HBO's The Last Of Us Reveals Official Look At Joel And Ellie And Adds Game's Voice Actors

The fandoms are abuzz with excitement about HBO's upcoming bleak series adaptation of Naughty Dog's bleak 3-generation post-apocalyptic game The Last of Us. While the show's premiere still has a bit of a wait ahead of it, it seems that now was deemed an excellent time for a good old-fashioned info dump.

Neil Druckmann and the rest of the crew behind HBO's The Last of Us has just released the first solid and official look at Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie, respectively. Unlike the previous teaser image of Joel and Ellie, which them from the back, this shadowy new image reveals the pair in their full glory doing what they do best: hiding from clickers. The moody effect is compounded when one notices the looming clicker in the background, likely dredging up some pulse-pounding memories from the game itself.

This is surely an exciting tease for fans of the series, some of whom might have been wondering just how faithful the HBO series was going to be to the original game. But while Druckmann has said that the show would make some tweaks to the story of The Last Of Us, it appears as though the visual style will take much more close inspiration from the games. However, that's not the only element from the games making the jump to the small screen.

Druckmann also has announced that Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson, who voiced Joel and Ellie in the games, will appear in the HBO series, as reported by The Wrap. Their roles haven't been revealed just yet, and they obviously won't be abruptly pushing Pascal and Ramsey out of the lead parts, but it will be interesting to see where they show up. However, they aren't the first voice actors from The Last of Us to join HBO's adaptation. Merle Dandridge, who played Marlene in the game, also signed on to reprise her role in the series last year.

Given how Dandridge's involvement was confirmed over a year ago and the show's production is scheduled to end shortly (with Druckmann recently finishing work on his own contributions), odds may dictate that Baker and Johnson's roles will be much less substantial than they were in the games. Of course, there's always the chance that they were cast months ago and this was just a purposely delayed announcement on Druckmann's part. But either way, it's nice to have them on board.

The Last of Us is well known for having a pretty heavy emotional impact on its players, so the HBO adaptation is sure to continue that trend. Keep those tissues handy, because this adventure is going to delve into several definitions of exquisite pain.

Twitch Streamer Hasan Gets Surprise PO Box Gift

Twitch streamer Hasan "HasanAbi" Piker was more than a little surprised when he recently opened a package that had been sitting in one of his PO boxes for several months. The man who has long been one of Twitch's top streamers did a surprise unboxing of a gift he received that was actually tied back to one of the more significant controversies surrounding the platform.

Of course, HasanAbi is no stranger to controversy when it comes to Twitch. The streamer has long been one of the most influential voices on the site when discussing political issues in the United States and worldwide. That's led to him becoming quite popular in some circles and being quite disliked in others. His experiences might have given him a unique perspective on the controversy his recently unboxed gift reminded viewers about.

When Piker first unboxed the item and revealed he'd received a gift set from Valkyrae Hofstetter's controversial RFLCT skincare brand, he seemed momentarily speechless. In fact, even before he opened the package, Piker admitted he thought he might know what was in it and was a bit reticent to see what was inside.

When he pulled out the gift box, he joked that it was "officially a collectible" because RFLCT was now defunct. HasanAbi also pointed out he'd received the package back in October but never got around to opening it until now.

The recently revealed gift certainly holds quite a bit of history regarding the Twitch platform and several personalities on it. Valkyrae came under quite a bit of fire from several of her fellow streamers after becoming an official spokesman for RFLCT when the product was subsequently revealed to have made misleading statements. However, HasanAbi has also stepped in to support Valkyrae in recent months, saying RLFCT likely misled her just like everyone else.

Piker has received death threats in the not-so-distant past because of his public views on political issues affecting the country and the globe. That doesn't always mean that the streamer is likely to come to the defense of other personalities that get caught up in these kinds of issues. Still, in this particular scenario, it appears he believes Valkyrae is also a bit of a victim. While he clearly isn't a fan of the skincare line or what it represents, there's little doubt that HasanAbi is one of the few Twitch streamers who are well suited to talk about the double-edged sword that notoriety on the platform can be.

Skyrim Fan Creates Dwarven War Axe With 3D Printer

A Skyrim player 3D prints a Dwarven Axe, adding to their growing collection of weapons from the game, including a full set of glass gear.

The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim has a lot of outstanding features. There's the character creator that allows players to become anything from a typical human Imperial to a magic-wielding High Elf to a cat-like Khajit. There's also the builds players choose in Skyrim, which can have some turning to wizardry to blast their foes apart, while others simply charge in with a big weapon and heavy armor. Most, though, end up thinking they'll choose a new way to play but end up slinking to the back of a cave and sniping their enemies with Skyrim's stealth archer build.

Whatever way a player chooses to take on Skyrim, usually they'll need weapons in order to do it. Skyrim is known for having a vast array of equipment, from the intimidating Daedric gear to the more impractical weapons like the fork or the Wabbajack that feel more like jokes than anything else. However, in the range of weapons a player can equip themselves with, there are plenty of impressive tools, and one Skyrim player has taken to making some of them in real-life using a 3D printer.

Reddit user 3DPrintOrlando has so far created a full set of glass weapons from Skyrim, as well as some weapons from other IPs like the BFG900 from DOOM: Annihilation. Now, they have swapped the green crystal aesthetic of Skyrim's glass weapons for the brass look of the game's Dwarven gear. Specifically, they've created a realistic-looking Dwarven war axe. Shown off in the sunlight, the axe shines and appears to reflect the sun's rays, making the 3D printed weapon look even more like it was crafted from metal.

Skyrim fans were quick to praise 3DPrintOrlando's work. One fan said that they thought the video where 3DPrintOrlando shows off the axe was an Unreal Engine 5 demo, while another said that the real-life axe looks much better than its in-game counterpart. The top comment on the Reddit post made reference to Calcelmo, an NPC in Skyrim that will demand the player comes to meet him once they have acquired a piece of Dwarven gear.

With Skyrim players now able to see a shiny new rendition of the Dwarven axe from the game, some may reconsider their stance on the best-looking Skyrim weapon. Fans of the RPG debated that topic recently, with the rankings claiming that the glass weapons had the best fantasy aesthetic, with Daedric, Dragonbone, and Elven gear being identified as "looking cool."

Forza Horizon 5 Hot Wheels DLC Leaked Via Steam

Steam just leaked the header image for Forza Horizon 5's first major expansion pack, and the franchise is partnering up with Hot Wheels once more.

The fact that Forza Horizon 5 would be getting two major expansion packs over the course of its lifetime was known from the very start. Not only does the game's season pass (Expansions Bundle) specifically spell this out, but Playground Games' racing franchise has a set precedent for its DLC plan, with each new release getting exactly two post-launch expansions at some point in time.

Curiously, Playground Games has been rather quiet on that front, and Forza Horizon 5 players had virtually no idea what the game's first DLC might focus on. Now, however, that seems to be changing, as the game's official Steam page just leaked FH5's expansion 1, which seems to be another Hot Wheels DLC.

Though the leak for Forza Horizon 5's first major DLC was pulled back almost immediately, the page was backed up via a web archiving service, allowing users to share the link between them, should anybody be interested in checking the page out. That said, there's not much to this leak at all. The only significant piece of information was its Hot Wheels subject matter, since that was shown off as part of the special banner featured at the top of the page.

This leak is particularly surprising not just because the recent Hot Wheels Unleashed is a rather successful release, but also because Forza Horizon 3 already had its own Hot Wheels expansion pack. Its successor, on the other hand, received a LEGO-themed racing DLC, and the expectation was that Playground Games would come up with a different companion IP for Forza Horizon 5.

With that in mind, it seems that one of the best open-world racing games on the market is getting its wacky DLC early on this time around. Whereas FH3 and FH4 first received their "serious" expansion packs, only to follow them up with arcade collaboration releases later on, Playground Games seems to be doing things the other way around in this case. The Hot Wheels expansion pack is yet to be announced in an official capacity, too, which means it's got no release date at this time, either.

Finally, it may be worth pointing out that the splash screen itself doesn't seem to feature an existing Mexican location from the base FH5 game, but rather like a racing amusement park of some sort, perhaps. Whatever the case may be, players that are hoping to start farming the unique Hot Wheels replicas as soon as the DLC launches may wish to look into getting unlimited Wheelspins in Forza Horizon 5, too.

Elden Ring: Bloodflame Blade Location

There are many important incantations in Elden Ring, and the Bloodflame Blade ability is certainly no exception.

Elden Ring brings all the classic FromSoftware gameplay that players have come to love to an incredibly unique and special world. Within The Lands Between, there are so many things for players to do, fight, and discover. In fact, finding new items is one of the most important aspects of Elden Ring's gameplay. With that in mind, it can be extraordinarily helpful for gamers to know where to acquire certain items, like the Bloodflame Blade incantation.

With so many regions in Elden Ring, knowing where to look for certain items can be tricky (and sometimes dangerous), especially for new players. That's why gamers should make sure to do their research when it comes to acquiring powerful gear in-game.

Bloodflame Blade Location in Elden Ring

 

The Bloodflame Blade incantation is relatively easy to find. First, players need to make their way to Liurnia of the Lakes, just to the left of the academy.

There, south of one of Elden Ring's nearby Sites of Grace but north of Rose Church, players will be able to find a Teardrop Scarab. The scarab will be in the vicinity of other enemies, so it's best to be careful when approaching. Killing and looting the scarab will award players with the Bloodflame Blade.

The Bloodflame Blade is an incantation that will dramatically increase weapon abilities by providing fire damage. The incantation lasts for one minute and will take gamers ten seconds to cast.

The ability will provide enemies with a debuff, while also setting some opponents on fire. When paired with the right set of armor in Elden Ring, the Bloodflame Blade can become a deadly and effective tool for players.

It is worth noting, however, that the Bloodflame Blade cannot be used with swords or other weapons that have their own elemental infusions.

The Bloodflame Blade, aside from being powerful, is also representative of the imaginative combat gameplay within Elden Ring. Though players begin with Elden Ring's weak starting weapons, they quickly enter a vast open landscape filled with some of the most creative and powerful items ever accumulated in a game world.

Though Elden Ring isn't perfect, like many other video games, it has received well-deserved praise from players and FromSoftware fans for its unique world-building and intriguing story. And, though the Bloodflame Blade will not guarantee players the ability to defeat the title's most dangerous bosses, it is certain to help gamers on their journey through The Lands Between.

Elden Ring Player Dies in Ridiculous Way to Glitched Enemy

A particularly memorable Elden Ring enemy glitches out during a transformation, though they still manage to kill an unlucky player. Though the bosses in Elden Ring are undoubtedly the most memorable fights in the game, some of the regular enemies within the Lands Between can stand out due to their placements in the world. For example, some Elden Ring enemies transform into larger foes and attack the player, though recently one of these transformations bugged out in a funny way.

There are a handful of transforming enemies that can be found within Elden Ring’s world, going from basic mobs to far stronger enemies. Alongside the Runebear and Grafted Scion transformations, gamers can find a Lion Guardian outside of Leyndell. If players enter some ruins, they will stumble upon a basic foe cowering in the corner. If they cut them down, the enemy will turn into a massive Lion Guardian, one of the strongest regular enemies within the Lands Between.

 

This is exactly what goes down in a clip from Reddit user and Elden Ring player Penchkeg, with the player being fully aware of the jumpscare that happens when the cowering enemy is killed. After drinking some flasks to prepare for the upcoming fight, the Redditor backstabs the enemy, instantly killing them. While they do still turn into a Lion Guardian, they do not land on the ground like they are supposed to do, instead getting stuck in the corner and falling endlessly.

Alongside a funny noise as the enemy continuously bumps into the wall, the clip stands out due to the confusion being displayed by Penchkeg. While they have seemingly fought the enemy before, they likely did not expect to see it bug out like this. Though they could have moved on or tried slashing it from the front to get a free kill, they instead walked around the stuck Lion Guardian, getting a good view of the trapped enemy to make for a better clip. However, their decision to walk behind it proved fatal, as Penchkeg learned that even a buggy Elden Ring enemy can be dangerous.

Dubbed one of the “dumbest ways to die” in FromSoftware games by the Redditor, the clip sees them being kicked to death by the falling Lion Guardian. Much like the enemy, Penchkeg is completely trapped, unable to move as their health bar is quickly lowered. It seems like the game is treating each drop from the boss as if it were landing on top of the Tarnished, with the quick falls quickly killing off the curious player.

With FromSoftware’s latest game being as massive as it is, it is not surprising that there have been several Elden Ring glitches found since release. While this footage was funny to the 16,000 players that upvotes it, Penchkeg was likely a lot less happy to be felled by this buggy Lion Guardian.

Minecraft Dungeons Arcade Cabinet Revealed

Mojang Studios and Microsoft have revealed a brand-new way to play Minecraft Dungeons: on an arcade cabinet! Minecraft Dungeons Arcade is an all-new experience that allows players to engage in four-player co-op. The cabinets are currently being distributed for testing to select arcades throughout North America. The number of cabinets is said to be limited at this time, but more will be rolled out throughout the year. In an announcement post, Minecraft.net claims that the cabinets will be tested in arcades that are following local health guidelines during the coronavirus pandemic.

At this time, there has been no further information revealed about where fans can expect to find the cabinets. An image of the arcade cabinet can be found below. Minecraft Dungeons Arcade will apparently offer gameplay similar to the console and PC version, but players should expect a true arcade experience. The cabinet is being created by Play Mechanix, best known for its work on the Big Buck Hunter franchise. In the Minecraft.net post, Play Mechanix creative director Will Carlin discussed the collaboration, and its approach to the world of Minecraft Dungeons. “If you take a step back, you can see the similarities between the two, but when you take a step into [a consumer] game, it’s like a waltz,” said Carlin. “An arcade game on the other hand is some kind of super break-dancing speed experience – it’s about intensity of the moment, and surviving as long as possible – an intense burst of fun!” For fans of Minecraft Dungeons, it seems that the arcade version of the game just might be worth seeking out! Unfortunately, it's difficult to tell how common Minecraft Dungeons cabinets will be, as of this writing. The Minecraft.net post makes it clear that this is a testing phase, so it could be a while before the cabinets become a truly common sight. Still, for fans of the current version of the game, Minecraft Dungeons Arcade seems like a very exciting new addition for the series! 0comments Minecraft Dungeons is set currently available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC.

Fortnite Launches New Avengers Endgame Mode

Thanos isn’t alone this time. Epic Games and Marvel have once again joined forces to create a new mode for Fortnite Battle Royale in celebration of Avengers: Endgame‘s debut in theaters. Following its previous collaboration, Thanos returns to Fortnite but this time alongside his army of Chitauri warriors.

“Endgame Mode” sees players fight against Thanos and his forces as The Avengers team by keeping him from collecting the Infinity Stones and ending the world. Those on the side of Thanos control the Chitauri equipped with laser rifles.
The first player to find an Infinity Stone will transform into Thanos, allowing him to super jump, use beam attacks, and more. If players collect them all, respawning is disabled for the Avengers team. The Avengers players can pick up iconic Avengers weapons like Captain America’s shield and Iron Man’s Repulsors in chests scattered throughout the map. In other entertainment news, Avengers: Endgame has no post-credit scene.

Valve confirm The International 2019 dates

A few days back we saw a post from Vici Gaming on their Weibo account which offered us the dates for The International 2019. And now, via a post on the Dota 2 Twitter account, Valve have confirmed these dates.

The International 2019 will be taking place on August 20th through the 25th. We are still finalizing details that are required before tickets can go on sale, but we expect to be able to do that in a couple of weeks.

— DOTA 2 (@DOTA2) April 25, 2019

As can be seen above, the dates for TI9’s main event are August 20th through to the 25th, with the group stages taking place from August 16th to 18th. The tickets for the prestigious event will also go on sale in just a few weeks as they finalize each and every detail – which also means that IT IS ALMOST BATTLE PASS TIME! The Battle Pass – or Compendium to some, is a feature that both raises the prize pool of The International and gives players some fantastic rewards and fun during the months leading up to the event. While we still have not seen any information on this year’s Battle Pass, it is sure to come knocking in a few weeks too.

Now that we have the dates set as well as a venue, the Mercedes Benz Arena in Shanghai, China, we need only the teams. With four currently qualified and another eight spots from Dota 2 Pro Circuit Points, the coming MDL Disneyland and EPICENTER Major are going to be a battleground of intense proportions. As soon as more information on both the tickets and the Battle Pass become available, we will let everyone know – for now, enjoy the OGA Dota Pit Minor and all the other Dota 2 action coming your way in the new few weeks as we build towards The International 2019.

Fortnite is Getting another Avengers Crossover

The Avengers are coming back to Fortnite though in what form, we don’t know just yet. Today, developer Epic teased a crossover event between the two pop culture giants, which will kick off on April 25th, a day before the conclusive Avengers: Endgame hits theaters. Right now, all we can glean about the crossover comes from a single image of a Fortnite character wielding Captain America’s shield along with the tagline “whatever it takes.”

Last year, Marvel brought Thanos to the battle royale game with a limited time mode that let players take on the role of the galaxy-conquering villain. It seems like we’ll see a similar limited time event this time around that’s possibly based around Captain America’s shield. Epic did something along those lines when it introduced the Infinity Blade sword to the game though that crossover did not end so well. Hopefully, we’ll get some nice superhero skins as well  and, if we’re lucky, a Hulk smash emote.


As always, it’s a busy time in Fortnite. In addition to the forthcoming Avengers content, the game’s map is also undergoing changes as a series of strange alien runes steadily make their way across the island. Meanwhile, the competitive community is gearing up for the upcoming World Cup in July, which will include both battle royale and creative competitions.

You can now play games with friends inside of Snapchat

Snapchat just made its gaming platform official. The company unveiled its long-rumored gaming feature, Snap Games, at its Partner Summit event in Los Angeles. There are six games starting to roll out to the app now, including One of the games, Bitmoji Party, was created internally at Snap. As the name suggests, the game pits your Bitmoji against your friends' in a series of short minigames.

The other five games were created by outside developers and are only available in Snapchat, the company said. Snapchat's games are part of its messaging features, and friends or groups of friends can start a game from within a message thread by tapping on the new rocket ship icon in the app. When you start a game, the other people in the thread will get a notification alerting them they can join (you can also play some games solo). The overall concept is similar to what Facebook did with Instant Games inside of Messenger. Like those games, Snapchat's new titles are all relatively simple HTML5 games. One key differentiator though, according to Snap execs, is that Snapchat's games are all played live in real time and feature live text and audio chat. So while your Bitmoji is duking it out with your friends' Bitmoji, you can text and chat as you play.
In theory, this could help Snap appeal to fans of other popular multiplayer games like Fortnite, a game hugely popular with a similar demographic as Snapchat. There are even two battle royale-style games among the first batch of developer titles, which is a telling sign of exactly who Snap expects will be playing. (Snake Squad, a multiplayer snake game that sounds a bit like Slither.io, and Tiny Royale, Zynga's miniaturized take on the genre, where each battle is only two minutes long.) Snap's announcement comes on the heels of new gaming services from Apple (with Arcade) and Google (with Stadia), neither of which have launched. But while those services hope to win over users with well-known titles and premium features, Snap Games is meant to keep participants inside Snapchat by tying casual games to the conversations they're already having. It's not a new formula by any means but, if done right, it could help provide an engagement boost among the app's most important users.

Borderlands 3 Release Date And Updates

Following the series of Borderlands 3 leaks, Gearbox has officially announced that the game is coming to PC, PS4, and Xbox One on September 2019.
In the newly uploaded Borderlands 3 trailer, we can finally see the four new playable Vault Hunters that will be fighting against the evil Calypso Twins. The video also highlights some of the upcoming weapons in the game along with the reveal of the new world that players can explore.

In addition to the announcement, it has been confirmed that the upcoming Borderlands 3 will be exclusive in Epic Games Store, which means users won’t be able to purchase the game on other stores on PC except for Epic Games Store.

For PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, users can now also pre-order the game via different store outlets. If you’re planning to purchase the game, now is the time to place your order and get the physical copy of the game:

PlayStation 4 Borderlands 3 Pre-Order

• Buy Borderlands 3 Standard Edition – PS4 ($59.99)
• Buy Borderlands 3 Deluxe Edition – PS4 ($79.99)
• Buy Borderlands 3 Super Deluxe Edition – PS4 ($99.99)
• Buy Borderlands 3 Diamond Loot Chest Collector’s Edition Edition – PS4 ($249.99)

Xbox One Borderlands 3 Pre-Order

• Buy Borderlands 3 Standard Edition – Xbox One ($59.99)
• Buy Borderlands 3 Deluxe Edition – Xbox One ($79.99)
• Buy Borderlands 3 Super Deluxe Edition – Xbox One ($99.99)
• Buy Borderlands 3 Diamond Loot Chest Collector’s Edition Editio – Xbox One ($249.99)

Borderlands 3 launches on PC, PS4, and Xbox One on September 13, 2019.