With just one win in 15 rounds of Serie A action, Crotone find themselves languishing in the relegation zone, sitting second from bottom with only one point separating them from the dreaded drop zone. The team's lackluster performances on the pitch have left fans disillusioned and questioning Mazzarri's ability to steer the ship in the right direction.As the dust settles and the confetti clears, the Fearless Covenant Ant Esports team stands tall as the epitome of excellence in the world of competitive gaming. Their journey to the top was a testament to their skill, determination, and unwavering commitment to the game.
As this unique situation unfolds, it raises interesting questions about the intersection of personal motivation, financial investment, and legal recourse in the context of self-improvement challenges. It serves as a reminder of the complexities and potential pitfalls that can arise when individuals engage in endeavors that require a high level of commitment and discipline.
As we continue to embrace the digital era and rely on technology for various aspects of our lives, collaborations like this between Amap and Lenovo's Baiying platform serve as a testament to the innovation and commitment to enhancing user experiences in the ever-changing landscape of technology and services. With a simple click, users can now access professional computer services with ease, knowing that they have the support they need at their fingertips.Column: The Chicago Bulls could advance to the NBA Cup semifinals with an unlikely win Friday. Who does that help?
PSV Eindhoven mounted a stunning comeback with three late goals against Shakhtar Donetsk to give their chances of progress in the Champions League a huge boost. The Ukrainian side were on the brink of pulling off an upset of their own in the Phillips Stadium as they twice punished some sloppy PSV defending in the first half with lethal finishes by Danylo Sikan and Oleksandr Zubkov. PSV were the more enterprising side, but were unable to find a way past the colossal presence of Dmytro Riznyk in the Shakhtar goal. But they were handed a lifeline in the 70th minute when Pedro Henrique was sent off for upending Johan Bakayoko. Riznyk continued to repel the home side’s attacks until Malik Tillman stepped up to take a free-kick in the 87th minute. The American midfielder spotted the goalkeeper a fraction off his line and drove in a hard low shot that Riznyk clutched but carried over the line. Tillman’s second goal three minutes later was a gem as he picked up a loose ball five metres outside the penalty area, shifted it onto his right foot and unleashed a shot that flew past Riznyk’s outstretched right hand. With the clock ticking down on five minutes of time, substitute Ricardo Pepi squeezed the ball inside the left-hand post from Ryan Flamingo’s lay-off to break Shakhtar’s hearts and claim all three points. The result leaves PSV in 18th place in the 36-team table, four points above the cut-off point that would give them a place in the play-off round, with three matches to play in the group stage. Captain Luuk de Jong said his team-mates had dug themselves out of a hole after allowing Shakhtar to take a 2-0 lead. “We were the better team, but they had one tactic and that was the counter, while we didn’t convert enough of our chances,” he told Ziggo Sport. “After the red card we were able to come back, Malik scored two fantastic goals and Ricardo was in the right place to win the game. It was fantastic.” PSV’s next match is away to French surprise packages Brest, who are just outside the automatic qualification places in 11th spot, on December 10.
Stock Market Today: Dow Jones, Other Indexes Slide Into The Close; UnitedHealth Closes Below Crucial Level (Live Coverage) - Investor's Business Daily
What Ails America... And How To Fix ItEveryone will love this Marry Me chicken budget mealNEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks climbed Thursday after market superstar Nvidia and another round of companies said they’re making even fatter profits than expected. The S&P 500 pulled 0.5% higher after flipping between gains and losses several times during the day. Banks, smaller companies and other areas of the stock market that tend to do best when the economy is strong helped lead the way, while bitcoin briefly broke above $99,000. Crude oil, meanwhile, continued to rise. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 461 points, or 1.1%, and the Nasdaq composite edged up by less than 0.1%. Nvidia rose just 0.5% after beating analysts’ estimates for profit and revenue yet again, but it was still the strongest force pulling the S&P 500 upward. It also gave a forecast for revenue in the current quarter that topped most analysts’ expectations due to voracious demand for its chips used in artificial-intelligence technology. Its stock initially sank in afterhours trading Wednesday following the release of the results. Some investors said the market might have been looking for Nvidia’s revenue forecast to surpass expectations by even more. But its stock recovered in premarket trading Thursday, and Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said it was another “flawless” profit report provided by Nvidia and CEO Jensen Huang, whom Ives calls “the Godfather of AI.” The stock meandered through Thursday as well, dragging the S&P 500 and other indexes back and forth. How Nvidia’s stock performs has more impact than any other because it’s grown into Wall Street’s most valuable company at roughly $3.6 trillion. The frenzy around AI is sweeping up other stocks, and Snowflake jumped 32.7% after reporting stronger results for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The company, whose platform helps customers get a better view of all their silos of data and use AI, also reported stronger revenue growth than expected. BJ’S Wholesale Club rose 8.3% after likewise delivering a bigger profit than expected. That may help calm worries about how resilient U.S. shoppers can remain, given high prices across the economy and still-high interest rates. A day earlier, Target tumbled after reporting sluggish sales in the latest quarter and giving a dour forecast for the holiday shopping season. It followed Walmart , which gave a much more encouraging outlook. Nearly 90% of the stocks in the S&P 500 ended up rising Thursday, and the gains were even bigger among smaller companies. The Russell 2000 index of smaller stocks jumped a market-leading 1.7%. Google’s parent company, Alphabet, helped keep indexes in check. It fell 4.7% after U.S. regulators asked a judge to break up the tech giant by forcing it to sell its industry-leading Chrome web browser. In a 23-page document filed late Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice called for sweeping punishments that would include restrictions preventing Android from favoring its own search engine. Regulators stopped short of demanding Google sell Android but left the door open to it if the company’s oversight committee continues to see evidence of misconduct. All told, the S&P 500 rose 31.60 points to 5,948.71. The Dow jumped 461.88 to 43,870.35, and the Nasdaq composite added 6.28 to 18,972.42. In the crypto market, bitcoin eclipsed $99,000 for the first time before pulling back toward $98,000, according to CoinDesk. It’s more than doubled so far this year, and its climb has accelerated since Election Day. President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to make the country “the crypto capital of the planet” and create a “strategic reserve” of bitcoin. Bitcoin got a further boost after Gary Gensler, the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, said Thursday he would step down in January . Gensler has pushed for more protections for crypto investors. Bitcoin and related investment have a notorious history of big price swings in both directions. MicroStrategy, a company that’s been raising cash expressly to buy bitcoin, saw an early Thursday gain of 14.6% for its stock quickly disappear. It finished the day with a loss of 16.2%. In the oil market, a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude rose 2% to bring its gain for the week to 4.8%. Brent crude, the international standard, climbed 1.8%. Oil has been rising amid escalations in the Russia-Ukraine war. In stock markets abroad, shares of India’s Adani Enterprises plunged 22.6% Thursday after the U.S. charged founder Gautam Adani in a federal indictment with securities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities and wire fraud. The businessman and one of the world’s richest people is accused of concealing that his company’s huge solar energy project on the subcontinent was being facilitated by an alleged bribery scheme. Stock indexes elsewhere in Asia and Europe were mixed. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury inched up to 4.43% from 4.41% late Wednesday following some mixed reports on the U.S. economy. One said fewer U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week in the latest signal that the job market remains solid. Another report, though, said manufacturing in the mid-Atlantic region unexpectedly shrank. Sales of previously occupied homes, meanwhile, strengthened last month by more than expected. AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Yuri Kageyama contributed.
Which Eagles Group Must Step Up After Key Injury?
The PLA's clearing of the airspaces near Taiwan has been seen as a clear demonstration of its military capabilities and intention to assert control over the region. This aggressive posturing has not gone unnoticed by Taiwan, which has long faced threats from China due to their longstanding political dispute.Wallabies' bounce helps Schmidt convince Campo and co
In a recent interview, Jackson Yee, also known as Yi Yangqianxi, one of China's most prominent young actors and member of the popular boy band TFBoys, shared his thoughts on the social responsibility of young actors and the importance of having a profound respect for the acting profession. Yee emphasized the significance of actors approaching their roles with a sense of duty and reverence, recognizing the influential platform they hold in shaping societal values and perceptions.
President Joe Biden on Thursday commuted the sentences of around 1,500 people convicted of crimes and pardoned 39 people. This follows his pardoning of his son, Hunter Biden, earlier this month. The White House stated that those pardoned “have shown successful rehabilitation and a strong commitment to making their communities safer,” adding that they have “successfully reintegrated into their families and communities” since the pandemic release. Those 1,500 people have been serving out home sentences for at least one year under the CARES Act, which was passed in 2020 during the pandemic. They include a woman who led emergency response teams during natural disasters, a church deacon who works as a counselor, and a military veteran. The president had previously issued 122 commutations and 21 other pardons. He’s also broadly pardoned those convicted of the use and possession of marijuana on federal lands and in the District of Columbia and pardoned former U.S. service members convicted of violating a now-repealed military ban. Earlier this month, the president pardoned Hunter Biden for two federal tax and gun convictions, which were scheduled for sentencing in the coming weeks. Biden also pardoned his son for any other crime he may have committed between Jan. 1, 2014, and Dec. 1, 2024. “He believes in the justice system, but he also believes that politics infected the process and led to a miscarriage of justice,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, who, along with Biden and other White House officials, had previously said that Hunter Biden would not get a pardon. It’s customary for a president to grant pardons or commutations at the end of his term, using the power of the office to wipe away records or end prison terms. The power of clemency has its roots in English law. It made it across the ocean to the American colonies and stuck around. The U.S. Supreme Court has found the presidential pardon authority to be very broad. In his first term, President Donald Trump granted 237 acts of clemency, while President Barack Obama granted clemency 1,927 times in his eight years. Presidents have forgiven drug offenses, fraud convictions, Vietnam-era draft dodgers, fighting for the Confederacy in the Civil War, and many other things. Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) and 34 other lawmakers are urging the president to pardon environmental and human rights lawyer Steven Donziger, who was imprisoned or under house arrest for three years because of a contempt of court charge related to his work representing farmers in a lawsuit against Chevron. Others have called on Biden to commute the sentences of federal death row prisoners. Some Democratic lawmakers have publicly said Biden should issue preemptive pardons for certain people. Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), the former House Democratic majority whip, responded to a question during an MSNBC interview about whether Biden should pardon Trump. “Yes, I do think so,” the longtime congressman responded. “And I think he should pardon all of those people that have been accused and have been targeted so we can clean the slate and have an air of possibilities for the future.” “If we keep digging up things of the past, I’m not too sure the country would not lose its way,” Clyburn said while also defending Biden’s decision this month to pardon his son for two federal convictions. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday that Trump should be pardoned for the New York case earlier this year in which he was found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records. Only the governor of New York can issue that pardon because it was a state crime.
In contrast to the reliance on old guards, the 2024 summer transfer window has been marked by a lack of impactful signings across the league. Many clubs have struggled to find the right players to strengthen their squads, with some high-profile signings failing to live up to expectations. The absence of significant new additions has placed an even greater emphasis on the importance of team chemistry and continuity, making the performances of veteran players all the more crucial.WASHINGTON - As president-elect Donald Trump rattles his closest neighbours with threats of tariffs, he is also firming up the team of loyalists to put his plans into action. Trump’s team to lead his trade agenda and the American economy include trade lawyers, former advisers and Wall Street executives who have all expressed favourable views of tariffs. “He’s choosing a lot of people who are going to be loyal to him and his ideas,” said Matthew Lebo, a specialist in U.S. politics at Western University in London, Ont. “And that probably will lead to a lot more volatility than even we saw in the first term.” On Tuesday evening, Trump picked Jamieson Greer to be U.S. trade representative. The president-elect said Greer played a key role in the first Trump administration imposing tariffs on China and negotiating the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement. If confirmed, Greer will oversee the trade pact’s review in 2026. “Jamieson will focus the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative on reining in the country’s massive trade deficit, defending American manufacturing, agriculture, and services, and opening up export markets everywhere,” Trump said in a statement. Greer was the chief of staff to former U.S. trade representative Robert Lighthizer as the trilateral agreement was being crafted to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement, which was torn up last time Trump entered office. Greer’s nomination came the day after Trump said he will impose a 25 per cent import tariff on goods coming from Canada and Mexico. He has also announced an additional 10 per cent tariff on goods from China. Trump said the tariffs against Canada and Mexico would remain in place until both countries stop people and drugs, in particular fentanyl, from illegally crossing the border into the U.S. A Canadian Chamber of Commerce report suggested Trump’s previous pledge to impose a 10 per cent levy would take a $30-billion bite out of the Canadian economy. More than 77 per cent of Canadian exports go to the U.S. and trade comprises 60 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product. Some economists have warned across-the-board duties would cause inflation in the U.S., even though Trump campaigned on lowering costs for Americans. Greer was deeply involved in Trump’s original sweeping tariffs on China and subsequent negotiations on the U.S.-China Phase 1 trade agreement, online biographies say. In testimony about China’s trade agenda at a House trade subcommittee last year, Greer said he believes “good fences make good neighbours, and trade enforcement is an important part of establishing those fences.” On Tuesday, Trump also tapped Kevin Hassett to be the director of the White House National Economic Council. The role will be key in fulfilling Trump’s campaign promise to fix the U.S. economy. His announcement said Hassett will also “ensure that we have fair trade with countries that have taken advantage of the United States in the past.” Hassett served during the first Trump term as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers and the president-elect has called him a “true friend.” The latest nominations round out an economic team that includes hedge fund executive Scott Bessent for Treasury secretary and Howard Lutnick, the CEO of Wall Street investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald, who was tapped for commerce secretary. If confirmed by the Senate, Lutnick would oversee a sprawling cabinet agency and Trump’s tariff agenda. He has been a vocal supporter of Trump’s tariff plans. In an CNBC interview in September he said tariffs are “an amazing tool for the president to use — we need to protect the American worker.” Lebo said as Trump prepares to return to office he is removing any person who could prove to be a guardrail or check on his power. “These are people aligned with Trump,” Lebo said. “More and more aligned with his campaign rhetoric.” This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 27, 2024. — With files from The Associated PressAP Business SummaryBrief at 2:38 p.m. ESTDunhuang, located in Gansu Province, is famous for the Mogao Caves, a UNESCO World Heritage Site filled with exquisite Buddhist art and manuscripts dating back to the 4th to 14th centuries. The intricate murals, sculptures, and calligraphy found in the caves have long captivated visitors with their timeless beauty and spiritual significance. Now, with the rise of tech-savvy youth, these ancient masterpieces are being revitalized as eye-catching designs on mobile phone skins, allowing people to carry a piece of Dunhuang's cultural legacy wherever they go.
By Jason Rodriguez on December 12, 2024 at 2:05PM PST GameSpot may receive revenue from affiliate and advertising partnerships for sharing this content and from purchases through links. Sukhothai's rivers and jungles are what you'll explore later in the Indiana Jones and the Great Circle campaign. Once there, you also have to solve several tricky challenges left behind by the people of the Khmer Empire. Here's our guide on how to complete all Khmer Cogwheel Puzzles in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. How to solve all Khmer Cogwheel Puzzles in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle - Puzzle guide The Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Khmer Cogwheel Puzzles can be found all over the Sukhothai region. We've organized our guide to start out with a few basic tips, followed by the locations of these brain teasers. Note that these tend to reward you with Sukhothai Relics , which are needed if you want to unlock the game's secret ending . The Khmer Cogwheel Puzzles in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle all involve the use of gears, which you need to place on a diagram to activate machinery. Here are a few tips: Puzzle diagrams consist of large cogwheels, which you leave behind in their respective puzzle chambers, and small cogwheels, which you get to bring along to other areas. There are 10 of these small cogwheels in total. The goal of each puzzle is to align all gears so that everything rotates and moves when you pull the lever in the room. Doing so nets you a Sukhothai Relic as a reward (except for the first area). Don't leave behind small cogwheels when you're done with a puzzle, since you still need them for later. You may also purchase the Sukhothai Cogwheels booklet from Tongdang, which costs 700 baht. Lastly, you can find pillars outside these puzzle rooms. Take pictures of these to earn Adventure Points. The map above shows the Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Khmer Cogwheels. We've numbered them accordingly based on how many small gears are required to fully activate the mechanism in each area. Moreover, the seventh and last location isn't marked on the map, even while tracking the quest, as it's meant to be the last challenge. Note: There are alternate methods to solve each chamber's puzzle. However, we've encircled the spots where we placed the small gears so you have an idea of how we completed each part. The first Khmer Cogwheel Puzzle that you encounter is actually part of The Blessed Pearl main quest, which takes place in the northwestern portion of the map. After swimming underwater past the Yaek statue, you'll find yourself in a chamber with a waterwheel and two mechanisms. There are two small gears on the floor, and the third is on a ledge in the adjacent room. In any case, the mechanism to your right requires all three small gears, as well as the large gears in the room. The image above is for the mechanism on your left. As usual, you need the large and small gears. When you're done, the stone gate should open, revealing the Hidden Pyramid just beyond. Don't forget to grab the small gears that you just used. Located in the western part of Sukhothai. You can pick up another small gear in this room. You only need four at this point, though you still need to place the larger gears in the correct spots. This particular chamber is on the same island as the large temple in the center of the map. You need five small cogwheels for this trial. This Khmer Cogwheel in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is in the overworld area of Wat Si Sawai. As such, you won't need to head to the underground area, which is part of the Kid Who Vanished side quest. In any case, you just need to place two large gears and six of the small parts to activate the machine. Fast travel to Wat Chana Songkhram and ride the boat to the east. When you see an opening in the walls, dive and use the Rebreather so you can access this next challenge. Similar to the previous trial, you also need to use the Rebreather to pass through the underwater opening. As for the diagram itself, you mostly just form an inverted-L shape from top to bottom using the smaller gears. Once you've finished the previous challenges, the River Bank chamber should get tracked on your map. This one tends to be the hardest since it requires the large gears in the room and all 10 small parts you've collected. In any case, you should be done with all Khmer Cogwheel Puzzles in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. This whole endeavor nets you an additional six relics, though there are more to obtain as you explore the region. You can learn about these in our Sukhothai Relics guide . You can also check our Lost Artifacts of Asia guide to acquire another type of collectible. You're bound to encounter many secrets, puzzles, and challenges in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. As you continue your adventure, we encourage you to take a look at our Indiana Jones and the Great Circle guides hub . Upvote Leave BlankSo, get ready to embark on a romantic journey like no other. "Gorgeous, Surrounded by Adoration" is not just a game – it's a heartfelt exploration of the complexities of human relationships, the power of connection, and the eternal quest for love and happiness.
By Phil Owen on November 27, 2024 at 1:19PM PST GameSpot may receive revenue from affiliate and advertising partnerships for sharing this content and from purchases through links. What exactly does it mean for a game to be like Fortnite? That's a question that used to be a fairly simple one--Fortnite became popular as a battle royale, so "games like Fortnite" usually meant other battle royale games. The situation is a little bit different now that we're in Fortnite's seventh year of existence, as Epic Games' metaverse has grown in a lot of different ways. On top of that battle royale mode, there's Fortnite Festival, Lego Fortnite, Rocket Racing, and thousands of user-created islands in the bottomless pit that is Fortnite Creative. Fortnite is still primarily known as a battle royale, judging by the player-counts--but the rest of Fortnite continues to grow. Some folks, like me, like to sample everything, and some tend to stay in the modes and games they already know they enjoy and don't feel much of an urge to explore. There's nothing at all wrong with either approach--it just means that "games like Fortnite" can mean pretty different things to different people these days. With that in mind, we're going to make our recommendations based on some of the various niches that can be found within Fortnite, rather than looking for other games that have this same breadth and scope. There just aren't many games that can compare, so it would be silly to go that route. Instead, scroll on for recommendations for other games that hit some of the same niches that Fortnite does. Many of these are free-to-play; for more of those, check out our picks for the best free games . For fans of : Shooty shooty Developer : Raven Software, Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games Release Date : March 10, 2020 Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S Genre : Shooter, battle royale One key reason that Fortnite has persisted is that Epic is able and willing to spend so much money and resources keeping it up. Very few companies would ever even be able to consider the sort of spending Epic does on Fortnite, but Activision is definitely one of them, turning out Call of Duty games with blockbuster-movie budgets year after year. With that being the case, Call of Duty, including Warzone, makes for an excellent alternative to Fortnite--it's got battle royale in a very different flavor, it's got other modes to mess around with when you're tired of the open world, it's got tons of great cosmetics and skins, and rarely does Activision cheap out. It's not as free as Fortnite, since playing standard multiplayer requires buying a new game every year, but it's solid counterprogramming even so. For fans of : Battle royale games Developer : PUBG Studios Release Date : December 20, 2017 Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Android, iOS Genre : Shooter, battle royale PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds is the game that popularized the battle royale genre, from which Fortnite took cues from in developing its own BR mode. This OG battle royale is still going strong today, even though the days when it dominated all of PC gaming are long gone--and while it lacks the polish of Fortnite, there's still something very endearing about going back to the original and seeing how it's evolved. For fans of : Action and shooter games with fast movement, battle royale games Developer : Respawn Entertainment Release Date : February 4, 2019 Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, Android, iOS Genre : Shooter, battle royale EA's entry in the battle royale genre carved out its own niche by pairing Titanfall's sick movement mechanics--something Fortnite cribbed from with its own movement updates during Chapter 3--with a hero shooter. Thanks to that unique combination, Apex Legends has a fundamentally different feel from Fortnite, and that makes it a great option for when you need a break from Epic's never-ending grind. For fans of : Historical action games, extraction shooters, battle royale games Developer : Crytek Release Date : February 22, 2018 Platforms : PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S Genre : Extraction shooter, battle royale Crytek's cooperative shooter--it has both an extraction-shooter/bounty-hunter PvPvE mode as well as a battle royale--has a distinctly different flavor from all the competition because it's set in the late 1800s and features period-appropriate gadgets and weapons in a Van Helsing-esque gothic setting. So even while it covers some of the same ground as other games you may have played, the package it comes in is novel enough that it doesn't matter. For fans of : Competitive multiplayer, horror movies Developer : Behaviour Interactive Release Date : June 14, 2016 Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, Android, iOS Genre : Cooperative, asymmetrical multiplayer This is a scrappy asymmetrical indie multiplayer game in which four survivors have to match wits with a single, player-controlled boss enemy. There is a Fortnite comparison to be made just with that cooperative gameplay alone, which is a blast, but where it really hits the spot and can even surpass Fortnite is in its DLC--while Fortnite has some pretty solid horror movie skins, Dead by Daylight has way more. Fanatical and GameSpot are both owned by Fandom. For fans of : Arcade-style racing games, making custom tracks Developer : Ubisoft Nadeo Release Date : July 1, 2020 Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S Genre : Racing With arcade-style driving mechanics, tracks that do loops and make you do big jumps, and the ability to design and share your own wacky tracks, Trackmania sounds a whole lot like Rocket Racing. But while Rocket Racing is still in its infancy, folks have been plugging away at Ubisoft's free-to-play racer for years now, and it's chock full of weird and interesting tracks that anybody can try. For fans of : Racing games, extreme sports games Developer : RageSquid Release Date : May 7, 2019 Platforms : PC, Mac, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, Android, iOS Genre : Driving, platforming If you were to combine the more forgiving arcade-style controls of Rocket Racing with the platforming of Trials, you'd end up with something like Descenders: a game about riding a dirtbike down hills. The beauty of this one is that it's only ever as easy or difficult as you want it--you can have a relaxing ride down a slight slope, or go with a path on an ultra-steep incline that's covered in huge jumps. And since there's no battle pass to grind here, you can simply enjoy Descenders because it's fun, and not because you're being coerced into it with the promise of free cosmetics. For fans of : Rhythm games Developer : Harmonix Release Date : October 6, 2015 Platforms : PS4, Xbox One Genre : Rhythm If you enjoy Fortnite Festival but are frustrated by how weirdly expensive the songs are, Rock Band 4 goes for just $10 on digital storefronts these days, and you get more than 100 songs for that small sum. There's a catch, of course--Rock Band 4 was not designed primarily to be played with a gamepad the way Festival is, and so ideally you'll need a plastic instrument to go with it. So for those folks who bought the new PDP Riffmaster guitar for Festival, you can get a little more bang for your buck with Rock Band 4, because that guitar is fully compatible with it. For fans of : Rhythm games Developer : Sega Release date : 2016 for most recent console version, 2022 for most recent PC version Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Arcades Genre : Rhythm Some hardcore Festival players have noted that Festival is pretty forgiving for a rhythm game, particularly when playing on a gamepad. If you're one of those people looking for an additional challenge but don't want to deal with plastic guitars, give one of the Hatsune Miku games a chance--any max-difficulty song in a recent Project Diva game is much harder than anything you'll find in Festival, and you still get to play dress-up with your characters. And the most recent games include literally hundreds of songs, so it'll take a very long time to get bored. For fans of : VR, rhythm games Developer : Beat Games Release Date : May 21, 2019 Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Meta Quest Genre : VR, rhythm Very few virtual reality games are worth the hassle of dealing with a VR setup for most folks, but the rhythm game Beat Saber is certainly an example of one that is . This is both because it's a lot of fun and because players have uploaded tons of custom charts for a shocking amount of music, so you won't have to spend hundreds of dollars' worth of fake currency to get it. For fans of : Hanging out in digital spaces Developer : PixelTail Games Release Date : April 8, 2016 Platforms : PC, Linux Genre : Social, party, minigames This janky little metaverse, which contains no microtransactions at all, is one of my favorite little virtual spaces to visit because it doesn't really have any hook--it's just a place to hang out, where you can play mini-golf on some surprisingly cool courses, or play blackjack at a casino, and there are a ton of really strange little user-created sub-worlds. But what really makes Tower Unite work is the Steam Workshop, where you can find tons of user-created skins of pretty much anything--my main is Shrek smoking a cigarette. For fans of : Hanging out in digital spaces, and having a job to do while you're there Developer : Linden Lab Release Date : June 23, 2003 Platforms : PC, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS Genre : Social, life sim The original metaverse--in this case essentially a virtual version of our world, in which the purpose of playing is simply to exist in that space and participate in this digital society--is somehow still around after more than two decades. It's a credit not just to the concept, but how solid the foundation is that Linden Lab built for it. For fans of : Racing games, extreme sports games Developer : Digital Extremes Release Date : March 25, 2013 Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, iOS Genre : Action, live-service The online actioner Warframe has long been a stalwart of the live-service genre, persisting for more than a decade while most other attempts at that kind of thing have crashed and burned. A big part of that is Warframe's incentive structure--there's always something to grind for in Warframe, because most cosmetics and unlocks can be earned through play, and its battle pass is free. For fans of : Shooters Developer : Bungie Release Date : September 6, 2017 Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S Genre : Shooter, live-service When the original Destiny originally launched back in 2014, it was successful in large part because it was the new shooter game and universe from the people who made Halo. But it and its 2017 sequel maintained that success by combining Bungie's unrivaled shooter feel with one of the best live-service hamster wheels in gaming. Destiny 2 is simply so enjoyable on its most basic level that it takes real effort to get burnt out on it. For fans of : Platforming, silly game shows Developer : Mediatonic Release Date : August 4, 2020 Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, Android, iOS Genre : Driving, platforming This goofy, bean-based game show, in which you compete against dozens of other players in a series of Nickelodeon-style competitions, is perpetually amusing, and since it's owned by Epic Games, it's packed with all sorts of cosmetic options that you can buy from the shop or unlock from the battle pass. But Fall Guys is great primarily because it's a totally unique experience that will constantly put a smile on your face, even if you don't mess with the cosmetics at all. For fans of : Survival, crafting Developer : Mojang Release Date : May 17, 2009 Platforms : PC, Mac, Linux, Xbox One, Xbox Series S|X, PS4, PS5, Switch Genre : Survival, crafting Lego Fortnite has been a particularly intriguing addition to Epic's metaverse, but even a year after its release, and tons of updates, it feels a little bit barebones compared with the very-well-established Minecraft. Mojang's game covers a lot of the same ground with its systems of exploration, crafting and building, and since it's been around for so much longer than Fortnite overall, much less Lego Fortnite specifically, there's just so much more going on in Minecraft. For fans of : Casual multiplayer games, party games Developer : Innersloth Release Date : Jun 15, 2018 Platforms : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, Android, iOS Genre : Party Epic infamously replicated this game, in which players have to complete a series of chores around a base while one or more of them is secretly trying to undermine and murder the others, within Fortnite with the Impostors mode a couple years back. That apparently wasn't a collab--which is why Impostors mode is long gone now. But if you miss that mode, the real thing is still right there, and it's still as much fun as it ever was. Upvote Leave BlankMicrosoft refutes accusations of training AI on customer data Microsoft says "connected experience" has been on by default since it was made available in April 2019 Microsoft has denied allegations that it uses customer data from its Microsoft 365 applications, such as Word and Excel, to train artificial intelligence models, Reuters reported. The company’s statement, issued on Wednesday, came in response to social media posts where users claimed that the “connected experiences” feature—enabled by default—was being used to train AI models. A Microsoft spokesperson clarified in an emailed statement to Reuters : "These claims are untrue. Microsoft does not use customer data from Microsoft 365 consumer and commercial applications to train foundational large language models." The spokesperson further explained that the "connected experiences" feature is responsible for functions like co-authoring and cloud storage, and is unrelated to how Microsoft trains its AI models. Despite this clarification, concerns about data privacy persist on social media, with some users expressing unease over their data being potentially used for AI training without explicit consent. Additionally, Microsoft told BleepingComputer that the "connected experiences" feature has been on by default since its introduction in April 2019. The feature enables tools such as real-time grammar suggestions and web-based resources, and Microsoft emphasised that users have full control over their settings and can opt out at any time. How were Mars's moons formed? What exciting update is WhatsApp rolling out? Australian Senate backs social media ban for children VPN demand soars amid stricter social media curbs in Pakistan
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