.
Would you believe that Disney’s famously copyright-maximalist lawyers have just brought us a nice victory for fair use?
Earlier this year, we wrote about disgraced former Congressman George Santos suing Disney and Jimmy Kimmel after Kimmel used some of Santos’ Cameo videos (that Kimmel had secretly requested) in a, well, somewhat trollish fashion. Santos, who was drummed out of Congress after facing a bunch of charges regarding questionable handling of campaign funds, started promoting that he would record Cameo videos for between $350 and $500 a video.
At one point, he had bragged about how many people had paid him for Cameo videos. This resulted in Kimmel having his staff purchase some Cameo videos, which made Santos look silly. The videos were then played on Kimmel’s ABC late night show. Santos claimed that the videos were purchased under a “personal” use license, which was a lot less expensive than a commercial use license.
The argument was that the videos were used “commercially,” which meant that the license had been violated, and the videos infringed on Santos’ copyright. In my initial write-up of the case, I pointed out that Kimmel had a very strong fair use claim. Some commentators felt that Santos’ argument was a bit stronger than I made out, but it appears the judge in the case, Denise Cote, who has been involved in a number of high-profile copyright cases, agreed with me that it was fair use.
Notably, she granted Disney and Kimmel’s motion to dismiss on fair use grounds. That’s important because some people believe that fair use shouldn’t be decided so early in a case. Either it should go to the summary judgment stage or (much worse) is an issue for a jury to decide.
However, Cote says here that Kimmel’s use was pretty obviously fair use. She notes that the Second Circuit has said that in obvious fair use cases, you can find fair use at the motion to dismiss stage:
The Second Circuit has specifically acknowledged “the possibility of fair use being so clearly established by a complaint as to support dismissal of a copyright infringement claim.”
As in most fair use cases, the court went through the basic four factors test required to determine fair use. The court awarded the first factor (purpose of the use) to Disney/Kimmel because it was clearly about commentary on Santos:
In short, a reasonable observer would understand that JKL showed the Videos to comment on the willingness of Santos — a public figure who had recently been expelled from Congress for allegedly fraudulent activity including enriching himself through a fraudulent contribution scheme — to say absurd things for money. Thus, the Videos were used for political commentary and criticism, purposes that do not supersede the “objects” of the original Videos.
The fact that the use of the videos made Santos look bad doesn’t matter:
Santos’s argument that the defendants should not be able to “seek refuge in the fair use concept of transformation that they themselves manufactured through deceit” finds no support in copyright law. Defendants’ conduct may have been deceptive and unkind, but the Supreme Court in Warhol emphasized that whether a work is transformative turns on neither the “subjective intent of the user,” 598 U.S. at 544, nor the “stated or perceived intent of the artist.” Id. at 545 (citation omitted). A court must instead conduct “an objective inquiry into what use was made, i.e., what the user does with the original work.” Id. Here, the purpose of the defendants’ use was clearly for criticism and commentary of the Videos themselves and their author.
While not always true, the first factor is often the key to winning fair use. The fact that it was found to be favoring Kimmel here basically makes the rest of the analysis less important, but even so, the rest of the factors either favor no one or Kimmel anyway.
On the second factor, the nature of the work, the court says this is mostly neutral, but perhaps favors Kimmel/Disney slightly. The third factor, how much of the work was used, is also deemed to be neutral. It did use the entirety of the work, as other courts have found, but that’s fine if you need to use the entirety of the work for the fair use at hand.
Copying “the entirety of a work is sometimes necessary to make a fair use.” Swatch Group Management Services Ltd. v. Bloomberg L.P., 756 F.3d 73, 90 (2d Cir. 2014). The “ultimate question under this factor is whether the quantity and value of the materials used are reasonable in relation to the purpose of the copying.”….
…. The use of the Videos to criticize and comment on a public figure would have been undermined by showing less than the entirety of the Videos, because the audience would not know whether Santos had indeed said everything in the requests.
Then there’s the fourth factor: the effect on the market. As I had noted in my original piece about the complaint, it would be difficult to argue that Kimmel’s use would harm the market. And, indeed, that’s what the court found as well:
Santos argues that defendants’ use devalued the market for Cameo videos, including Santos’s, by “undermining the integrity” of the Cameo.com platform. Santos does not explain how any impact on the popularity of the Cameo platform — which is entirely speculative — impacts more specifically the public interest in the creative production of new expression. Moreover, the FAC identifies no harm to the potential or existing market for the Videos that Santos created for the defendants, other than the “very use at bar.” Swatch, 756 F.3d at 91 (citation omitted). Thus, this factor weighs in favor of fair use.
Put it all together and you have two mostly neutral factors and two that weigh towards fair use, and thus: fair use.
Taking all four factors into consideration, the defense of fair use is clearly established by the FAC and documents integral to it. The defendants’ use of the Videos was transformative; “transformative uses tend to favor a fair use finding because a transformative use is one that communicates something new and different from the original or expands its utility, thus serving copyright’s overall objective of contributing to public knowledge.”
The court also rejects the breach of contract claims, saying that those are basically arguing the same thing as the copyright claims, and are thus pre-empted.
It wouldn’t surprise me if Santos appeals, but this is a good clean, fair use win. Disney’s copyright lawyers aren’t regularly known for arguing on behalf of fair use, but in this case they were right to, and it’s nice to see the court agree.
Update: And, yup, Santos has already told the court that he’s appealing.
Last week we noted that ad execs were saying that Elon’s latest antics were only making them even less interested in advertising on ExTwitter, but there hasn’t been as much talk lately about the financial situation the company is in.
In the first year after Elon took over, there were a number of reports suggesting ad revenue dropped somewhere between 50% and 70%. Elon has admitted that the company’s overall valuation of the company is probably down by nearly 60%.
But most of that was all talking about where it was in that first year post Elon. Since then, there’s been little data on how things were actually going. Linda Yaccarino has insisted that many of the advertisers who left came back, though when people looked at the details, it looked like a few that had come back only dipped their toes in the ExTwitter waters, rather than fully coming back.
And indeed, all we’ve been hearing this year is that Musk and Yaccarino are trying to woo back advertisers. Again. And again. Though, suing them isn’t doing them any favors.
However, buried in a recent Fortune article is the first time I’ve seen any data showing how badly the second year of Elon has gone. While the main focus of the article is on how Elon may have to sell some more of his Tesla stock to fund ExTwitter, it notes that ad revenue has continued to drop and was 53% lower than it was in 2023 (i.e., already after Elon had taken over, and many advertisers had bailed).
And the article says that ad revenue is down an astounding 84% from when Elon took over, based on an analysis by Bradford Ferguson, the chief investment officer at an asset management firm:
Ferguson based his assessment on internal second-quarter figures recently obtained by the New York Times. According to this report, X booked $114 million worth of revenue in the U.S., its largest market by far. This represented a 25% drop over the preceding three months and a 53% drop over the year-ago period.
That already sounds bad. But it gets worse. The last publicly available figures prior to Musk’s acquisition, from Q2 of 2022, had revenue at $661 million. After you account for inflation, revenue has actually collapsed by 84%, in today’s dollars.
Ouch.
A separate report from Quartz (pulling from MediaRadar research) suggests the numbers aren’t quite that dire, but they still see a 24% decline in 2024 compared to 2023. And when the 24% decline is the better report, you know you’re in serious trouble.
Advertisers apparently spent almost $744 million on X, formerly known as Twitter, during the first six months of 2024. That’s about 24% lower than the more than $982 million advertisers dropped on the platform in the first half of 2023, according to ad-tracking company MediaRadar.
No matter how you look at it, it appears that in the second year of Elon’s control, advertising revenue remains in free fall.
No wonder he’s resorted to suing. Platforming more awful people and undermining each deal that Yaccarino brings in hasn’t magically helped turn things around.
Anyway, for no reason at all, I’ll just remind people that Elon’s pitch to investors to help fund some of the $44 billion takeover of Twitter was that he would increase revenue to $26.4 billion by 2028. And, yes, the plan was to diversify that revenue, but his pitch deck said that ad revenue would generate $12 billion by 2028. This would mean basically doubling the ~$6 billion in ad revenue the company was making at the time Elon purchased it. But now that’s been cut to maybe $1.5 billion and probably less.
I’m guessing that Elon and Linda might fall a wee bit short of their target here.
Apparently, Judge Reed O’Connor doesn’t think that owning a massive amount of Tesla stock constitutes a conflict of interest when it comes to judging Elon Musk’s legal battles.
Last week, we were briefly surprised when infamously partisan Judge Reed O’Connor recused himself from Elon’s nonsense SLAPP suit against GARM and some advertisers.
As we had reported back in June, Media Matters had raised the issue that Judge O’Connor owns a ton of Tesla stock, which arguably is a conflict of interest in ExTwitter’s lawsuit against Media Matters (which Judge O’Connor had refused to dismiss despite its obvious problems). That matter had still been pending last week when O’Connor surprised lots of people (almost certainly including Elon’s lawyers) by recusing himself from the GARM suit.
We had wondered if it was a sign that Judge O’Connor realized how bad it looked for him to hold Tesla stock while repeatedly ruling on behalf of Elon. But, no, it quickly came out that the issue was almost certainly that O’Connor also owned stock in Unilever, one of the firms that Elon was suing in the case.
And then, just days later, it was made clear that Judge O’Connor sees no conflict in owning Tesla stock. He not only rejected Media Matters’ request that Elon be forced to list Tesla as an interested party, but he also made Media Matters pay Elon’s legal fees over this matter.
Judge O’Connor insists it’s just crazy to suggest that Tesla is somehow an interested party:
First, there is no evidence that shows Tesla has a direct financial interest in the outcome of this case. Tesla neither directly nor indirectly holds equity in X, Tesla is not a director or advisor, and it does not participate in the affairs of X. In other words, there is no indication that Tesla has any control over X or any financial ties to X, and Defendants do not claim as much. The question for disclosure is whether Tesla has a “legal or equitable interest” in X. Defendants merely point to news articles that report some blurred lines between Tesla and X that do not rise to the level of financial interest. These articles do not amount to evidence of a financial interest. Tesla is a publicly traded company, with tens of thousands of stockholders, its own board of directors, and external auditors. X is a privately owned company. The mere assertions that Musk owns a constellation of companies, some former Tesla employees now work at X, and that Tesla leased workspace from X do not support a finding that Tesla and X are not separate legal entities or that they share a financial interest.
Later, in response to points about Tesla stock fluctuating in direct connection to Elon doing stupid shit on ExTwitter, O’Connor notes in a footnote: “Musk, who is neither a plaintiff nor defendant in this suit.”
C’mon. None of us were born yesterday.
Elon is totally driving this lawsuit. He was the one who announced that this lawsuit would be coming based on a tweet that he saw. And, obviously, Tesla’s stock is tied to nonsense going on at ExTwitter. He sold a ton of Tesla stock to do the deal, and there are constant reports that he’s almost certainly going to need sell more to keep ExTwitter afloat.
None of this is that big of a surprise, though. Talking to lawyers, I didn’t find one who thought that O’Connor would buy this argument (which is partly why his recusal in the GARM case took me by surprise, before it was revealed that that was due to the Unilever stock).
But just to add absolute insult to injury, O’Connor said that Media Matters, a small non-profit, has to cover ExTwitter’s legal fees over this motion, despite it being owned by the world’s richest man:
Defendants’ Motion to Compel does not have a basis in law. It lacks a reasonable basis in law because the motion is motivated by an effort to force recusal, as opposed to disclosure of unknown information. Compelling disclosure is proper only when a party lacks necessary information. Carr, 2024 WL 1675185, at *1 (compelling disclosure of unknown LLC members); Steel Erectors, 312 F.R.D. at 677 (compelling disclosure of an unknown parent corporation). The information Defendants seek to compel was not unknown to them.
A Motion to Compel Corrected Certificate of Interested Persons when that information was known appears to be unprecedented. Indeed, Defendants did not cite a single case in which a motion to compel a corrected certificate of interested person was brought under this posture, much less one in which the effort was successful under the Local Rule 3.1 “financially interested” standard. Additionally, Defendants’ motion has no basis in fact. Local Rule 3.1’s clear incorporation of “financial interest” requires “legal or equitable interest.” 28 U.S.C. § 455(d)(4). Defendants failed to show facts that X’s alleged connection to Tesla meets this standard. Instead, it appears Defendants seek to force a backdoor recusal through their Motion to Compel. Gamesmanship of this sort is inappropriate and contrary to the rules of the Northern District of Texas.10 Accordingly, Defendants’ Motion is not substantially justified and attorney’s fees are appropriate.
Already, Judge O’Connor’s ridiculous decision to order discovery in this case, rather than properly dismissing it for lack of jurisdiction (among many other reasons), has resulted in layoffs at the non-profit. The impact of this ruling and the fee shifting is likely to do even more damage.
From the beginning, it has been clear that this was a SLAPP suit by Elon, angry that Media Matters (accurately) called out how ads on ExTwitter were appearing next to literal neo-Nazi content. The complaint from ExTwitter admitted that Media Matters accurately reported what it found. The only purpose of this lawsuit is to try to bleed Media Matters dry and to warn away other critics from doing similar reporting.
There’s a reason that most anti-SLAPP laws include fee shifting going the other way (making the wealthy vexatious plaintiffs pay the legal fees of the weaker defendants). Seeing O’Connor basically flip the script here is yet another reason why anti-SLAPP laws are so important.
Having Judge O’Connor let the case move forward to discovery in the first place was already a travesty. Now awarding fee shifting over Media Matters for calling out the potential conflict regarding Tesla’s connection to the case just feels like O’Connor, somewhat gleefully, twisting the knife that Elon plunged into the non-profit.
The Dekogon Townscape Essentials – 2000+ Unreal Engine Assets Humble Bundle. This bundle is a collection of Unreal Engine 5.x assets that all redeem on the Epic Games Marketplace from Dekogon, although unfortunately they are redeemed one key at a time. While this is an Unreal Engine asset bundle, you […]
The first major release of the Godot Game Engine of 2024 (Godot 4.2 was released in November 2023), Godot 4.3 is jam packed with new features. In fact, this release contains almost 3,500 commits since 4.2, with contributions from over 500 contributors! Highlight new features of the Godot 4.3 release […]
SDF, Signed Distance Fields or Signed Distance Functions are a relatively new approach to computer graphics. Described on Wikipedia as: Let Ω be a subset of a metric space X with metric d, and ∂Ω be its boundary. The distance between a point x of X and the subset ∂Ω of X is defined as usual asd(x,∂Ω)=infy∈∂Ωd(x,y), where inf denotes the infimum. The signed distance function from a point x of X to Ω is defined byf(x)={d(x,∂Ω)if x∈Ω−d(x,∂Ω)if x∉Ω. In much simpler terms, […]
Tree3D is a Godot Extension (implemented via GDExtension) for Godot Engine 4.1 or higher that is used to create procedural trees. If you do not wish to build the extension from source, there are precompiled Windows binaries available here. The project is open source, implemented in C++ and released under […]
The developer of the popular Unity mobile title Marvel Snap, have just announced they are using the Godot game engine for future game development. In addition they have invested in Godot based company W4Games (learn more). Details from Venture Beat: Second Dinner said it will invest in W4 Games and it will also […]
We first covered the Game UI Database in April of 2023 and at the time it was one of the single best resources for game UI/UX designers, with a massive database of game user interface elements. Today, Game UI Database 2.0 has been released, a massive (ironically enough) user interface […]
It is time for the first Epic Games Unreal Engine asset giveaway for August 2024. The first Tuesday of every month Epic Games give away a number of Unreal Engines from the UE Asset Marketplace and August is no exception. This month we have 5 “Free for the Month” assets, […]
I’ve spent several days reviewing all of the posts here.
This is not something I want to continue. It is, mainly, all wrong.
If there’s ever another blog, I’ll pay WordPress the damn US$48/US$84 (1 yr/2 yr) fee to get rid of the damn ads. Looking at this site as a reader, I’m disgusted by all the ads WordPress has defaced it with. And I think most people think I want the ads there and am making money from them. Not so!
Farewell, readers. And thanks for your attention.
And again, go read the posts at iPeople. I am pleased with it and hope to get back to it.
The new material is so effective that it could be used to provide energy for sensors or even small computer processors. Instead of connecting small electrical devices to cables, they could generate their own electricity from temperature differences. The new material has now been presented in the journal “Nature”.
How does that fit into Alt-Wheels? AirTags and other such location devices.
Lithium-ion batteries are notorious for developing internal electrical shorts that can ignite a battery’s liquid electrolytes, leading to explosions and fires.
Engineers at the University of Illinois, however, have developed a solid polymer-based electrolyte that can self-heal after damage—and the material can also be recycled without the use of harsh chemicals or high temperatures.
Whereas it takes some 4,000 workers to assemble a million gasoline-powered engines per year, just 1,840 are needed to build the same number of electric motors, the study claims. And a battery factory requires only a fifth of the workforce when compared with an engine plant.
Long supporters of government mpg mandates to force a transition to EVs, the UAW has gotten cold feet as studies — including one from its own research department — show battery-powered vehicle production takes less labor to manufacture.
It takes even less labor to manufacture Alt-Wheels so there’s no hope for transitioning to employment there — besides which China has that all sewn up (Future Motion’s American-based Onewheel factory notwithstanding).
Here’s a good take on the politics of the Alt-Wheels bills being vetoed by the hand-wringing Governor of NY State. This is particularly welcome as it’s from someone outside of the bike-advocacy echo chamber:
That’s not the first time for a design like that. But it makes me wonder if we might see it adopted by Harley-Davidson, Honda, and other motorcycle makers as an alternative to their conventional offerings.
From Russia with love (with a bit of Queen thrown in!):
Imus was loved or hated for his caustic loudmouth. Outspoken in an age of political correctness, his often coarse satire offended sensibilities. Yet his listeners included those whom he often ridiculed. His call-in guests included President Clinton, Dan Rather, Tim Russert, Bill Bradley, David Dinkins, Rudy Giuliani and political analyst Jeff Greenfield, who once remarked, “He’s out there talking the way most of us talk when we’re not in public.”
Whether you liked him or not, you can’t deny he wasn’t an original.
Well, here’s something unexpected. Apparently Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch has a new book coming out this week called “Over Ruled: The Human Toll of Too Much Law.” And, one of the examples in the book is about the ridiculous criminal case against Aaron Swartz and his eventual tragic decision to take his own life while facing the possibility of decades in prison for the “crime” of downloading too many research papers while on a college campus that had an unlimited subscription to those research papers.
But it’s still somewhat surprising to find out that the case has been wedged in Gorsuch’s mind as an example of prosecutorial overreach and over-criminalization.
French: This was an interesting element of the book to me and something that people who are not familiar with your jurisprudence might not know — it’s that you’ve long been a champion of the rights of criminal defendants. It struck me that some of the stories here in the book, of the way in which the complexity of criminal law has impacted people, are among the most potent in making the point. Is there a particular story about the abuse of criminal law that stands out to you as you’re reflecting back on the work?
Gorsuch: I would say Aaron Swartz’s story in the book might be one example. Here’s a young man, a young internet entrepreneur, who has a passion for public access to materials that he thinks should be in the public domain. And he downloads a bunch of old articles from JSTOR.
His lawyer says it included articles from the 1942 edition of the Journal of Botany. Now, he probably shouldn’t have done that, OK?
But JSTOR and he negotiated a solution, and they were happy. And state officials first brought criminal charges but then dropped them. Federal prosecutors nonetheless charged him with several felonies. And when he refused to plea bargain — they offered him four to six months in prison, and he didn’t think that was right — he wanted to go to trial.
What did they do?
They added a whole bunch of additional charges, which exposed him to decades in federal prison. And faced with that, he lost his money, all of his money, paying for lawyers’ fees, as everybody does when they encounter our legal system. And ultimately, he killed himself shortly before trial. And that’s part of what our system has become, that when we now have, I believe, if I remember correctly from the book, more people now serving life sentences in our prison system than we had serving any prison sentence in 1970. And today — one more little item I point out — one out of 47 Americans is subject to some form of correctional supervision (as of 2020).
I disagree with Gorsuch on many, many things. On the two big internet cases from this last term, Gorsuch joined the Lalaland takes of Justices Alito and Thomas (in both the Moody and the Murthy case Gorsuch was a third vote besides Alito and Thomas towards nonsense). So, it seems a bit shocking for Gorsuch to be somewhat on the side of Swartz, who would have eviscerated Gorsuch’s position in both of those cases.
Of course, Gorsuch is also wrong that Swartz “probably shouldn’t have done that.” MIT had a site license that enabled anyone on campus to download as many articles from JSTOR as they wanted. It didn’t say “unless you download too many.”
But, at least he recognizes how ridiculous the criminal lawsuit that Swartz faced a dozen years ago is. For well over a decade, we’ve been highlighting how dangerous the CFAA is as a law. It is so easily abused by prosecutors that it’s been dubbed “the law that sticks.” It sticks because when there is no real criminal prosecution under other laws, prosecutors will often cook up a CFAA violation, as they did with Aaron. And it remains ridiculous that, to this day, nothing has ever been done to prevent another Aaron Swartz-type scenario from happening again.
Perhaps, with Gorsuch bringing it up again in his book and in this interview, it can renew some of the interest that showed up in the months following Aaron’s untimely death to make real changes to the laws that caused it. Having a Justice like Gorsuch calling out the terrible and ridiculous situation the CFAA caused seems like a good reason for Congress to revisit that law, rather than cooking up new nonsense like KOSA.
If you’re a swing state voter who thought AmericaPAC was helping you register to vote, think again. The Elon Musk-backed SuperPAC seems more interested in your personal info than your civic participation. It appears to be misleading visitors in order to collect all sorts of data, specifically on swing state voters, according to an incredible CNBC report.
I tend to think that the discourse around all three of the following things is overblown: the impact of SuperPACs on elections, concerns about “dark patterns,” and how much the owner of a social media platform can influence an election. But Elon Musk sure seems to be working overtime to change my mind on all three things.
Remember how Musk took over Twitter because he thought its leadership was managing the company in too political a manner? Indeed, while he was in the process of trying to buy the site, one of the things he said is that the site needed to be “politically neutral” to “deserve public trust.”
Since taking over Twitter, renaming it to X, and reinstating the worst people in the world, Elon continues to fall deeper and deeper into MAGA-fueled fantasyland, leading to his official endorsement of Donald Trump and turning ExTwitter into an all-day, every-day promotional campaign for the former President.
Around the same time that he endorsed Trump, it was announced that Musk would be donating to a SuperPAC that was created to support Trump. Some of the details have been disputed, but Musk admits he created a SuperPAC to support Trump.
“Now what I have done is that I have created a Pac or Super Pac or whatever you want to call it,” he said. “It is called the America Pac.”
Now, the whole thing with SuperPACs is that they’re supposed to be independent from the campaign. This is a convenient lie for everyone, so it’s rarely enforced. But, earlier this year, the Federal Election Commission said that the independence is really only around advertising. It said they can coordinate on canvassing.
That’s a very big deal, because these days canvassing and “get out the vote” campaigns appear to be the keys to winning elections.
And that brings us to the CNBC article, which notes that AmericaPAC has been running sketchy ads that then push users to a site where it claims it will help register them to vote. But how it handles users depends on where they live:
The website says it will help the viewer register to vote. But once a user clicks “Register to Vote,” the experience he or she will have can be very different, depending on where they live.
If a user lives in a state that is not considered competitive in the presidential election, like California or Wyoming for example, they’ll be prompted to enter their email addresses and ZIP code and then directed quickly to a voter registration page for their state, or back to the original sign-up section.
But for users who enter a ZIP code that indicates they live in a battleground state, like Pennsylvania or Georgia, the process is very different.
Rather than be directed to their state’s voter registration page, they instead are directed to a highly detailed personal information form, prompted to enter their address, cellphone number and age.
If they agree to submit all that, the system still does not steer them to a voter registration page. Instead, it shows them a “thank you” page.
So that person who wanted help registering to vote? In the end, they got no help at all registering. But they did hand over priceless personal data to a political operation.
This is… not normal. Yes, political campaigns do all sorts of things to collect data on potential voters, but that’s not supposed to involve actively misleading them. And targeting the enhanced data collection in swing states suggests that the PAC could seek to focus on activating likely Trump voters, while decreasing turnout of likely Harris voters.
Now, I’ve pointed out before that people freak out too much over claims of everything being “election interference,” but it kinda does seem that collecting a ton of personal data on someone, telling them that you’re helping to register them to vote, and then not actually registering them to vote… is a form of fraud, doesn’t it?
The report notes that people who end up on this page are not given any indication that the site they’re on is designed to support Trump. Instead, it’s made to look like a generic form to help you register to vote.
The PAC’s website offers no indication one way or another what the group’s political leaning is. But in its federal filings, the group discloses that all of its work is designed to either help Trump or hurt his opponent.
When you put all of this together, it’s fairly concerning. The PAC is not upfront with visitors, and then is potentially fraudulently suggesting that it’s helping them register to vote, when it’s actually just collecting a ton of valuable information on people in important swing states (while not actually registering them to vote). Combine that with the fact that the SuperPAC has been engaging in canvassing activities (where it can coordinate with the campaign) and the whole thing seems quite sketchy:
“What makes America PAC more unique: it is a billionaire-backed super PAC focused on door-to-door canvassing, which it can conduct in coordination with a presidential campaign,” Fischer said.
No wonder Elon is so quick to insist that others are engaged in attempts at election interference.
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I’ve spent several days reviewing all of the posts here.
This is not something I want to continue. It is, mainly, all wrong.
If there’s ever another blog, I’ll pay WordPress the damn US$48/US$84 (1 yr/2 yr) fee to get rid of the damn ads. Looking at this site as a reader, I’m disgusted by all the ads WordPress has defaced it with. And I think most people think I want the ads there and am making money from them. Not so!
Farewell, readers. And thanks for your attention.
And again, go read the posts at iPeople. I am pleased with it and hope to get back to it.
The new material is so effective that it could be used to provide energy for sensors or even small computer processors. Instead of connecting small electrical devices to cables, they could generate their own electricity from temperature differences. The new material has now been presented in the journal “Nature”.
How does that fit into Alt-Wheels? AirTags and other such location devices.
Lithium-ion batteries are notorious for developing internal electrical shorts that can ignite a battery’s liquid electrolytes, leading to explosions and fires.
Engineers at the University of Illinois, however, have developed a solid polymer-based electrolyte that can self-heal after damage—and the material can also be recycled without the use of harsh chemicals or high temperatures.
Whereas it takes some 4,000 workers to assemble a million gasoline-powered engines per year, just 1,840 are needed to build the same number of electric motors, the study claims. And a battery factory requires only a fifth of the workforce when compared with an engine plant.
Long supporters of government mpg mandates to force a transition to EVs, the UAW has gotten cold feet as studies — including one from its own research department — show battery-powered vehicle production takes less labor to manufacture.
It takes even less labor to manufacture Alt-Wheels so there’s no hope for transitioning to employment there — besides which China has that all sewn up (Future Motion’s American-based Onewheel factory notwithstanding).
Here’s a good take on the politics of the Alt-Wheels bills being vetoed by the hand-wringing Governor of NY State. This is particularly welcome as it’s from someone outside of the bike-advocacy echo chamber:
That’s not the first time for a design like that. But it makes me wonder if we might see it adopted by Harley-Davidson, Honda, and other motorcycle makers as an alternative to their conventional offerings.
From Russia with love (with a bit of Queen thrown in!):
Imus was loved or hated for his caustic loudmouth. Outspoken in an age of political correctness, his often coarse satire offended sensibilities. Yet his listeners included those whom he often ridiculed. His call-in guests included President Clinton, Dan Rather, Tim Russert, Bill Bradley, David Dinkins, Rudy Giuliani and political analyst Jeff Greenfield, who once remarked, “He’s out there talking the way most of us talk when we’re not in public.”
Whether you liked him or not, you can’t deny he wasn’t an original.
It turns out the internet was one Sam Alito petulant tantrum away from being a total disaster. In two key First Amendment cases, Alito was given the majority opinion to write. And, in both of them, his insistence on obliterating the old boundaries of the First Amendment caused other Justices to switch sides – and Alito to act like a spoiled brat.
This year, the Supreme Court session ran later than usual. Usually, they finish up by the end of June, but this year it extended the term over to July 1st. There were, obviously, a bunch of “big” decisions (Presidential immunity! Chevron deference!) that were held to the very end, including the two big internet cases: the NetChoice cases and the Murthy case.
As people awaited the decisions, there was a fair bit of SCOTUSology as court experts (and non-experts) speculated based on the number of decisions written by each Justice (and which months the cases were heard in) as to which Justice would have the majority decisions in remaining cases. I heard from quite a few such experts who expected that Alito would have the majority decision in the NetChoice cases, given that the other Justices all seemed to have majority opinions from February cases, and Alito’s name seemed to be missing.
Some people were surprised because in basically all of the internet cases oral arguments, Alito seemed quite out of step with the rest of the Court (and reality). When the decision finally came out, saying that the lower courts didn’t do the proper analysis for a “facial challenge,” it sent the cases back to the lower courts for a redo. But the majority opinion included some very important commentary about how the First Amendment still applies to social media editorial discretion. The overall ruling was technically a unanimous decision, but some noted that Justice Alito’s “concurrence” read like it had been written to be the majority opinion. It delves deeper into the facts of the case than a concurrence normally would (the majority opinion normally handles that).
Oh, and one other weird thing: in that final week of June, people were confused by Justice Alito not showing up to a couple of decision days, and his absence was never explained. Until now.
CNN now has quite an incredible insider’s tale of how Justice Alito had, in fact, been given the job of writing the majority opinion in the NetChoice cases, but lost it because he tried to push the decision too far into saying that states could regulate content moderation.
Alito, while receptive to the 5th Circuit’s opinion minimizing the companies’ speech interests, emphasized the incompleteness of the record and the need to remand the cases. Joining him were fellow conservatives Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch and, to some extent, Barrett and Jackson.
On the other side was Kagan, leaning toward the 11th Circuit’s approach. She wanted to clarify the First Amendment implications when states try to control how platforms filter messages and videos posted by their users. She was generally joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Brett Kavanaugh.
Alito began writing the court’s opinion for the dominant five-member bloc, and Kagan for the remaining four.
It’s also interesting that Justice Jackson was siding with Alito. During oral arguments, Justice Jackson asked some… odd questions, leading some to worry about how she might come down. The CNN report suggests those fears were legitimate.
Either way, Alito pushed his views too far and caused both Barrett and Jackson to bail out.
But when Alito sent his draft opinion around to colleagues several weeks later, his majority began to crumble. He questioned whether any of the platforms’ content-moderation could be considered “expressive” activity under the First Amendment.
Barrett, a crucial vote as the case played out, believed some choices regarding content indeed reflected editorial judgments protected by the First Amendment. She became persuaded by Kagan, but she also wanted to draw lines between the varying types of algorithms platforms use.
“A function qualifies for First Amendment protection only if it is inherently expressive,” Barrett wrote in a concurring statement, asserting that if platform employees create an algorithm that identifies and deletes information, the First Amendment protects that exercise of editorial judgment. That might not be the situation, Barrett said, for algorithms that automatically present content aimed at users’ preferences.
Kagan added a footnote to her majority opinion buttressing that point and reinforcing Barrett’s view. Kagan wrote that the court was not dealing “with feeds whose algorithms respond solely to how users act online – giving them the content they appear to want, without any regard to independent content standards.”
Barrett’s concerns have been worrying to some, as it suggests that algorithmic recommendations may not be protected by the First Amendment. This would upset a bunch of what people thought was settled law regarding things like search engine recommendations. However, the hope is that if such a case comes before the Court (which it almost certainly will…), that a fuller briefing on the record would clarify that algorithmic recommendations are still speech.
As we noted, Alito’s concurrence reads pretty petulant. It declares the majority’s “First Amendment applies to social media” explanation as “nonbinding dicta.” CNN details that this was him being angry that he lost the majority on that case.
But the key reason he lost control over the decision seems to be that he, unlike the eventual majority, would have sided a lot more with the Fifth Circuit’s ruling, which upended a century’s worth of First Amendment law.
Alito had the backing of only two justices in the end, Thomas and Gorsuch. He expressed sympathy for state efforts to restrict what, in an earlier phase of the Texas case Alito called “the power of dominant social media corporations to shape public discussion of the important issues of the day.”
In his separate July 1 opinion for a minority, Alito pointed up why states might want to regulate how platforms filter content: “Deleting the account of an elected official or candidate for public office may seriously impair that individual’s efforts to reach constituents or voters, as well as the ability of voters to make a fully informed electoral choice. And what platforms call ‘content moderation’ of the news or user comments on public affairs can have a substantial effect on popular views.”
Like Oldham, Alito took jabs at the “sophisticated counsel” who challenged the state regulations.
The same article notes that Alito also lost the majority on another “Fifth Circuit misunderstands the First Amendment” case. The one involving Sylvia Gonzalez, who was retaliated against by the mayor for her efforts to shake up the local government. The Fifth Circuit originally said this was totally fine. Eventually, the Supreme Court sent the case back to the Fifth Circuit to try again.
But again, Alito tried to go too far:
When the justices voted on the case in March, the majority agreed that the 5th Circuit erred in the standard it used. Alito was assigned the opinion.
But as he began writing, he went further than the other justices in his review of Gonzalez’s case. Alito and his colleagues realized he couldn’t “hold five,” as the expression goes, for a majority.
A new majority agreed to dispatch the case with a limited rationale in unsigned opinion. Rejecting the 5th Circuit’s reasoning, the Supreme Court said the 5th Circuit had applied an “overly cramped view” of the court’s precedent for when people may sue for First Amendment retaliation claims. The high court noted that Gonzalez could not show evidence of whether officers handled similar situations differently because her situation, involving the alleged removal of a document, was exceedingly rare.
Alito also wrote a concurrence for that case, but here he went on a long rant basically explaining why even if the Fifth Circuit used the wrong standard, there were lots of reasons why Gonzalez should have lost her case. Basically, if he had written the majority opinion, all of this would have qualified as “nonbinding dicta” under Alito’s own standard. Now, at least, it’s just a concurrence.
But, apparently, because Alito was ticked off that he couldn’t “hold five” in either of these cases, it caused him to take his ball and go home (i.e., just not show up at the Court on decision days):
On June 20, when the chief justice announced the opinion in Gonzalez v. Trevino, Alito’s chair at the bench was empty. Alito missed that day, as a total four opinions were handed down, and the next, June 21, when the justices released five other opinions.
Justices sometimes skip one of these final days of the annual session, but usually there’s an obvious reason for the absence, such as travel to a previously scheduled speech. Court officials declined to provide any explanation.
Alito returned for the final four announcement days of the term, yet sometimes appeared preoccupied. On the last day, when Kagan announced the decision in the NetChoice case, Alito was reading through material he had brought along to the bench.
Poor baby.
In both cases, Alito’s view of the First Amendment seems disconnected from reality and history. And, in both cases, he still had a chance to write the majority opinion (sending both cases down on what is, effectively, technicalities). But, in both cases, he was unable to write a reasonable opinion, causing his colleagues on the bench to jump ship to more reasonable rulings.
And, in response, he decided to just sulk like a teenager who didn’t get his way. In the end, that left us with a much better, more First Amendment supportive majority decision (in both cases). But it’s truly incredible how close we came to bad decisions in each, and how both of those flipped due to Alito’s insistence on pushing his terrible, unsupported ideas about free speech.